These locks replace only the interior side of your existing deadbolt, essentially adding smarts to the lock you already use. The only exception is retrofit smart locks. And for the picking test, we assess the internal mechanisms of each lock to see how easily they can be picked.Īll models, including smart locks, receive a score in each of the four break-in tests, allowing you to easily compare each lock’s strengths and weaknesses in the face of a physical breach.
#HONEYWELL DIGITAL DEADBOLT CHANGE BOLT ACTION UPGRADE#
Again and again, CR’s experts have found that this basic do-it-yourself upgrade improves security for any lock (more on that later).įor the drilling test, we evaluate how well each lock can withstand attack from a cordless drill. The models that fail-and at least half do-then go through another test round with a reinforced box strike plate installed on a new lock sample. They repeat the test eight times, at increasing heights, or until the lock fails. The deadbolts, electronic locks, and smart locks that enter CR’s labs get kicked, picked, and drilled into oblivion.įor the kick-in tests, CR’s test engineers built a custom jig that allows them to swing a 100-pound steel battering ram at a replaceable section of door with the deadbolt installed. Matter-certified products are expected to enter the market by the end of 2021. The standard already has support from Amazon, Apple, Google, Samsung, and over 170 other companies, including Assa Abloy (parent company of August and Yale), Kwikset, Level, and Schlage. Through this standard, smart home devices from different manufacturers will be able to talk to each other without the need for dedicated partnerships between companies. Smart locks will see more changes as the smart home industry adopts a new communications standard called Matter. But a new startup called Level has made its retrofit model, the Level Bolt, so small that it simply replaces the bolt of your existing deadbolt. And retrofit smart locks (models that essentially add smarts to your existing lock) are getting smaller.Īugust (a sister brand of Yale) made its latest retrofit model, the August WiFi Smart Lock, smaller than the previous version.
Some smart locks now feature fingerprint sensors, giving you a way to unlock your door without a key, a PIN code, or a smartphone. Newer models connect directly to WiFi, negating the need for hubs and bridges that connect them to the internet. Internet-connected smart locks are improving in a number of ways.
The door lock market doesn’t change as quickly as the markets for other products, such as appliances and electronics, but there is plenty of change afoot when it comes to smart locks.