Aqara Smart Lock U100 review: Freedom unlocked

I am not typically a forgetful person, so smart locks were never really something I felt I had a great need for. They absolutely have their purpose (who hasn’t used one when checking into an Airbnb?) but I never considered permanently replacing my standard deadlock with one. That is, until I got the chance to test out the new Aqara Smart Lock U100.

The Aqara Smart Lock U100 comes in matte silver and black with two components: The exterior-facing component which has a touch-sensitive keypad, fingerprint scanner and sliding compartment that hides the traditional mechanical lock, and the interior-facing component which simply shows a standard thumbturn for easy locking and unlocking from inside.

Although the lock is a little more bulky and blocky-looking than we’d like, the design is functional, and the whole unit feels solid and well-built. It’s also got an IP65 weatherproof rating and can be operated in temperatures as high as 66°C, so it should be more than capable of withstanding whatever our Aussie climate can throw at it.

Removing my old “dumb” lock proved to be an absolute nightmare, but fortunately, the Aqara U100 didn’t give me much grief at all. It’s designed to fit most standard doors, and luckily for me, it fit mine like a glove. From start to finish, installation took about 10 or 15 minutes total. You don’t get much in the way of instructions in the box, but if you download the Aqara app, you’ll be taken through each step of the installation and setup process, with a handy video explainer for each step.

As I mentioned previously, I was always a bit of a smart lock sceptic. I saw their value, but they simply never appealed to me personally. Boy, how quickly my mindset changed. A few walks around the neighbourhood without the sound of jangling in my pocket and a couple of times coming home from work and not having to rummage through my bag for the keys and I was sold. Part of the reason is the sheer number of ways you can unlock the Aqara Smart Lock U100. You can use a passcode (and even disguise your passcode by bookending it with a bunch of random numbers to deter peeping Toms), your fingerprint, the Aqara app, an Apple Home Key, an NFC tag, or even an old-fashioned physical key.

You can set up profiles for each member of the household, or you can even make temporary passwords for visitors. I can imagine that coming in handy for anyone who uses a dog sitter or house cleaner, but it’s also useful if ever you need a friend to come and check on the house or water the plants while you’re away.

In addition to being one of the few HomeKit-compatible smart locks on the market, the Aqara Smart Lock U100 also works with Alexa, Google Home, IFTTT and Matter, making it probably the best smart lock for smart homes.

Performance-wise, the only issue I experienced with the U100 was the auto-locking feature, which is currently in beta. To set it up, you’ll need to do some calibration tests through the Aqara Home app so the lock’s internal gyroscope can identify which door position indicates the door is closed. Despite doing everything by the book, the day I turned the feature on, I actually got briefly locked out due to the latch not fully extending or retracting. I hadn’t experienced this problem before with any of the manual locking and unlocking methods, and after turning the feature off, I didn’t have any other issues.

The lock runs on four AA batteries (included in the box), which Aqara claims can power the lock for up to eight months, based on an average of eight unlocks and auto-locks per day. In order to unlock the door if the batteries die, you’ll need to have one of the mechanical keys on you (or perhaps hidden around the outside of your house) or a portable USB-C charger to temporarily power the lock and let you back in. Not ideal, but standard practice for smart locks.

The Aqara Smart Lock U100 is the kind of product that turns a sceptic into a believer. It’s got its flaws, sure, but its virtues, like the ever-elusive HomeKit compatibility and plethora of unlocking methods, more than make up for them.