If you own an iPhone 11 or later, it includes some tech which does very little right now but is set to quickly become an extremely useful feature: Ultra Wideband (UWB).
Smart door locks incorporating UWB tech are now starting to hit the market, and these will offer the most convenient and secure unlocking experiences of all …
Currently, if you have a smart door lock, you typically have to tap a button on your iPhone or Apple Watch to unlock it, or physically tap your device against the lock for NFC implementations.
There are exceptions, like locks which can automatically unlock when you come into Bluetooth range, but given the long range at which these may work, this feature isn’t recommended – you could be letting an intruder into your home while you’re still hundreds of feet away. There are also Wi-Fi solutions, but these are very unreliable.
But the tech which is set to transform smart locks is Ultra Wideband. This will enable your door to automatically unlock without you having to do a thing, but only when you are very close to it.
UWB is built into iPhones from the iPhone 11 onward, and the Apple Watch Series 6 and up. With one of these devices on you, a UWB-enabled smart lock can be set to automatically unlock. Some systems can even open the door.
The Verge‘s Jennifer Tuohy got a chance to try one of the first of these locks, and was impressed.
I tried out two UWB-powered locks, the Ultraloq Bolt Missionand the Schlage Sense Pro. Even in the RF hell that is the show floor, both unlocked automatically as I approached. Carrying a phone in my hand in one instance and in a bag in another, the locks responded a few seconds before I arrived at them, which, in the real world, would make it simple to then turn the handle and walk in.
One of the neat features of UWB tech you’ll already have experienced if you own AirTags is that the radios can detect your direction and whether you are moving towards or away from them. This makes for a much more secure lock.
This precise proximity unlocking means the lock should only unlock as you walk toward the door from the outside, not as you’re walking away, not if you pause before you get to the door, and not if you’re approaching from the inside. Similarly, if you’re crossing back and forth while, say, mowing the lawn or playing soccer in your front yard, the lock should stay locked.
The only bad news is that early UWB locks are set to be expensive, with the known examples all around the $400 mark. The tech should become cheaper as more manufacturers adopt it.
Image: Utec
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