smart locks

Aqara pledges Home Key support for new Matter-enabled smart lock

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Aqara Smart Lock U200
U200's integration with smart-home platforms and compatibility with Home Key are subject to upcoming software updates.
Photo: Aqara

Aqara launched a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign Tuesday for its new Smart Lock U200. Built on the Thread networking protocol and native to the Matter standard, the lock will integrate with many smart home devices. But its compatibility with smart-home platforms like HomeKit — and its support for Home Key in particular — will come from future software updates.

Aqara’s new HomeKit-enabled wares include powerful hub, smart plug and lock

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Aqara Hub M3
The new Aqara Hub M3 can help your run your whole smart home.
Photo: Aqara

Aqara highlighted new HomeKit-enabled smart-home devices at CES 2024 Monday in Las Vegas — the new Hub M3, Border Router Plug and Smart Lock U300 — plus an AI chatbot interface for the Aqara Home App.

The devices support both Matter and Thread networking standards. And the hub may help you control your whole smart home.

Aqara Smart Lock U100: Your key to a smarter, safer home

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You can open the Aqara Smart Lock U100 with your iPhone or Apple Watch.
You can open the Aqara Smart Lock U100 with your iPhone or Apple Watch.
Photo: Aqara

Not very many deadbolt smart locks support Apple HomeKit or home key, the handy feature that lets you unlock the door with your iPhone or Apple Watch. But Aqara’s highly capable Smart Lock U100 does, and it offers many other smart features as well. That makes it a top choice for Apple fans everywhere to keep their homes safe and secure.

If you’d like to never carry a physical key and never get locked out again, read on.

Use Home Key, fingerprints or passwords with new deadbolt smart lock

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Home Key lets you open this new deadbolt smart lock with an iPhone or Apple Watch.
Home Key lets you open this new deadbolt smart lock with an iPhone or Apple Watch.
Photo: Aqara

Aqara released its first deadbolt smart lock Friday, the Smart Lock U100. It’s fully compatible with Apple’s HomeKit and you can open it with Home Key, fingerprints, passwords or — get this — a physical key.

Snark aside (a physical if often provided with smart locks for power outages), the stout new lock integrates with the Matter home automation standard and could become a vital part of HomeKit users’ smart-home arsenals.

Aqara previews video doorbell and other new HomeKit gadgets

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With AI onboard, the new Aqara G4 Video Doorbell can recognize people.
With AI onboard, the new Aqara G4 Video Doorbell can recognize people.
Photo: Aqara

Smart-home specialist Aqara said Thursday it will expand its product line in the coming months with a new video doorbell, LED light strips, a sensor with artificial intelligence and a smart door lock that works with Home Key. All of the new devices will work with HomeKit and other smart-home systems.

Rather than showcasing new products at CES 2023 in Las Vegas, however, the company put out a video showing off the four items below as if it were at the show.

Manage who enters your home from your iPhone with this $90 smart lock

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This smart door lock has five star reviews across the board - and you can grab 25% off today.
Make your door smart with this top-rated smart lock, less than $90 today.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Smart locks can give your house an extra layer of security and allow you to control who enters your home. If you’re looking for a top-rated smart door lock, consider the Bosma Aegis. It can turn any existing deadbolt into a smart lock, and it’s on sale for $89.99 (regularly $119).

It’s part of our Thankful Deals promotion, during which we’re releasing early Black Friday price drops on a curated selection of bestselling items, each handpicked for their low price points, high discounts, excellent reviews or rarity. But you’ll have to be quick! The sale ends on November 23 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific, but supplies might run out even before that!

Use iPhone as house key with new Level smart lock

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The Level Lock+ is available at some Apple Store locations.
The Level Lock+ is available at some Apple Store locations.
Photo: @James_dombro, twitter.com

Some Apple Store locations began stocking the exclusive new Level Lock+ last week, letting users open their door locks with their iPhone or Apple Watch via digital keys. And now you can get it online, too.

The functionality takes advantage of the change in iOS 15 last year adding support for home keys in Wallet. It uses NFC radio technology to let an iPhone or Apple Watch near the lock open it.

Your iPhone becomes a house key with this smart lock

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Lock and unlock your door anywhere, any time with the BOSMA Aegis.
The Bosma Aegis turns almost any lock into an iPhone-powered smart lock.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Part of the value of an iPhone is all the accessories you can tap into, even when you’re miles away from them. The Bosma Aegis, for instance, lets you turn your door lock into a smart lock that you can open with your iPhone.

It’s on sale for $89.99 (regularly $119) during our Deal Days event, running through October 12. During this sale, you’ll find a ton of discounted gadgets, e-learning courses, home goods and more. You can shop them all right now in our Deal Days collection.

Get $15 off SwitchBot and turn your dumb lock into a smart one

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The SwitchBot Lock fits over your existing
The SwitchBot Lock fits over your existing "dumb" lock.
Photo: SwitchBot

Users who aren’t ready to to take the plunge into full home-automation system like HomeKit and related accessories have another option to make a dumb lock smarter.

SwitchBot recently launched a new version of SwitchBot Lock. The company said it’s the best way to make a door lock smart without refitting, so users can lock or unlock their door via devices like iPhone or Apple Watch.

Better yet, right now you can get 15% off on Amazon, or about $15 off the $100 price.

Get your home security on lock with this smart, app-controlled deadbolt

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Check your door from your iPhone with this smart lock.
Lock your door from your iPhone with the Bosma Aegis.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Do you ever arrive at work and have that little panicky moment where you’re unsure if you locked the door? Do you go back? Call a neighbor? Hope your autopilot self was responsible today?

Why not just pull out your phone and check to be sure? With the Bosma Aegis, you can control your deadbolt with an app, but that’s not all you can do. For a limited time, the Bosma Aegis Smart Door Lock is only $79.99 (regularly $119) with code SMARTLOCK. If you’re interested, act fast though — this sale only lasts through August 2022.

Aqara offers a third, more-advanced smart lock for HomeKit and Home Key

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The Aqara Smart Door Lock D100 Zigbee works with HomeKit and Home Key.
The Aqara Smart Door Lock D100 Zigbee works with HomeKit and Home Key.
Photo: Aqara

Aquara launched its third and most-advanced smart lock for HomeKit and Home Key on Thursday, the D100 Zigbee.

Unlike the previously released N100 Zigbee and A100 Zigbee, which are handle locks, the new D100 is an automatic mortise lock that lets users open a door without pushing a handle or turning a knob.

It’s expected to roll out in more countries soon, but for now you can get it in parts of Asia and the Middle East. You can find more information about its distribution below.

Eufy’s new fingerprint ID smart lock is also a 2K security camera and doorbell

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Eufy's new smart lock is also a wide-angle security camera and a motion-detecting doorbell.
Eufy's new smart lock is also a wide-angle security camera and a motion-detecting doorbell.
Photo: Eufy

Eufy has a new Kickstarter campaign for what it calls “the see-everything smart lock.” It’s the Eufy Video Smart Lock, a 3-in-1 device that works as a fingerprint-detecting lock, a 2K, wide-angle camera and a dual motion-detection doorbell, the company said.

Now that’s a capable gadget. And it has a substantial price to match. See below.

Aqara’s new smart lock works with HomeKit and Home Key

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With its support for Apple's HomeKit and Home Key, we hope the new Aqara Smart Door Lock A100 Zigbee comes to the US soon.
With its support for Apple's HomeKit and Home Key, we hope the new Aqara Smart Door Lock A100 Zigbee comes to the US soon.
Photo: Aqara

In the market for a smart door lock that works with Apple’s HomeKit automation system as well as Home Keys you can keep in the Wallet app? Look no further than the new Aqara Smart Door Lock A100 Zigbee.

It features support for leading home automation protocols and advanced authentication tech, the company said Monday. Trouble is, you can only get it in Malaysia and Singapore so far, with other countries coming soon.

But U.S. availability? As yet unknown.

Apple Home Services chief leaves after less than 3 years on the job

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Apple Home Services chief Sam Jadallah left his post after less than three years.
Apple Home Services chief Sam Jadallah left his post after less than three years.
Photo: Apple

Apple hired Sam Jadallah in February 2019 to lead its smart home initiatives as head of the Home Services department. Last week, he posted word of his departure on LinkedIn.

Neither Jadallah nor Apple has given a reason for the departure. After two years and nine months on the job, Jadallah wrote:

That’s a wrap with Apple. I’m so grateful for the friendships that will endure and the opportunity to shape and create new capabilities for people and homes around the world. As a corporate exec, investor and entrepreneur, it was a treat to be an entrepreneur within Apple and to create products at scale.

Fortify your doors with reinforced smart locks

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Aura Lock
Upgrade your home security with one of these advanced door locks.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Security is key, whether online or IRL. Thanks to smartlocks, though, secure doors don’t need keys. Install one on your door, and you can enter and exit more securely, using a simple code or even your thumbprint. That’s just what these two smart locks bring to any home or office.

Level Touch smart lock turns your fingertip into a key

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The new Level Touch smart lock opens with a touch -- and other ways, too.
The new Level Touch smart lock opens with a touch -- and other ways, too.
Photo: Level Home

Level Home’s second HomeKit-compatible smart lock lets you use your fingertip as a key. But you won’t even really need that finger tap to open your door. The new lock, called the Level Touch, offers a variety of entry methods — including fully automatic (triggered by your smartphone’s Bluetooth connection when you arrive home).

“With Level Touch, keys are optional,” the company said in a press release Tuesday unveiling the new device. “You can enter and exit in any way that is most convenient for you, with the touch of a finger, using your voice or even an included programmable keycard. All of this while maintaining the highest level of residential security of any smart lock to date.”

Level Lock is an ‘invisible’ HomeKit lock with Apple in its DNA

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A new invisible HomeKit lock called Level Lock works with your existing deadbolt.
Level Lock takes a stealth approach to HomeKit.
Photo: Level Home

A new “invisible” HomeKit-compatible lock means you won’t need to sacrifice fancy door hardware to get smart lock functionality. Level Lock replaces your existing deadbolt’s guts, hiding seamlessly inside your door.

It’s an innovative approach to smart lock design. That’s not too surprising, though, considering Level Home was founded by a couple of ex-Apple employees.

Apple patches HomeKit bug that left smart locks vulnerable

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HomeKit devices
This isn't good.
Photo: Apple

A huge vulnerability within Apple’s HomeKit software has been discovered that potentially could have allowed attackers to gain access to smart accessories like locks and garage doors.

The zero-day vulnerability was reportedly patched by Apple within the last few days but certainly shows that HomeKit might be quite as secure as some users think.

Fancy new smart lock can see who’s at your door

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nucli smart lock by westinghouse
The Nucli smart lock by Westinghouse.
Photo: Westinghouse

Electrics giant Westinghouse is getting into the connected-home game, and its first offering is a smart lock that looks like it should be seeing if it can’t lock down a stabilizer in a Star Wars X-Wing.

The Nucli (which is pronounced “new-klee” and not “nuck-lee,” regardless of how your brain sees it) will offer a wealth of features to help you secure your domain.