Make no mistake about it, home security is the #1 priority for almost anyone living in the UK. We all invest so much in our homes and businesses that protecting them becomes our immediate goal. To do so, you need physical protections: high-security locks that keep criminals at bay and stop their potential entry into your home. For most, this means investing in high-quality lock and key systems.
However, there is a growing movement built around the use of smart locks. With the help of a local locksmith Sheffield, homes and businesses can move to the wonderful world of keyless entry.
In this guide, we’ll break down their basic features as well as some of the more advanced functionalities they offer. This guide, put together by locksmiths who have undergone a rigorous locksmith course, tells you everything you need to know about smart locks!
So, Do Smart Locks Do Away With Keys?
No longer do you need to worry about the jingle-jangle of keys in your pockets. Or, worse, losing those keys and needing a late-night callout from a locksmith. For many, the smart security revolution begins with the installation of smart locks. Are they right for you? Well, let’s investigate closer!
Smart Locks: At A Glance
Smart locks bring the best of the smart technology industry into our lock systems. They provide us with a keyless solution to locking and unlocking our doors. Instead of relying on a metal key that fits into a matching keyhole, smart locks are opened and closed with digital access. Doors can be opened and closed from miles away; so long as you have the internet, you can manage your door locks.
Yet, smart locks still have mechanical functions – there is still a physical lock. As impressive as keyless technologies are, they are not magic. Smart locks, though, remove the use of a physical key to open the door (though many have a physical opening function for emergency use). As you can imagine, being able to open and close your doors remotely is a fascinating and beneficial feature.
Does That Mean Smart Locks Are Safer Overall?
Are smart locks safer than traditional locks? Generally, yes. They are as safe from a mechanical standpoint. Criminals would need a vast array of tools, experience and patience to break through most smart locks. Compared to traditional home locks, they are regarded as safer overall. They also add extra convenience through the ability to manage your locks remotely, which can be very useful.
Are Smart Locks Impenetrable?
Unfortunately, no. No lock type is completely impregnable. However, the bar for entry for a smart lock is much higher than a traditional lock and key system. Criminals can get to grips with just about any mechanical lock; picking a keyhole is much easier than hacking into a smart lock.
Most smart locks come with extensive security layers and encryption to help reduce the risk of the locks being manipulated to a near-impossibility. Not completely impossible, but far more difficult overall!
If There Is No Keyhole, How Do I Open My Smart Locks?
For the most part, you will manage your smart locks with a series of options. All are keyless, though; you will no longer need to carry around brittle keys to open your doors. Instead, you can use a variety of options. Most stick with something they feel comfortable with, such as a mobile app. Instead of having to put a key into a hole and turn it, you log into your app and open/close.
However, you can also use other entry methods. Many smart locks are fitted with keypad entry, where you put in a PIN code to open the door. Others use biometric scanning for fingerprints, retinas, and even voice recognition for some high-end households and businesses. That gives you a great range of options for opening/closing your doors. Some, especially in commercial settings, use keycards and fobs to access the door.
With smart locks, you can pre-program who has access to your doors. You can set PIN codes that are accepted, you can invest in keycards and fobs that are connected to your doors, or you can set up biometric scans that will be accepted by the doors’ access control terminal. The choice is yours.
Setting Safety Habits For Smart Locks
However, it should be noted that your keyless entry needs to be carefully managed if you want to avoid a potential security problem. You should always ensure that you:
- Set a complex Wi-Fi or Bluetooth password to maintain limited access to your locks
- Regularly set up policies for changing and adjusting the passwords/codes used
- Ensure that your smartphone app for managing your locks is kept up-to-date
- Create safe storage for all entry assets, i.e. keycards, fobs and PIN codes
Connecting To Your Smart Locks
As mentioned above, most smart lock systems will use a connection via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. This makes it easy for people to connect to your smart locks and access them, but only if they have the right access codes/permissions. So do not worry; passers-by on the street won’t be able to just link to your Bluetooth/Wi-Fi connection, log in, and unlock your doors. You can connect to your smart locks via:
- Smartphones and tablets, or any kind of internet-capable mobile device
- PC apps; some smart locks will have desktop device companion apps
- Keypads, scanners and other at-the-door entry methods
- Biometric scanner devices
The Benefits Of Multi-Device Connectivity With Smart Locks
This comes with many conveniences. For example, let’s say that you have a trade professional coming to fix something in your home. Yet, you are busy; you are at work all day, so you cannot let them in. With normal keys, you would need to leave a set of keys in a ‘safe’ place so that they can be found. Or, you need to store them in a key safe and give the professional your access code.
With smart locks, though, you can either remotely open/close the doors for them or provide them with a temporary, one-time access code. Not only does this mean you can easily provide people with one-time access, but you can also get family members who are stuck outside into your home simply by giving them the access code and/or providing access permissions from your smartphone app. Easy, right?
What Types Of Smart Locks Are There?
So, the challenge with smart locks is that the term is a catch-all for numerous types of locking systems. Generally, though, we can break down smart locks into two broad categories, within which many other lock types exist. These are generally known as Adapted and Native smart locks. Both have their pros and cons, which we will go into below.
Adapted Smart Locks
So, for many households, adapted smart locks are the preferred option. Rather than replacing your old locks entirely, adaptive smart locks integrate alongside your current lock types. They are very quick to install and have far less complexity for a locksmith to deal with.
Generally, they are more cost-friendly and can be adapted quickly for the homeowner, thanks to the quicker onboarding and training process. They do not replace your old locks entirely, unlike…
Native Smart Locks
By contrast, a native smart lock completely replaces what you already have. These electronic locking devices remove your old locks and give you a completely new keyless entry system. Since they remove all of the old functions of traditional locks, they are generally more secure and effective.
However, the installation process is a far more time-consuming (and yes, expensive) process. This installation may mean even having to replace your front doors and door frames, as they may not be compatible with native smart locks.
That said, some native smart locks still come with a backup entry option of a lock and key. Not all do, though. For the most part, native smart locks are 100% keyless and generally are a full replacement.
Do Smart Locks Make My Home Safer?
For the most part, yes. Smart locks are more robust and effective than even the best traditional locks you will find in the UK. They provide you with all of the convenience that we noted above. The ability to open and close your door locks when you are not even in the country is a nice feeling. So long as you have the internet, you should be able to access and control your smart locks anywhere you are.
Still, there is more to smart locks than convenience. The ability to quickly generate and approve/revoke access codes is a great feature. So is the fact that there are fewer mechanical areas where a criminal can tamper with. It is unlikely that a smart lock can be broken off, drilled through, or picked. If you go down the route of having smart locks installed, what are the main benefits you get?
Remote Access
Think about how many times you get halfway to work, or to the shops, or a night out, and worry that you forgot to lock your door. Well, with smart locks, you can just pop open the app. So long as you have access to the internet, you can access your smart locks and open them safely.
That level of access is so useful for people, especially for parents who want to make sure their kids can get home safely. A professional locksmith can help you set up your companion apps for easy, stress-free remote access.
Timestamps
There is also the benefit that your smart locks will come with a timestamped feature, where every access is notified. Even if someone tries to access your doors and puts in the wrong code, you get a notification about their access attempt.
You can even set things like entry attempt numbers. This is useful in so many scenarios. Workplaces can make it easier to track access to certain parts of the building, and parents can better track home if their children really made it home for the set curfew!
Access Controls
You can also set codes for entry so that you have another layer of security. For example, you can set an additional layer of protection in the form of access codes. You can therefore assign everyone at home a unique code. You can also create one-time, temporary access codes.
This is especially useful if you have someone like a trade professional or a high-value delivery arriving at your home. You can set the code usage times, and you can also set a timeframe for how long the code lasts.
Again, a locksmith can easily help you set up all of these actions so you get the most out of your new smart locks. With the help of a professional, you can maximise every feature!
