Apple stores have come up with an unexpected item in their product range. The company in the U.S. is now selling an exterior door lock that can be unlocked by a user’s Apple Watch or iPhone. It is named the Level Lock+ and is $329. It is the first Home Key-supported lock sold in Apple stores.
The Level Lock+ is made by Level Home and is installed in a door. Once it is fixed, it can unlock and relock the home with a tap using Apple Home Key. This feature uses NFC and secure tokens in Apple’s software. Users can text keys to their friends or automate when the door is locked.
This is a giant step for Apple to move into the smart-home market that requires extensive third-party hardware or systems support to function. However, it will take a long time before this is widely available.
Home Key, Apple has also announced Car Key, which unlocks supported cars from BMW and Hyundai, and Room Key, which puts hotel keys from chains such as Hyatt in Apple’s Wallet app. Apple’s iPhone is integrating with vehicles through CarPlay and working on financial services for its users with Goldman Sachs.
“There’s a question that’s been posed right now in this category,” Level CEO John Martin told CNBC. “The question is, is a smart lock a consumer electronics device? Or is it a traditional lock that’s now smart?”
“There’s a question that’s been posed right now in this category,” Level CEO John Martin told CNBC. “The question is, is a smart lock a consumer electronics device? Or is it a traditional lock that’s now smart?”
?[Andrew] Samson, who’s our CMO, is a former Nike guy. He’s great,” Martin said. “And he calls me in the night like, ‘Oh my God, we’re trending!’”
It is important to know that this update is not available in old versions of Level. For Home Key support, users will need the Level Lock+ sold at Apple stores or online.
“We don’t plan to do a firmware update for Touch,” Martin said. “We needed to innovate the base part of the technology inside the product to support Home Keys in a way that was going to be first class.”