Kwikset is doubling down on open standards and new technologies as it expands its smart lock offerings. In an exclusive interview with The Verge, the company revealed that it will launch its first NFC-powered tap-to-unlock smart lock, as well as a less expensive Matter-over-Thread deadbolt, and a smart garage door opener this fall. Kwikset also plans to adopt ultra-wideband (UWB) as part of the new Aliro standard, and it shared that its sister brand, Baldwin, is adding Matter to its locks through a partnership with Level.
Launching later this year, the Halo Select Plus is an NFC-enabled version of Kwikset’s Halo Select smart lock, Jeff Sandoval, marketing director at Kwikset, told The Verge. The Select Plus will arrive later this year with all the same features as the Select — including a touchscreen keypad, Matter-over-Thread support, built-in Wi-Fi, and hands-free auto-unlock — plus a new tap-to-unlock feature that uses a compatible phone or watch as your key.
Kwikset couldn’t publicly confirm final compatibility, but the lock is likely to work with Apple’s Home Key, which allows you to tap your iPhone or Apple Watch against your door to unlock it. If so, it would be the company’s first lock to support this feature.
Apple is currently the only major phone maker to offer NFC tap-to-unlock for residential doors without requiring a proprietary app. Manufacturers must work directly with Apple to enable Home Key support, either through HomeKit or Apple Home via Matter. This has meant that there aren’t many Home Key-enabled smart locks. But that’s about to change.
Apple, along with Samsung and Google, is part of Aliro, an upcoming open standard for smart locks and digital keys that will enable a phone and lock to communicate directly over Bluetooth, NFC, and ultra-wideband, without needing an app. Aliro should make it easier for lock makers to support NFC unlocking and bring Home Key-like functionality to Android phones and wearables, ultimately making tap-to-unlock universal regardless of the phone or smart home platform used.
The standard, which was supposed to launch this year, still lacks an official specification, so it couldn’t be included in the Halo Select Plus. It’s possible the Select Plus has the technical capability to support Aliro, but Kwikset wouldn’t confirm this. Sandoval said the company plans to launch an Aliro-compatible lock, but that it won’t be this year.
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Kwikset is also introducing a Matter-over-Thread version of its mid-range Aura line later this year. The new Aura Reach features a backlit keypad with a built-in proximity sensor, which illuminates the keypad as you approach it at night. It works over Bluetooth with the Kwikset app or over Matter-over-Thread with platforms such as Apple Home, Google Home, and Amazon Alexa. Compared to the Select line, the Aura lacks built-in Wi-Fi, a touchscreen, and a door sensor.
Kwikset declined to share pricing for either of its new models. However, the current Aura line starts around $150, and the Halo Select is $279. So, my guess is the Plus may cost around $300, with the Reach hopefully coming in under $200.
The addition of Matter to its lower-cost line is a sign that the company is embracing the new smart home standard, following the launch of its first Matter lock earlier this year. Despite a slow start, Sandoval said Kwikset is “fully committed to Matter,” noting that while consumer awareness of the standard is still relatively low, the customers who have used it “don’t want to go back,” he said. “They will either prefer or only purchase Matter devices in the future.”
Kwikset customers who have used Matter “don’t want to go back”
Matter offers local connectivity to smart home devices, which improves response time and allows them to be controlled from your phone at home, even when the internet is down — a key feature for a lock. Kwikset uses the Matter-over-Thread protocol, which consumes less power than Wi-Fi, significantly extending battery life.
Kwikset’s luxury sister brand, Baldwin, is also adding Matter through a partnership with Level Locks. (All three brands are now owned by Assa Abloy.) Later this year, several of Baldwin’s deadbolts will be available with the company’s Level Bolt lock built in, bringing more high-end hardware options to the smart home. The Bolt is a smart lock with all the electronics and power incorporated into the deadbolt itself. So, from the outside, they look like a standard Baldwin lock, but inside, they have smart features such as auto-unlock, auto-lock, and app-based control.
The new Baldwin locks will support Bluetooth and Matter-over-Thread, can be controlled with a new Baldwin app (a rebranded version of Level’s), and work with any Matter platform. They can connect to Wi-Fi through the optional Level Connect Wi-Fi Bridge, which is a good option if you don’t want to use a smart home app like Apple Home but still want to control your lock remotely.
Notably, neither Kwikset nor Baldwin’s new smart locks include fingerprint readers or other biometric options, such as wave-to-unlock or facial unlock, which have appeared on some locks over the last few years. Sandoval said the company is betting on people using smartphones and watches as keys instead. “Passive authentication and unlock-in-stride using a smartphone as authentication, UWB and Aliro specifically, is where we think there is the largest potential for adoption,” he said.
Unlock-in-stride refers to ultra-wideband hands-free unlocking, where your phone automatically unlocks the door as you approach, with no need to pull out your phone or tap your watch. A couple of UWB-enabled locks were announced at CES this year, including one from Schlage. Both Apple and Samsung support the tech on their latest phones. However, we won’t see widespread adoption until the Aliro standard is launched, as the open standard should be the simplest way that manufacturers can ensure their locks will work with all compatible smartphones.
In the meantime, Kwisket is moving into the garage. Its new Flex smart garage door opener arrives next month. Built with Amarr Garage Doors, another Assa Abloy-owned company, the Flex is a full replacement garage door controller that Sandoval says is super small and super quiet.
The Flex integrates with the Kiwkset app for remote control and scheduling, allowing you to control all your home’s doors in one app. It will also support HomeLink, Android Auto, and CarPlay, for control from your car screen, and work with Amazon Alexa and Google Home, with Matter support planned for the future. The Flex will be sold directly through garage door installers in the US and Canada.
Kwikset isn’t the only smart lock maker betting on Matter and Aliro. Yale, Schlage, and most of the other players in this space are all working towards incorporating these interoperable standards into their products. And that’s a good thing. It should help remove these products from siloed ecosystems and proprietary features that currently befuddle the market, making it easier to buy a smart lock that works with any phone and any smart home platform. After all, the real unlock here will be when your door doesn’t care what phone you have.
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