2023 has seen some exciting announcements and releases around HomeKit door locks. With Home Key, Level Lock+, and the Aqara doorbell, it’s been an exciting year. These door locks have been focused around exterior doors, though. The HOLOMARQ Smart Door Knob is a new interior door option for HomeKit that provides some unique use cases.
HomeKit Weekly is a series focused on smart home accessories, automation tips and tricks, and everything to do with Apple’s smart home framework.
When I first ran across this product, I had to do a double take. It was a product I had really been thinking about. When you think of smart door locks, you think of exterior deadbolts. When you think about it, though, there are plenty of use cases for an interior door lock that you control like a home office, wine storage, master bedroom, private room for a rental house, pool house, etc. I particularly think this could be a valuable product for a home office when you have confidential documents on your computer or in your filing cabinet.
Installation process
I am a pro at doors at this point on swapping all things door hardware. If the holes are drilled, it’s really a matter of swapping screws. Installation is a breeze on the HOLOMARQ Smart Door Knob on interior doors with standard backsets from 2 ⅜ inches up to 2 ¾ inches. If It’s compatible with your door, all you need is a Phillips screwdriver in order to install it. You’ll unscrew your existing door knob, and then you’ll remount the HOLOMARQ Smart Door Knob. You’ll want to have it all installed before moving onto the HomeKit process.
HomeKit with Thread
While the lock is missing HomeKey support it does contain something that no other smart lock I’ve looked at contains: Thread support. The Thread protocol creates a seamless and more reliable smart home ecosystem. There’s a HomeKit code on top of the lock that you’ll scan when you make sure it’s powered up using four AA batteries.
The HomeKit use cases are pretty clear for this lock. You can lock and unlock it from Siri and the Home app. If you’re using this lock on a rental home, you’ll want to make sure you have a Home Hub like an HomePod mini or an Apple TV in order to allow yourself to control it remotely as well as monitor the status of the lock.
Wrap-up
For under $100, the HOLOMARQ Smart Door Knob is a great value. It’s the perfect add-on for an interior door where you want to have remote lock status monitoring with fingerprint and pin code unlocks as well. Of course, it comes with keys in the box as a fail-safe if all else fails. You’ll also want to download the Sleekpoint app if you want to take full advantage of the lock as well. The only thing the lock is missing is Home Key support, but since it’s an interior lock, it’s not as critical as it would be for an exterior door.
The HOLOMARQ Smart Door Knob is available from Amazon and directly from Holomarq.
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