Ask yourself, what do you do when you want to lock the door? Of course, you grab your key, put it in a keyhole, and turn it, right? What if you didn't have to do this? What if you didn't have to risk losing your key and not being able to get into your home?
Well, the technology behind conventional door locks has evolved quite a bit. However, it wasn't until a few years ago that we were able to completely ditch the keys. But thanks to smart home technology, you can now not only have control without a key, but you'll have an overview of who enters your home and when all the time.
There are still people who aren't really sure whether or not a smart lock is something they need. If you're one of them, read on as we see what smart locks are, and whether you should get one.
The main thing about them is the convenience
There's no need to beat around the bush, convenience is the key thing you'll get from a smart lock. First of all, you no longer need to carry a key with you. The keyhole is replaced by a numerical keypad, and all you'll need to do is input the pin you've set.
Some locks will even let you unlock them from your smartphone. Whether it's with NFC, and you need to tap your phone on the lock, or they're connected online and have an app, they work really well. The second option is even better since you don't even need to be near your lock in order to open it. This works great when, for example, you need to let your dog walker inside so they can grab your pet and take it for a walk.
While we're talking about convenience, most smart locks are connected and hence work with smart assistants such as Google Home or Amazon's Alexa. This allows you to control the lock with your voice from inside your home, so you can let your kids in even though they forgot their pin and you're in the kitchen, making lunch.
Security is actually increased
The first thing you'll think is that the pin can be easily guessed. Or, someone may overhear you when you tell it to someone, and use that to get in your home.
However, there are a couple of ways to combat this. First of all, most good smart locks will send you alerts when someone enters. You can also set individualized pins for your spouse, or kids, or parents, so you know exactly when someone entered your home. And, quite obviously, if your spouse's pin is entered while they're having lunch with you across town, you'll know something is up.
There are some smart locks that will actually note what time it is, and if a door is unlocked at a strange time, such as 3 AM, for example, you'll get a notification.
To add to this, there's also the fact that you can lose your key with a conventional lock. While the chances of someone finding it, and figuring out it's your home and that they can get it, are truly minimal, that can still happen. Or, someone may steal your key and get in. With a smart lock, you don't have a key, so there are no chances of anything like that happening, and your home security is at its best.
Can you make it even more useful?
As you can see, smart locks by themselves are pretty useful. They add a bit of security, and they add a lot of conveniences. However, they can be made even better if you were to add a few more devices and integrate them all together.
The first thing you can do is add a video doorbell. A smart lock will let you lock it and unlock it from anywhere, but you'll still have no idea who's outside your door, will you? Well, a video doorbell has a camera and two-way audio, so you can instantly see what's happening outside your door when someone rings it. The two-way audio feature also lets you talk to them, so you can let a door-to-door salesman know you aren't at home and can't talk to them while you're relaxing and watching TV.
You can also integrate such a lock with your alarm system, for example. If you've got one that's being professionally monitored, you can have the monitoring company know that someone unauthorized is trying to enter your home, so they can alert the proper authorities and let them know. This is another major factor that impacts security and makes smart locks all the more worth it.
