For those who either lost the manual or didn’t receive one, guesswork-based programming is virtually impossible on the Vinker T01-A. And to be frank, if I lose my manual at some point, I’ll have a pretty difficult time figuring things out.

Thus, I’ll provide a “Matt’s Programming Guide for the Vinker” here. It’s based on details from the original manual, but written in a way that hopefully makes things a little more clear in some cases, particularly since the original seems to be a translated version.

Note that * and # are the critical keys used for programming: they’re not for emphasis.

Keep in mind that if your unit is brand new (and simply missing a manual), all the remotes and sensors are pre-programmed to the system by default, so you should be able to plug it in, arm the system with a remote, and just do some testing to ensure everything works. You can certainly come here to do some additional programming but don’t go wiping your system or “adding” remotes that are already present. The Vinker really is set up so that most people can just plug in and go.

The biggest caution to start with… plant the siren in a pillow during testing. It’s loud.

I do have some additional details mentioned in the review.

Basic remote buttons

Lock = arm
Unlock = disarm
Bell = siren (immediately sets off the alarm)
Lightning = “intelligent” arming, mentioned later

Complete System Reset and Erasing

If the alarm was previously used or badly misconfigured, you may want to completely reset the system. This will likely wipe the memory of all remotes and sensors. A complete reset can be performed as follows:

*7 0000 0000* *8 0000*

If you want to instead just erase something specific:

• Remotes: *02*
• Sensors and Motion Detectors: *8996*
• Main Password: #7 0000 0000 #

Password

A password is 4-digits long. It can be used:

• When phoning your alarm to remotely arm/disarm (if hooked up to a phone line)
• To password-protect the programming features of your alarm (a separate setting must be enabled as well for this)

If you have forgotten the password, it can be reset to the factory default of 0000 by pressing the following sequence:

# 7 0000 0000 #

To change the password:

*7 (PASS) (PASS) *

For example to use the password “1234”, you would press:

*7 1234 1234*

To enable password protection so that the password must be entered before any programming is done:

• Password protection on: *11*
• Password protection off: *10*

You are probably best to leave password protection off at first, to make initial programming faster. Once programming is complete you may want to enable it to reduce the chance that accidental button presses mis-program your alarm.

Time Display

Reminder: If password protection is enabled, begin with * (PASS) *

Time uses a 2-digit hour (00-23) and 2-digit minute (00-59). Programming is as follows:

*07 (HOUR) (MINUTE) *

For example:

• For 1:09AM you would use *07 01 09*
• For 1:09PM you would use *07 13 09*

Auto-dial alert notification

Reminder: If password protection is enabled, begin with * (PASS) *

When the alarm is triggered, it will attempt to phone up to 5 numbers in sequence. It will continue rotating through these numbers until it receives a response. To add a phone number to the list:

#1 (PHONE NUMBER) # (1st slot)
#2 (PHONE NUMBER) # (2nd slot)
#3 (PHONE NUMBER) # (3rd slot)
#4 (PHONE NUMBER) # (4th slot)
#5 (PHONE NUMBER) # (5th slot)

Entering a blank phone number will delete the entry.

For example:

• To add 555-123-4567 to the first slot, enter #1 5551234567#
• To add 1-555-123-4567 to the second slot, enter #2 15551234567#
• To erase slot #3, enter #3#

CAUTION/WARNING: You should test the numbers by intentionally setting off your alarm (disconnect or muffle the siren with a pillow) and making sure:

1. The alarm dials out correctly (if it does not, the phone line may be connected to the wrong position)
2. The alarm dials the correct phone numbers, and ONLY the correct phone numbers.

CAUTION/WARNING: It is usually illegal to set an alarm to automatically dial 911 or another emergency number. You should only set phone numbers of individuals who have given you consent. It is your responsibility to test and make sure that the alarm is calling only the intended people. It is your responsibility to ensure that if somebody changes or releases their number that you remove the number from your system.

Enabling or Disabling the alarms ability to receive calls:

The alarm can “answer” the phone and allow you to arm/disarm the system remotely. This can be helpful if you went on a trip and forgot to set the alarm. It may also be used if you went on a trip and neighbors contacted you to let you know the alarm is randomly going off and you would prefer to simply disarm it.

Because the alarm might be hooked up to a line you also use for voice calls, the number of rings until the alarm answers (from 0-9) can be programmed as follows:

*6 (RINGS)*

Setting rings to 0 disabled functionality. For example:

• Answer after 3 rings: *6 3*
• Answer after 9 rings: *6 9*
• Disable this feature: *6 0*

Note that if you have an answering machine or voicemail, you will probably not be able to use it at the same time as this feature. Either the alarm will answer first or the voice mail will answer first.

Communicating with the alarm by phone when *it* phones *you*:

If the alarm has called you, it will tell you which “zone” has been set off. It will not require a password. The alarm unfortunately will not tell you what your options are. However, you will secretly have the following options:

• Arm the alarm: 4
• Disarm the alarm: 5
• Play the voice: 6
• Confirm that you have been notified and hang up: #

For example, to disarm and re-arm the alarm you might press the following sequence: 54#

If you simply want to confirm you have been notified so that the alarm stops calling everyone in your list, press #.

Note that you must remember these abilities. If you answer and press nothing, the system may assume you are not there and continue rotating through the call list.

Communicating with the alarm by phone when *you* phone *it*:

If you phone the alarm, the experience is similar to the above, except:

• You must enter your password first.
• You have a couple extra options.

When you have phoned the alarm and it has answered, you must begin by entering your 4-digit password followed by the # sign. For example if your password is 1234:

1234#

After the password has been entered, in addition to arm/disarm, you have options to immediately set off the siren, or turn off the siren. You might set off the siren manually this way if you are monitoring your home on an IP camera and notice somebody has broken in or a wild animal has gained entry.

Options here are:

• Turn on the siren: 2
• Turn off the siren: 3
• Arm the system: 4
• Disarm the system: 5
• Confirm the option and hang up: #

Note that if you are slow to enter commands, the alarm may hang up on you if it perceives 20 seconds of inactivity. It may also hang up on you if you enter the wrong password.

Setting up Entry and Exit delays

You may want the alarm to arm instantly as soon as you have pressed the arm button on the remote. For example, if you only arm the system once you are outside, this may be the case. If you also plan to use the remote to disarm the alarm before entering the building, you may prefer that the alarm immediately goes off if a sensor is triggered.

On the other hand, if you’d like to be able to arm the alarm while inside and then have time to leave, you may want to set the number of seconds you have to exit the building before the system is fully armed. If you also want to be able to enter the building and have a “grace period” before the alarm and siren trigger, you may want to set the number of seconds here also.

An exit delay is set in seconds with 2-digits (00-99) as follows:

*4 (SECONDS)*

An entry delay is set in seconds with 2-digits (00-99) as follows:

#7 (SECONDS)#

Examples:

• To set an entry delay of 8 seconds: #7 08#
• To set an exit delay of 8 seconds: *4 08*
• To set no delay for entry: #7 00#
• To set no delay for exit: *4 00*

Siren Duration

If the alarm is triggered, you can choose how long the siren stays on before automatically shutting off. The default is 1 minute. The manual states that options are from 00-30. The format is as follows:

#9 (MINUTES)#

For example, to set the siren to stay on for 5 minutes if the alarm is triggered: #9 05#

Programming Remotes and Sensors

Adding remotes to the system can be done quickly from the main panel:

1. Press the F2 button on the panel.
2. Press a button on the remote you wish to add to the system.
3. The remote is now added.

Similarly, sensors (door sensors and motion sensors) are added in a similar way:

1. Make sure sensors that are currently installed will not be accidentally triggered during this process.
2. Press the F3 button on the panel.
3. Activate the sensor you wish to add. If it is a motion sensor, wave a hand in front of it. If it is a door/window sensor, either separate or close the contacts.

Intelligent Areas

The alarm supports “intelligent” areas, which correspond to the “lightning” button on the remote. You are not required to set these up, and if you decide to, be forewarned that it can get somewhat complicated.

Typically this is used if you are at home and want to be able to “arm” the doors and windows but do not want a motion sensor to set off the alarm.

The Vinker defines a number of possible “defense area” selections:

• #1: normal defense area
• #2: intelligent defense area
• #3: emergency defense area
• #4: multi-checked defense area
• #5: delay-alarm defense area
• #6: erase selected/specified defense area
• #7: repeat triggered defense area

Programming a sensor to an area is done in the format:

#8 (SENSOR_ID) (DEFENSE_AREA) #

Few details are provided in the main manual, beyond an example for motion sensors. Thus, I’ll provide the process for adding a motion sensor if you want to use the “intelligent” defense.

1. The motion sensor must already have been added to your alarm system (previous section).
2. Watch the alarm LCD and activate the motion sensor. The LCD should give a number. This is the 2-digit ID number of the motion sensor. Write it down. For the same of example we will assume it was #77.
3. If you look in the list above, “Intelligent Defense Area” is #2. We will use this next.
4. If you set password protection, begin with * (PASS) *
5. To set this sensor as a defense area sensor, enter #8  77 2#
6. To verify this worked, ensure doors and windows are closed and arm the alarm with the LIGHTNING button on the remote or LIGHTNING on the control panel. Wave your hand in front of the motion sensor and make sure the alarm does not sound. Open an armed door to make sure the alarm does sound.
7. To verify that normal arming works properly with the motion sensor. Arm the alarm with the LOCK button on the remote and wave your hand in front of the motion sensor. The alarm should activate and the siren should sound.

Details on the other options from 1-7 (emergency defense area, multi-check defense area, etc) are not detailed in the manual. It is possible that through trial-and-error you may be able to determine how those specific options might work.

The End

Once set up, the key things to really remember are your password (if set) and the over-the-phone arm/disarm numbers (5,4,#). Of course, if you think you might be doing some programming later and may lose your manual, remembering to bookmark this page too might be helpful!

Finally I do have a few other details in the Vinker review I wrote some time ago. Beyond that, if you have any questions or comments, feel free to plop them in a comment.