Shoppers certainly aren’t hurting for options when it comes to smart home security solutions, with dozens of companies offering full ranges of intelligent cameras, video doorbells, and connected door locks. If you’ve picked up even just a few of these, though, you may already have found that juggling multiple apps, to say nothing of keeping everything charged, can be a real headache. Anker sub-brand Eufy is aiming to make this a bit easier by combining multiple devices into one with its upcoming Video Smart Lock.
The hybrid device is basically a marriage of Eufy’s smart lock and video doorbell products — a combination which makes perfect sense, really — and contains much of the same technology already present in the stand-alone devices.
The lock includes the company’s “rapid processing” fingerprint chip, which it says can recognize your fingerprint in as little as one-third of a second. Contributing to your speedy reentry are AI algorithms that will keep track of the most-used fingerprints, recognizing them faster over time. For the security conscious, fingerprint data is stored in the lock itself, and is never transmitted over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth.
In addition to the onboard fingerprint sensor, you can also lock and unlock your door using the Eufy Security mobile app, the on-device keypad, or even a good, old-fashioned physical key. Along for the ride is the optional auto-lock feature, which locks the door for you if you happen to forget, and can be activated either on a schedule, or after a time delay after detecting you’ve closed the door.
As for the video functionality, Eufy gives us a 2K camera, sporting a 160-degree field of view. It records video in a 4:3 aspect ratio (squarer tends to be better for doorbells), is capable of night vision, and offers all the AI-powered person detection you could ask for.
You can avoid subscription costs and save recordings locally to a microSD card inserted into the included indoor chime, which plugs into a wall outlet and doubles as a Wi-Fi bridge for the device (the product won’t initially be able to use an existing HomeBase, but support for it is planned “in the very near future”). That said, there are also plans to offer a cloud-based subscription, if that’s your preference.
As you might expect with a modern smart doorbell, the device also features two-way audio, so you can politely tell the door-to-door salesperson that you’re not interested, or scare away porch pirates, without having to unlock your door. The door-mounted unit is powered by a rechargeable battery that Eufy claims will last up to 120 days with all features turned on. It’s designed to withstand the elements with an IP65 rating, and has an operating temperature range of -22℉ to 158℉ (-30℃ to 70℃).
If you’re in the market for a smart lock and video camera, the Eufy Video Smart Lock may be a great alternative to buying separate, single-purpose hardware, and is currently available for preorder on Kickstarter in the US, Canada, and Australia. Early bird pricing is $230, with shipping currently expected in May. Following that, it will be available at the Eufy website for $400.
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