Yale are introducing electronic door locks to the UK market, but are keen to find out if Britons will fall in love with the dream of central locking their houses.
The lock maker points out that Asia has quickly embraced the idea of having a battery powered lock, giving people keyless secure entry to their homes.
However, the success of the project leans upon us trusting the technology enough to rid ourselves of our traditional keys.
Convenient
"Digital door locks are the newest and most convenient way of securing your home," Yale's Matt Eastham told TechRadar.
"They have been hugely successful in Asia, where they can be found on the front doors of thousands of homes and Yale are now introducing an electronic door lock for residential properties here in the UK. Keyless and easy to install, it offers real convenience.
"The battery-powered lock is operated with an electronic iButton key fob or your own personal numerical code of 4-12 digits, and comes with a mechanical key override in the extreme event of electronic failure."
It aint broke
Of course, many people's response may be that a normal lock has provided security for many years and won't suffer from the glitches that electonric equipment often succumbs to, but Eastham insists that there are key benefits to the change.
"Electronic locks have benefits for all kinds of different people," added Eastham.
"Residential landlords can 'change' the locks between tenants by simply changing the access code or reprogramming the iButtons, rather than replacing the existing mechanical lock.
Lost keys - no problem
"Elderly people can share their code with relatives and carers, making access easier, and for families, an electronic lock means they no longer have to worry about teenagers losing their keys – instead, all they need to do is remember a code, similar to their cash card pin number."
The prospect of locking all doors and windows with a flourish over our shoulder like we do with our ca, or getting into our properties with a fingerprint inevitably appeal –and this appears to be the first stage in that dream.
Of course, as committed technophiles we at TechRadar welcome the arrival of electronic locks – even if we remain scared of someone 'hacking' into our house, like someone in a Michael Marshall Smith novel.
Your comments (13) Click to add a new comment
yalegirl
December 10th 2008
13. The lock retails for around £150.
As for installation, it's very easy and is aimed at the DIY-er - you don't need to pay for an electrician or locksmith.
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tech89
December 5th 2008
12. Yalegirl,
Whats the retail price of one of these locks?
How much would it cost to install?
Regards
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mpeskett
December 3rd 2008
11. Looks like the locks on all the doors from Half Life 2...
I approve.
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yalegirl
December 3rd 2008
10. Hello
I work for Yale and wanted to say thanks for all the great feedback - please keep the comments coming. . .
In response to some of the questions raised, all of the keyfobs that come with each lock can be reprogrammed, so if a tenant's lease ends, you can re-secure the property. You can also re-set the numerical code.
Digital door locks have been hugely successful in Korea, where they are especially popular for apartments. Electronics are seen as being secure and the locks have become a fashionable home feature.
The Yale lock is easy to fit and DIY-friendly.
In the event of battery failure, the lock can still be operated, using a mechanical thumbturn from the inside and the mechanical key override from the outside (this can be restricted to one user). There is also a 9v battery terminal that can be used to operate the lock. (The lock does have a warning light for when the batteries are running low).
The Yale lock also has a built-in tamper alarm.
Finally, there is no direct equivalent product currently available. Electronic strike locks and manually operated push button locks have both been available for some time. However, the Yale lock is the only surface mounted, battery-operated lock that doesn't require any hard wiring.
Hope this answers some of the queries. Please keep posting your ideas/comments as we're really keen to get your feedback.
Thanks
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greebo
December 2nd 2008
9. whats new about this,screwfix have had electronic locks like these for years.
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watcherzero
December 2nd 2008
8. Central locking?
"Open the front door HAL"
"Im afraid I cant do that Dave"
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zoydwheeler
December 1st 2008
7. Have they considered developing ELECTRONIC COCKS instead, I idly wonder?
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tech89
December 1st 2008
6. And another point, this lock still has a requirement for a key? so changing the electronic code would be useless, as the previous tenant would have key to override this feature.
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tech89
December 1st 2008
5. Electronic locks would benefit Landlords.
People stumbling back home drunk would not benefit as i doubt they would remember their code, and they would still need to fumble around for the iButton/key fob!
Computer technology is always susceptible to attacks.
And finally, the more complicated something becomes, the more things and higher the chances of that something breaking, going wrong, not working, malfunctioning.
It's success in Asia is no doubt that there were considerably less residences in the areas where this has been established (guessing UAE), so it would not be hard to convert the market of locks. However in UK, mechanical locks have been used extensively, tried, tested, and trustworthy to a certain degree (i.e. excessive physical force used to break the lock). Plus, how would this electronic lock work with replacing exisitng locks? No standard fit of this device for doors, and then theres the expense of locksmiths putting this device in place, I doubt a new electronic lock would be cheap to fit.
And central locking?? Well ask any one who has owned different cars in their time, Central locking breaks! Especially on the occasion you car gets broken into.
And then theres the appeal of having this large lock on your door? Well it doesn't look inviting.
If the power of this device fails then it becomes just a mechanical lock with the same susceptibilities as mechanical locks.
An idea would be to dial the occupiers mobile phone by GSM when the lock has been tampered with. Its possible and only a little more cost to implement, but then it would have an actual feature by which to sell the product.
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zoydwheeler
December 1st 2008
4. Actually, scratch that. What would squatters do?
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blueskythinker
December 1st 2008
3. More blinking digits! I can hardly remember my bank codes let alone another combination. I've never lost a key yet. Touch wood.
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zoydwheeler
December 1st 2008
2. Please make this happen asap Mr Yale. It would save me a fortune in locksmith and key cutting fees!
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calcio
December 1st 2008
1. I for one love the idea. Beep Beep - your house is unlocked. Plus - no fu,bling for keys when I'm drunk. Bring it on!
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