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The motor itself is not completely silent, and you can hear it whirring when it automatically locks or unlocks the door. But the Encode’s deadbolt has a slight taper on each side, which helped guide it closed when the motor turned the lock - and made up for my door’s poor alignment. My front door is quite old and doesn’t quite line up perfectly when you casually close it, something that’s tripped up motorized door locks in the past. Installing the lock is straightforward: it requires just a Phillips screwdriver and about 15 minutes of time. But with my family’s lifestyle and usage, we haven’t missed having one in the time I’ve been testing the lock. The only hardware feature missing here is a fingerprint scanner, which is a little easier to use than a keypad and can be useful if you have kids who don’t have phones or Apple Watches of their own.
Schlage smart deadbolt plus#
(Schlage does not recommend using rechargeable or lithium AA batteries since their voltages might throw off the battery life reporting system.) The Encode Plus has a simple design, but it doesn’t hide the fact that it’s a smart lock. The lock will send alerts to your phone when the batteries are low.
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I’ve been testing the lock on my primary entrance for nearly two months, and the Apple Home app reports it has 82 percent battery life remaining. It provides room for four AA batteries, which Schlage says can last up to six months when the lock is used on Wi-Fi or up to a year if you use it with Thread. The backside of the lock, or what’s on the inside of your door, is larger and blockier than the front. But the primary way you’re intended to use the Encode Plus is via the keypad or tapping your phone. Below the keypad is a barrel for a traditional key (one key comes with the lock), which can come in handy if the batteries ever die and you’re locked out. You can get the Encode Plus in two different styles with two different finishes for each the review unit I’ve been testing is the Century design with a satin nickel finish. It’s not particularly subtle, but it’s far from the ugliest smart lock I’ve come across. Its obvious keypad doesn’t try to hide the fact that it’s a smart lock - in fact, the one notable difference between this one and prior versions are the parentheses around the 5 button that indicate where to tap your phone or watch. In terms of design, the Encode Plus looks very similar to the prior Schlage Encode locks. It also has a pin pad for guests or those in your family without phones, plus a traditional keyhole.īut if you’re going to shell out three Benjamins for this smart lock, you really should be carrying an iPhone or using an Apple Watch because its best trick only works with those devices.
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Schlage smart deadbolt android#
It works with Android phones through the Schlage app and integrates with Amazon’s Alexa and Google Assistant. The Encode Plus is not exclusive to Apple devices, unlike some HomeKit video doorbells. The whole process is similar to, but even simpler than, buying something with Apple Pay. You don’t have to open an app, tap a button, or even unlock your phone. As one of the first smart locks to take advantage of Apple’s Home Key standard announced at WWDC 2021, unlocking the Encode Plus is as simple as tapping your phone or watch against the keypad and waiting a moment for the green light. Schlage’s new $299.99 Encode Plus, which was announced earlier this year and is now available for purchase, simplifies that greatly. You have to pull out your phone, unlock it, find the right app, tap the unlock button, and wait for the lock to respond. But while smart locks can be quite convenient, especially if they have pin pads or fingerprint scanners, using your phone to unlock the door can be as cumbersome as fumbling for the right key in the dark. Smart locks have allowed us to ditch the keys and unlock our front doors via our phones for years.
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