A smart door lock belongs to the family of smart home access devices and is a wirelessly connected electromechanical lock—or retrofit mechanical control for a deadbolt—that can be remotely monitored, locked, and unlocked by communicating using a smartphone, tablet, computer, or smart speaker. It may communicate either directly, via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, or through a gateway or voice assistant. These devices provide keyless entry/exit serving as a replacement for traditional keyed locks and electronic keypads, although many smart locks have keyless touchpads and keyed access options.

Unlike traditional locks, a smart lock allows remote entry, and provides both permanent and temporary virtual key assignments with access schedules for specific days and times. Access privileges can be changed or revoked at any time. Additional functions may include tamper and forced entry alarms that warn of a possible break-in and electronic notifications of who is entering and leaving in real-time. Many smart locks can be activated using voice commands and through geo-fencing or triggered by video doorbells and IP cameras to auto-lock/unlock. Smart locks can be paired with other smart home devices such as lights and thermostats to enable other smart home features upon arrival or departure from the home.

Smart locks are deployed both indoors and outdoors. In residential applications, they are typically installed on outer access doors. These devices may be self-installed/self-monitored, self-installed/professionally monitored, or professionally installed and monitored.

Smart door lock adoption continues to be driven by strong multichannel sales efforts and continual product innovation. According to Parks Associates, 11% of US Internet households have a smart door lock.

The majority of residential door locks installed in the U.S. are mechanical, but an increasing number of exterior locks in single-family homes are being replaced with smart door locks. Smart door locks and associated whole building access control systems have fueled the recent acceleration in smart apartment adoption while several major production builders now include them in standard specifications. Feature innovations, such as biometric verification, integrated video cameras, voice control via smart speakers, and integration with home delivery services help to raise awareness and value perceptions of smart door locks. That increased awareness triggers sales in retail, security, home builder, and system integrator channels.

Smart door lock solutions have seen steady growth among a core group of enthusiasts in the past few years, but barriers impede wider and faster adoption. Self-installation continues to grow, but device setup ranks as a primary problem facing new owners of smart home devices, with almost half reporting difficulty in the initial setup of smart door locks. Other pain points include data security, privacy concerns, and short battery life. Leading established players persist in dominating market share, but more recent entrants and smaller player sare gaining traction by improving on user experience and added benefits through partnerships, open platforms, and compatibility with additional devices and providers.

One advantage of being a late entrant to the market is the ability to leverage insight from consumer response to earlier products. For example, new entrants can study today’s consumer reactions to biometric verification and set-up issues.

Expect next-generation smart door locks to feature more aesthetically attuned product design, with simpler installation, longer battery life, expanded application features, and fewer technical issues.

This is an excerpt from Parks Associates research library. We have tracked adoption of all connected products in the consumer market since product introduction. Thank you for reading our research! If you would like information on our services, please reach out to me or any of our team members. 

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