Second-gen August Smart Lock with Apple HomeKit support now shipping
The newly launched August Smart Lock includes support for Apple's HomeKit, allowing users to lock, unlock and check the status of their door lock with voice commands using Siri.
Priced at $229.99, the second-generation August Smart Lock began shipping to customers on Thursday. Integrated HomeKit support means users can control the lock with Siri on a compatible iPhone, iPad, iPod touch or Apple Watch.
Available commands include "lock my door" or the inquiry "is my door locked?"
Because it ties into the HomeKit ecosystem, the August Smart Lock is also compatible with third-party HomeKit apps including Insteon+, Lutron, and iDevices. With these, users can create custom scenes, such as turning lights on or off automatically as their front door is locked or unlocked.
In addition to including a secure chip for HomeKit, the new August Smart Lock features an updated exterior with a new magnetic faceplate. The second-generation lock now also includes micro-patterns that are intended to improve grip and rotation when manually controlling the lock.
The new August Smart Lock has also added a slim chrome visual indicator at the top of the unit, allowing users to easily verify that their door is either locked or unlocked. And it's available in silver and dark gray.
"We are committed to providing value by partnering with companies such as Apple to deliver the features our customers are asking for, including HomeKit integration and support for Siri voice commands," said Jason Johnson, CEO of August Home Inc. "We will continue to develop best-in-class products and partner with leading smart home companies to add convenience to consumers' daily lives and new smart security features that are an essential element of the connected home."
The HomeKit-enabled August Smart Lock was actually announced by the company last October, when it was planned to ship in six to eight weeks. Apparent delays pushed that launch back until shipping began Thursday.
Owners of the first-generation August lock won't be able to access HomeKit, because Apple's smart home platform requires the inclusion of a secure authentication chip. The original model without HomeKit support remains available for $199
Priced at $229.99, the second-generation August Smart Lock began shipping to customers on Thursday. Integrated HomeKit support means users can control the lock with Siri on a compatible iPhone, iPad, iPod touch or Apple Watch.
Available commands include "lock my door" or the inquiry "is my door locked?"
Because it ties into the HomeKit ecosystem, the August Smart Lock is also compatible with third-party HomeKit apps including Insteon+, Lutron, and iDevices. With these, users can create custom scenes, such as turning lights on or off automatically as their front door is locked or unlocked.
In addition to including a secure chip for HomeKit, the new August Smart Lock features an updated exterior with a new magnetic faceplate. The second-generation lock now also includes micro-patterns that are intended to improve grip and rotation when manually controlling the lock.
The new August Smart Lock has also added a slim chrome visual indicator at the top of the unit, allowing users to easily verify that their door is either locked or unlocked. And it's available in silver and dark gray.
"We are committed to providing value by partnering with companies such as Apple to deliver the features our customers are asking for, including HomeKit integration and support for Siri voice commands," said Jason Johnson, CEO of August Home Inc. "We will continue to develop best-in-class products and partner with leading smart home companies to add convenience to consumers' daily lives and new smart security features that are an essential element of the connected home."
The HomeKit-enabled August Smart Lock was actually announced by the company last October, when it was planned to ship in six to eight weeks. Apparent delays pushed that launch back until shipping began Thursday.
Owners of the first-generation August lock won't be able to access HomeKit, because Apple's smart home platform requires the inclusion of a secure authentication chip. The original model without HomeKit support remains available for $199
Comments
Regarding the beefy chips, it is for if and when some day Bluetooth is hacked, people can't go back to Apple and say why didn't you do more?
Mmm ... What if you allow the door to be opened by someone to walk your dog ... and she brings a friend with her?
Using the same logic, the notification/logs show the door was opened and closed by someone approved, but does not identify others entering at the same time. For example, all the kids [usually] walk home from school together -- but only the one who opens the door generates a notification/log entry. What about the others?
But the cams need to be integrated with the door openings/closings to identify who and when -- then create concise logs/notifications, e.g.:
It wasn't confusing to me. I immediately saw that this was the concept I prefer- from the outside, the lock will work with a key, and is not recognizable as a 'smartlock', and will work with some existing hardware. This is a pricey convenience but possibly worth the money to early adopters whether they can afford to be such, or as some prefer to believe, need to be 'kool' with geek chic.
The point of compatibility is a good one. This will be a very simple bolt-on in some cases. In others, like mine, the interior knob and thumb latch are surrounded by an escutcheon that would interfere. At some point, if the August site becomes more helpful, there might be a workaround. I'm not sure my lockset will function without the escutcheon.
Now cue the 'more money than good sense' and 'locks only keep honest people out' fanbois.
If you have a front door that requires any sort of effort (push or pull) to align the dead bolt, you're going to go out of your mind trying to fix and align it when installing any of these unattended deadbolts.