Lockitron: Keyless entry using your phone

We use Lockitron on our offices and it has saved us a lot of trouble. Empirically people are a lot less likely to forget their phone than to forget keys, presumably because you use your phone for so many other things whereas most keys do nothing but get you into a single building.

Wow, I'm amazed that they got wifi to work in the lock itself, vs. using a low-power thing like Zigbee to a base station with AC power.<p>Also, BT 4.0 LE is perfect for this -- since there's no NFC in the iPhone 5, I suspect BT 4.0 LE will end up taking the place of NFC for a lot of "heavier duty" NFC applications -- not that the Bluetooth protocol is great or elegant, but it's a lot easier to work with than NFC, and now BT 4.0 LE exists on both major smartphone platforms.<p>All my earlier criticism of not having a local ACL and local RF communication to the lock, vs. going to/from the Internet, is now resolved.<p>The only thing they're missing is a BT 4.0 LE dongle (which I've seen on Kickstarter called "hone" <a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/690528216/hone-for-iphone-4s-never-lose-your-keys-again" rel="nofollow">http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/690528216/hone-for-iphon...</a> -- you could put that on your keyring and use it as an expensive HID proxcard replacement. Same thing works for electronic leash.<p>Now all they need to do is support 5-10 locksets in some kind of private/small business network (vs. putting in a HID access control system), for 0-99 users, and they'll be really innovative. Managing a single door with 0-5 people is comparatively easy; managing an office with turnover is a lot harder, and businesses would happily pay $1-2k for a system to cover their doors and employees with a nice LDAP/AD/FB/etc. interface.<p>Since you can upload your own firmware, it would be entirely possible for a customer to build this.

relies on<p><pre><code> your phone working 2.4 Ghz your internet connection your power their datacenter their website software </code></pre> to avoid carrying a key?<p>anyone in the area could easily ddos off your wireless more or less permanently by spamming disconnect.<p>doesn't seem like a very good risk/reward ratio to me.<p>whats the problem with a more traditional (read local) keyless approach? door too thick?

I've been using a MiCasa Verde[1], alongside the compatible KwikSet Deadbolts[2], an android app called Automator to accomplish the same thing. It's actually a little pricier but you get:<p>a. Remote entry -- unlock your door from afar. b. A nice home automation system (mine's expanded to control lights and thermostat now) c. Keypad and key-entry as backups<p>I love it. Being able to remotely lock and unlock your doors is super handy, whether it be for guests, contractors or what not. But what's really handy? Never worrying about locking yourself out of your house again.<p>If I could just get rid of my car key, I'd be thrilled.<p>[1]<a href="http://micasaverde.com/" rel="nofollow">http://micasaverde.com/</a> [2]<a href="http://amzn.to/QGn2Im" rel="nofollow">http://amzn.to/QGn2Im</a>

Unikey[1] on Shark Tank last season blew me away, I couldn't wait to see it in action, and be available. This looks like an easier installation process than that, but Unikey has some big names attached to it (Black &#38; Decker). Can't wait to see this tech take off, good luck guys!<p>[1] <a href="http://www.unikeytech.com/" rel="nofollow">http://www.unikeytech.com/</a>

Why not use a lock with a keycode instead? I don't see a single scenario where Lockitron works better.<p><a href="http://consumer.schlage.com/Products/Pages/category-landing.aspx?category=Electronic+Keypad+Locks" rel="nofollow">http://consumer.schlage.com/Products/Pages/category-landing....</a>

As a renter - the fact that it will now clip onto my existing lock is huge.

So, do people who use something like this just never lock your bottom handle lock? I live in a busy city and lock both to keep my place secure. I'm not sure I would like just being able to lock the deadbolt but not the handle lock.

Looks like a really cool product, but as a note to the marketing department: the product itself looks just a little bit too much like an iPhone. I got confused for a moment, and thought the device <i>was</i> an iPhone with a picture of the deadbolt on it. There's probably a way to make the materials somewhat clearer that the Lockitron is the big square bit, and not the C-shaped mounting adapter.

Right now, the website is down or perhaps cloudflare is having issues.<p>I did get a look and was going to make a comment (which I wanted to verify) that the site in no way shows that the company had built another product (at least not from a quick look).<p>Now I can't even get a look at the site. This isn't 1996. Why are people having so many issues with delivering simple reliability to a 1 page website?

I installed a punch code deadbolt on our front door. It has been a life-changing experience. I need neither phone nor keys and never worry about being locked out. I just have to replace the batteries every couple years.<p>One of the biggest improvements, not offered by the Lockitron, is the lack of needing to fumble in your pockets for anything. If you've got a handful of groceries, it's much easier to shift a bag or two to get a hand free and punch the code than it is to go digging in your pockets.

Cool and interesting idea, but for obvious reasons* I have some slight reluctance with using a service like this for my home. For less valuable targets though -- like a conference room or shared workspace -- this is a really clever solution to sharing keys.<p>*I hate it when people say that so I'll expand. Simply put, I'm worried about it getting hacked. For instance, could you gain access to someone's wifi and then flash a new image (which includes a rogue key) onto the device?

<i>&#62; We won’t charge your card until your Lockitron is ready</i><p>Interesting.. so you don't even need the money for the first production run, pure crowd-hype marketing. Also very ballsy of YC to sidestep kickstarter like this.. although i suppose 1000 pre-sales isn't huge.<p>As for the product, some nice feature improvements over v1.0, although i'm not a fan of the new plasticy design-- i would not want to see that thing on my door unless I had to, for any price.

We used Lockitron at the Cloudkick office. Super convenient, as it let anyone at the office buzz a guest/delivery through our outer door without leaving their desk. Also awesome: the ability to give visitors temporary access without having to keep track of making keys, ensuring they're returned, blah blah blah. Lockitron eliminated the dumb, day-to-day-headache-type-stuff involved in getting people in and out of our space.

Kudos to the team. This looks fantastic, and I love that it's a v2 product! Preordering now.<p>It could be more clear that the lockitron does two very interesting things, I had to watch the video to figure them out:<p>- knock detection via microphone so you know someone is at the door (awesome)<p>- auto-unlock based on nearby phone presence (presumably bluetooth) so you can just walk into your house.<p>If it works like it's supposed to, this is seriously great.

I'd be fine with keyless entry over the web if it only worked when I have in my pocket something it also must detect in order to open.<p>And when I actually do want to open it remotely, I get a call with a code I can enter. In other words, some sort of 2 step authentication.<p>And I want to be notified by the app every time that door opens if I am not using the app right then to open it.

Is this a neat idea? Sure. But it's nowhere near $150 worth of value. (And, based on their "limited time" copy, it's likely going to rise to a more egregious price in the future.) I'm actually dumbstruck that they've sold 2500 of these. Admittedly, not having leave your couch to lock up or being able to check the status of your locks remotely is by all means a nice offering, but for the price, it's just not worth it.<p>Incidentally, this is also just a workaround. It's a hack. It's likely not to work in all homes or with all locks.<p>Moreover, this thing will likely look out of place and fairly undesirable on most doors, especially on older buildings.<p>An actual installable lock would be incredibly more compelling due to the fact that it will be less bulky and intrusive.

Great idea. However, I can't help but think that if Lockitron gains meaningful adoption, the various organized-crime groups operating on the web will try to hack the company's backend retrieve lock usage and location data or even gain the ability remotely to open customer locks. (Criminals already pay for stolen credit card information on the web; they would readily pay for lock usage and location data too. How valuable would it be for thieves to know when other people in their own city leave their homes?)<p>I would want to understand how Lockitron might use and secure my lock-usage, location, and other personal information before using the device and service to lock anything important, like my office or my house.

It's pretty obvious that more and more things are converging to the phone. We've already seen how modern smartphones have markets like the point-and-shoot camera and portable music player. It makes sense to carry around one device that does as much as possible. And I love the extension of the smartphone into these home automation areas (though I realize locks have a significantly greater market than just that). What troubles me right now is the fracturing, but that's inevitable in emerging markets. It would just be nice to have a really great product line that I could use to unlock deadbolts, open my garage door, automate my lights, control switches / outlets, program my thermostat, etc.

When I saw that this thing fits over my existing deadbolt two things came to mind and in this order:<p>1. Wow, that device must have a lot of torque as many deadbolts, mine for example, actually requires some effort to turn, either to lock or unlock. This resistance is caused mainly by the springiness of the weather stripping which pushes back against the door when it is closed.<p>2. Sometimes, when sunlight falls upon—and heats—the door I need to push or pull slightly on the door in order to turn the deadbolt at all. The door is not dimensionally stable and deadbolt alignment changes. This makes me think that the system would not be reliable. I know my door and deadbolt are not unique in this regard.

Ahhh crap. I have been building this exact thing in my garage as we speak.<p>Too slow! Well played, Lockitron.

I cannot drive to work if I forget my keys. However, I have following idea. A cell phone case with an imbedded radio frequency chip that communicates with your key chain. The purpose of the device is to alert you if get too far away from your phone. This two way radio will not only help you locate your phone, but you can use it to locate your keys as well. You will be able to preset an approximate range boundary which will cause the case/keys to beep when they are too far apart. If you are close to the phone but can not see it, you can make the phone beep by pressing a button.

Really nice product can't wait to see it in production. One insignificant caveat: I don't like the interface on the phone to lock unlock. Why use two images, the lock and unlock padlock when one image would suffice.

It all sounded good until the "SMS" part. SMS messages are not encrypted and it is possible to sniff them (albeit it is not the simplest thing to do, but it is possible). Of course no one will have your actual house address, unless they cross reference your cell phone number with Facebook!<p>Granted the risk there seems small, basically limited to people without a smart phone who are also in the market for a smart gadget like this.<p>It is good to see that this is disabled by default, but it seems like a really unnecessary security hole.

We use lockitron at the Tigerlabs co-working space in Princeton. It's awesome! The provisioning, the ease of use, and the reliability are amazing. The team has done a great job of focusing on, and absolutely nailing the future-of-locks scenario. We've been happily using Lockitron 1 -- Lockitron 2 appears to eliminate the 'base station' and the custom lock, and now works with your existing lock. All Airbnb's and Co-working spaces need this. ;)

So what happens when your lock requires holding the door with pressure to have the bolt slide freely? Does it just not lock, or does it tell you it won't lock?

I made this point in another comment, but here it is again:<p>This product can be about much more than solving the problem of forgetting your keys. People with limited dexterity (such as my father, a quadriplegic) would love a product like this. When leaving the house, he would be able to make a few taps on an iPad to lock things up. Right now we don't use a lock because it's behind a garage door, but this would allow us much more flexibility.

Is this their official launch? The company I've worked for has had one for a while...<p>Regardless, I'm a fan. The fact that granting and revoking access is so trivial meant that when I was an intern I still had full ability to come and go regardless of the presence of a fulltimer (contrasting with other internships, where hesitance to give interns keys meant if I showed up too early I had to sit on my butt till someone arrived to let me in).

I love the idea, but, now, when I loose my phone I will be cashless, unable to call someone for help, and locked out of my home.<p>I also hope they salt their password hashes.

We use Lockitron at the 500startups offices. It worked well most of the time. The few times it didn't work was very annoying and I had to rely on someone else to open the door for me (from the inside). As long as you have a secondary option for opening the door, it's a great product.

This looks really cool.<p>One issue with the video around 0:40... Lockitron really needs to buy their hardware engineers some eye protection and magnification devices. You should never solder up close like that without eye protection. What they show in the video probably violates OSHA guidelines.

Kudos to the team. This is not a solution for everyone, but there are places (Airbnb, shared access, renter, maybe hotel) where this concept could be invaluable. Even if not for my main door I could use it on the side door to allow multiple access for my family and kids.

Lockitron guys: I would love a similar device for my garage door! Perhaps even integrated into one since most front door deadbolts are going to be within range of a garage door opener. It could support standard Genie/Liftmaster and get 80% of the market.

Haha this reminded me of our fb hackathon project. wrote about it here a while back: <a href="http://designcodelearn.com/2012/06/01/i-was-the-worst-coder-in-the-room/" rel="nofollow">http://designcodelearn.com/2012/06/01/i-was-the-worst-coder-...</a>

Lockitron even mentions that AirBnB is a great fit + they are both YC companies. Why isn't there a partnership already established between the two companies? Lockitron should be contacting all of AirBnB's most rented property owners to buy the lock.

This looks great. Would love to see a version that has a camera on the front of lockitron so I can see who is at my front door. It sounds incredibly lazy, but being able to open the app and see who is at my front door would prove useful.

Our company developed a product where you can enter a place just by calling a specific number. If your number is on the registered number's database it will unlock the door...<p>Don't know why they don't do it like that instead of having to send a text...

Hey, I just backed Lockitron, question:<p>Will Sense work with multiple phones at a time?

Looks great, but I'm reticent to replace my mortise-style door lock. Maybe future versions will support this type of lock? Other than sizing considerations, I don't see why not.

We use Lockitron on the Firebase office door. I highly recommend it. Giving access to new employees is a couple of clicks, rather than making &#38; tracking a new physical key.

We used the alpha version of Lockitron for over a year at Blockboard's office. Once it was set up everything ran smoothly. We loved it. The final version looks even slicker.

wasn't there a shark tank where something similar was pitched? Thought he said he had patents protecting the idea, who knows what that covered<p><a href="http://today.ucf.edu/ucf-engineering-alum-lands-500000-deal-on-shark-tank-finale/" rel="nofollow">http://today.ucf.edu/ucf-engineering-alum-lands-500000-deal-...</a><p><a href="http://abc.go.com/watch/shark-tank/SH559076/VD55203511/week-15" rel="nofollow">http://abc.go.com/watch/shark-tank/SH559076/VD55203511/week-...</a>

We have one of these for our office too, and it works great :-). My only problem is that I want one for my apartment too, so I can stop carrying keys altogether.

Personally, I would really like to see this attacked by TOOL and Schuyler Towne to see how vulnerable it is.<p>I love the idea of this device, but I also love seeing locks defeated.

What happens if the iPhone runs out of battery? The site says it still works if you have "lost power", but I assume this means in the household?

Today if I loose my keys, I call a locksmith with my phone and pay him with my credit card.<p>A year from now if my phone runs out of battery, I am homeless. :)

We're using lockitron at the apartments we stay in San Francisco. It works like a charm. Thinking about getting one for back home :)

Neat idea, but what makes this worth 150 bucks?

Kickstarter project, without the kickstarter! It's kickstarter-lite. umm - did the value of Kickstarter just go down? ;)

I usually hate these gimmicks, but my god, this is extremely well done. Really need to consider it...

The best part about this entire thing is that you can use it on top of an existing lock. Genius.

Sadly most doors in Germany have a normal key access installed on the inside as well :/

patent issue, anyone?<p><a href="http://techcrunch.com/2012/06/22/after-surviving-the-shark-tank-unikey-technologies-raises-1-1m-in-equity-funding/" rel="nofollow">http://techcrunch.com/2012/06/22/after-surviving-the-shark-t...</a>

I'm trying to figure out what <i>real</i> business problem this solves. Help

Anyone else notice one of the engineers does not blink in the video?

Looks neat. Don't think it'll work with my deadbolt though :(

We have one of these for our office. It's great.

I'd like something like this for my car.

How long do the batteries last?

Lockitron user here. Love it!

Was this a YC company?

ripe for airbnb acquisition.

Nice one (idea): in my pockets, I've still an iphone, a bunch of keys, credit cards and a pass card for the office...