Lockly Secure Plus Review

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In this post I’m going to be doing a review of Lockly Secure Plus. This product is available as a deadbolt or latch and each has 3 colour options. This particular lock works perfect in my setting. I have small kids that I don’t want to access the basement so instead of getting a regular door knob with key and lock I use Lockly Secure Pro.

Let’s circle back to the beginning. This smart lock is perfect to replace a single doorknob and the handle can be positioned in the direction of left or right. Installation is a breeze except for people that had the same issue as me (I’ll explain shortly). Let’s start with why it’s easy. Out of the box comes all required parts you could think of including instructions. To make installation really easy, the instructions are also available on the BILT app which the paper instructions encourage you to use instead. The beauty of this app is that it shows step-by-step 3D diagrams of the installation process that you can rotate and zoom in and out. The challenge I mentioned earlier comes down to how the side bracket is required (see picture 6). My door doesn’t have a cut for this and the smart lock won’t fit without it, believe me I tried. In this situation you have 3 choices: forget Lockly and get another solution, buy another door with the cut or as we did in my situation, trace the bracket and literally chisel out the wood until it fits.

Switching over to use, this lock shines bright as you have a handful options to unlock the door: use the fingerprint reader which is fast and accurate, put your access code in the keypad, use the plain simple keys like a regular doorknob, use the app via Bluetooth connectivity to unlock it and lastly if you invest an extra $80 you can buy the WiFi adapter to do it from anywhere in the world. This adapter also allows you to connect it for use with Google Assistant and Alexa. The interesting thing about the keypad is that the digits switch around every time you use it so if someone is hovering over your shoulder, it makes it incredibly difficult to guess your pin.

As you would expect, you can provide access to others to unlock the door. This can be done a number of ways:

Code access
-Give access for unlimited time until you revoke it.
-Guest access for a limited amount of time.
-One-time access.

Ebadge Access
-Send the recipient a code from anywhere in the world, they install the Lockly app and they can unlock the door from the app.

Offline Access Code
-Encrypted numbers sent to over SMS, email or verbally. The recipient doesn’t need the app installed and you can set a time limit on access.

Fingerprint
-Allow someone to open the lock using their fingerprint. 99 fingerprints can be registered.

If for any reason you forget your key and the batteries die in the lock, you can press the terminals of a 9v battery under the lock to give the lock a temporary boost of power.

Battery performance is pretty stellar. I’ve been using my unit for about a year and I tend to unlock my door an average of 1-2 times a day and I’m still at 30% battery. It takes 4 AA batteries that are placed on the back of the lock.

On the back of the battery cover is a keypad switch. Turning it off disables the keypad from being used until the door is unlocked. The fingerprint reader is still active during this time.

In the Log section of the app, I’m able to go back an entire year’s worth of history which is great, especially if you’re sharing property space.

In the settings menu of the app you can change a number of things such as the master code, how quickly the auto-lock timer kicks in after unlocking the door.

Performance is pretty good on the fingerprint scanner and having all the other methods to unlock the door is great but having to buy a $79.99 WiFi adapter to open the door from anywhere in the world or using Google Assistant and Alexa is just way too expensive. Especially considering that the lock alone is $279.99. In fact, even with the WiFi adapter it doesn’t support IFTTT.

Score:
9/10

Pros:
-Available as deadbolt or latch
-Colour options
-BILT setup app steps
-Unlock options
-Unlock without “smart” features
-Fast accurate fingerprint reader
-Keypad changes digit order
-Bluetooth open option
-Provide temp access
-Options to provide others access
-Battery boost option
-Battery performance
-Logs retained for a long time

Cons:
-Expensive
-No builtin WiFi for price
-No IFTTT or HomeKit support

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