Here’s our complete and comprehensive review of the SwitchBot WiFi. Let’s look at what this great Home Security device has in store.
SwitchBot Lock Overview
The SwitchBot WiFi Smart Lock is simply great. It is minimalistic in design and extremely smart when it comes to smart features. Compared to all those high-end smart WiFi Door Locks, the SwitchBot Door Lock does have what it takes to be the number one, and that too at a fraction of the cost. You can make this Smart Lock more powerful with the fingerprint Keypad, offering you multiple ways to access it. This deal you see here is a combo that includes the SwitchBot Door Lock, the Keypad, and the SwitchBot Hub Mini. You could even get the Door Lock alone at an exciting price of just below $100. The single most exciting and user-friendly aspect of this smart door lock is that you can get it installed all by yourself. You don’t need additional tools or any rewiring; all you need to do is fix it into your existing deadbolt. Once done, the unit works by itself once you are near the door. And yes, the SwitchBot Door Lock works well with almost all existing door locks. Moreover, the device’s smart connectivity includes WiFi, Bluetooth, and NFC. The Voice Assistant integration also works flawlessly with Alexa or Google Home. But yet, a thing to note is that you’ll need to equip the SwitchBot Hub Mini to get remote WiFi access for enhanced connectivity.
Specifications
Before getting any further, we must get familiar with the key specs of the SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock. With enhanced connectivity features like WiFi and Bluetooth 5.0, this smart door lock is a great alternative to those expensive home security systems and a great entry-level WiFi Door lock for your home. We’ll be talking about the design, setup, and all other aspects in detail as we go on.
Design and Build Quality
The SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock is a wireless home security system that requires a limited or no installation process. It can be added to a wide variety of existing door locks to make them smart without undergoing any major modifications on your door. Talking about the build quality, we were pleased with what the SwitchBot offers with the door lock. The unit is made of ABS plastic that’s shockproof. The lock looks classy enough with a great matte black plastic design. The whole cuboidal design has a manual unlocking bar right at the center, which is attached right to your existing door lock. On top of the unlocking bar or handle, there is a small LED indicator that shows the locking and unlocking status. The battery compartment of the SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock is right on top. The removable case opens up to the battery compartment, where you can put in 2 CR123a batteries. These batteries offer a battery backup of 6 months. We’ll probably talk about those when we reach the battery backup section. The SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock comes with 3 different knob adapters (Thumbturn) to match your existing door knob. With these different knob adapters, you could use them with almost all available door lock systems.
SwitchBot TouchID Keypad
Regarding the design, the keypad locks are quite sturdy and professional. This keypad we tested includes the Touch ID that lets you easily access the door lock via your fingerprint. The keypad runs on 2 CR123a batteries and is guaranteed to run for up to 2 years. The keypad is waterproof, and the installation is pretty much easy. There is a bit of an app-based setup that we’ll need to discuss in more detail.
DoorLock Installation
The installation begins with attaching the Door lock to the inside of your door. For this, you get three different door knob adapters or thumb turn adapters. These adapters can be adjusted accordingly to match your existing door knobs easily. Once that’s done, the next thing is attaching the whole unit to the door. A double-sided sticky tape is attached to the door lock’s front end. Once you’ve locked on to your preferred thumb turn adapter, make sure to affix the whole unit to the door firmly. Once you affix the lock with the double-sided tape, you can adjust the gap between the doorknob and the SwitchBot lock thumb adapters. What it does is that you can slide in and out a small metal clamp on which the sticky tape is fixed. Just unscrew and find the sweet spot and press the door lock unit firmly into your room and that’s all it is. Thus, you can see that there isn’t any worrisome wiring and stuff required at any point in the installation process. If you’ve bought the keypad unit also, then there is a bit of installation you need to do on the outside of your door. The keypad is compact, and there’s no doubt about that. The keypad unit can be attached in two possible ways. One is the normal clamp and screw method, and the other is the sticky tape method. The whole delivery gives you all the essential screws in order to complete this setup with ease. And yeah, it is better to screw it up, as the sticky tape method could be vulnerable to thefts. The good thing I notice is that if you are not using the Keypad, nobody will ever guess that you have a smart lock. Even the thief won’t bother to hack it, considering it a smart lock. One more thing, before installing the keypad on the rear, make sure to complete the whole app-based setup, and grant custom user accesses so that you’ll not be troubled with that after installation. Also, the delivery includes a set of NFC tags. With these, you could easily automate certain custom commands without the need to access any smart home assistants.
Smartphone App Setup
After the physical setup’s done, you’ll need to get the SwitchBot app to get on with the app-based setup. The app is available on both the Android and iOS platforms. Once you create an account, you’ll be directed to add your device. Tapping on the “+” icon drops a list of the SwitchBot gadgets, and you must select and calibrate the SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock. Once that’s done, you can set a custom name for your device and the room in which you plan to use the Door Lock. As the device is connected to the app, you could try to lock and unlock the device via your smartphone or iPhone. Of course, the app is a bit outdated, and the UI isn’t a charm, but on the whole, the trigger responses were quite accurate, and we cannot ask for more. On the plus side, you can opt for quite a few useful notification options. These include notifications showing that the door is locked, left open, or kept ajar. The notifications and other features require you to have the SwitchBot Hub Mini connected.
Door Lock Unlocking Methods
The SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock offers your home a greater degree of security. It’s a pretty decent gadget that offers smart features like real-time notifications and smart home assistant integration. Talking about the modes of unlocking, the SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock lets you in through 7 available unlocking options. These include the Smartphone or SmartWatch app, the NFC Keycard, the Keypad, the Touch ID, the Voice commands via Alexa or Google Assistant, and the NFC tags. Yaa, you can lock on unlock your door anywhere in the world through your Phone, as long as you have an internet connection to the phone and the lock. With the SwitchBot Keypad, you’ll have the option to unlock the door lock with the passcode, Touch ID, or key card. These modes of unlocking are pretty much straightforward and less hectic. The fingerprint version of the Keypad costs around $60, and there is also a non-Touch ID version available online that’s listed online at $30. The keypad is IP65 Waterproof, and the battery can last up to two years. Another method of unlocking is via communicating with the NFC tags. The NFC tags require a compatible device, and for me, this one didn’t really feel worth it. Two NFC tags are programmed to either lock or unlock the door. Once your NFC-enabled phone is tapped or brought in near any of the NFC tags, a programmed function, either Lock or Unlock, gets operated. But yet, with the smartphone being connected, you’ll probably not need the NFC tags as much. Another method of unlocking that I liked was the Smartwatch-initiated operation. With my Apple SmartWatch Series 6, I could easily prompt Lock and Unlock commands. The SwitchBot app must be installed on the Watch course, but the functionality is fairly limited. The voice-controlled operations via Google Assistant or Alexa required you to have the SwitchBot Hub Mini. We’ll talk about that when we get to the Smart Features.
Smart Features
This door lock deserves a separate section for the Smart home functions. The lock is packed with a lot of smartphone features. Talking about the smart home features, the 1st thing you’ll need to keep in mind is that you’ll need to equip the SwitchBot Hub Mini. It is via the hub that all Wifi communication takes place with your smart home devices and the Smart Assistants.
Smartphone App Features
The SwitchBot app brings many features for this door lock and the Keypad. Even though you feel the door lock is pretty simple, the app developers spent a decent time building these features. The app will show you the lock status and the “Battery, Bluetooth, and Cloud Status. There is an interesting feature I never see on any other devices; if somebody tries to steal or remove the Keypad from the wall, the Keypad will alert you, and you will get a notification on your phone. The log file is a kind of history of all the lock activities. You get the detail of who opened the door (both manually and using the access assigned to them) with a time stamp. You get an app notification if you the door lock jar, open. close etc. Even you can get a notification when the battery reaches about 20% of its charge.
Google Home and Alexa Support
The SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock offers compatibility with Google Home. In the Google Home app, you’ll need to manually search and select the SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock to pair it up with your Google wireless smart speakers and other devices. So is the case when pairing with Alexa. You’ll need to establish a connection to run daily Alexa routines and stuff. Even I set up my Alexa routine to auto-lock the Switchbot Door lock every night at 8 PM. It missed the schedule rarely, but 9 out of 10, it works well. Unfortunately, SwtichBot WiFi Door Lock isn’t compatible with the Apple HomeKit. I don’t know whether they’ll incorporate it in the future.
Real-time Notifications
The SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock, when connected to your smartphone of the iPhone via the app, alerts your opening and closing cycles of the door and so on. It also gives you a prior notification when the door is left ajar. There is also an option to gather event logs in real-time. And most of all, you get an alert if somebody tries to detach the Keypad or device to detect violent device conduct.
FingerPrint ID
The FingerPrint ID is something I Liked. Personally, it is quite reliable and quick in locking and unlocking. You need to do the initial fingerprint scanning and setup via the app, and you’re done. The Keypad can store up to 100 fingerprints (stored locally) and passwords, which is more than enough for your family.
Apple Watch Control
The SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock lets you connect to your Apple Watch. All you have to do is to install the SwtichBot app on your Apple Watch, and a thing to note is that the features are a bit limited. Also, you’ll need Apple Watch Series 2 or above to get the best of the SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock. This is handy, especially when you get into a home full of grocery bags, and you just move your tap watch next to the lock. Good enough. Well, alternatively, you can ask Siri to unlock your door.
Lock & Keypad Battery Backup
The SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock and the Keypad run on two CR123A batteries. These batteries are guaranteed to give you enough power to last for around six months the lock. SwitchBot even highlights a stat that the door lock can sustain its battery life for up to 10,000 locking and unlocking cycles. We don’t know about that, but we hope the batteries will run up to 5 months or above on average. Also, the CR123A batteries arent the preferred ones by gadget manufacturers, and I hope we don’t have a tough time getting a replacement pair. Also, if you’ve got the Keypad Touch, you’ll be astonished to find out that another set of the same type of batteries keeps it up and running. The Keypad is guaranteed to work flawlessly for up to 2 years on the initial set of batteries. What’s more, the SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock and the Keypad have a dedicated battery status indicator and a small alert tone that flashes when the batteries are running out and soon to die out.
Pros and Cons
Key Features: WiFi and Bluetooth | Durable Design | Minimal Installation | SwitchBot App Support | Alexa and Google Assistant Support | 7 Unlocking Methods | 6 Month Battery backup
Easy InstallationGood battery lifeFast Touch ID SensorSmarthome SupportWorks with existing door locksOffers up to 7 unlocking optionsBudget Price & Easy to install
Glitchy appRequires SwitchBot Hub for full featuresSupports only 2.4GHz bandNo HomeKit Support
What’s In The Box
The SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock is pretty much the best entry-level WiFi door lock that you could get right now. Its elegant design offers a great degree of security to your home. Its easy installation and setup are what I liked the most, as there isn’t any hardwiring required. Now let’s look at what we’ll get with the full delivery. With the whole delivery of the bundle pack, you’ll be getting the following;
SwitchBot Lock Main Unit Thumbturn Adapter Keypad with Touch ID SwitchBot Hub Mini Double Sided Tapes Magnets SwitchBot TagWarranty and other Documentation
Pricing and Availability
The SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock offers direct competition to all those high-end Smart Home Security devices thanks to its minimalistic design and a good degree of smart features. The Pricing seems competitive all right, but the thing is, you’ll need to get some accessories like the keypad and the Wireless hub unit if you wish to get the best of the device.
Final Verdict
The SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock is excellent in terms of concept. There’s minimal setup required, and you never need to alter the existing door. Despite all these, certain drawbacks steal its luster. The primary issue we felt was that to get the device’s best functionality, you’ll need to couple it up with additional accessories. You could go for full smart locks at this price tag, as they offer more features and are quite classy in design. But yet, if you plan to use it without adding additional accessories, even then, the SwitchBot WiFi Door Lock could be your passage to initiating home automation. The simple installation process makes this lock transfer to any door, converting them smart instantly. And most of all, you get all the smart functions without altering any existing setup. It’s a great beginner-friendly smart home gadget that doesn’t burn a hole in your pocket.
Δ
