Kwikset takes a smart approach with its new smart lock

The Halo Select is Kwikset’s first new smart lock in five years, and its new features, updated design, and creative approach to connectivity could make the long wait worthwhile.

The Halo Select is a ground-up redesign of the company’s Halo line and its first lock to support Matter. It works with the new standard over the low-power, mesh networking protocol Thread and, interestingly, has the option of skipping Matter and using Wi-Fi.

It’s a clever move by Kwikset. Smart locks have limited features in Matter today, but the standard offers greater interoperability and Thread promises better battery life (a key feature in a motorized lock). Buy this lock today and enjoy all the great smart lock features over Wi-Fi now, then switch to Matter later — when (or if) it gets better.

“This lock has been a long time coming,” Charles Dougherty, product manager at Kwikset, told The Verge in an interview. “We didn’t rush this lock just to be first to market; we took our time, and we think this is the right time based on the way the market has developed. It has Wi-Fi, which is what most customers want today, but it’s also future-proofed with Matter and Thread.”

Interestingly, whichever option you choose for the lock — Wi-Fi or Matter-over-Thread (you can’t do both simultaneously) — you have to start in Kwikset’s app and at least initially connect to Wi-Fi.

“We choose this because with the limitations on features between ecosystems [in Matter] right now, you could have a poor experience, and we’ve opted to make the conversion to Matter part of our app flow, allowing us to educate the customer,” explained Dougherty.

He showed me a demo of the Matter setup steps, and it was the clearest and most straightforward process I’ve seen for a Matter smart lock, and I’ve tested nearly all of them. Crucially, Dougherty says you can switch between the options if you discover one isn’t working the way you’d like.

This is a smart approach, at least for now, while the standard gets up to speed. One of the biggest frustrations of Matter for users so far has been the loss of some features, even while gaining things like local control and less latency.

The Kwikset Halo Select will be available in mid-November for $279. A full deadbolt replacement lock, it uses a touchscreen keypad and a traditional keyway for physical access — there’s no fingerprint reader or NFC for Apple Home Key.

Its overall design is slimmer and sleeker than Kwikset’s previous Halo locks, and there is now a nifty new status icon on the touchscreen that shows if the door is unlocked as you approach.

Kwikset says it has also upgraded the motor to be more powerful and quieter than its previous locks, and the Halo Select meets the Builders Hardware Manufacturers Association’s (BHMA) top AAA certification for physical security. It’s powered by four alkaline AA batteries or a rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack (which you have to buy separately).

As mentioned, the Halo Select has both Wi-Fi and Thread connectivity built-in, giving you the choice of protocols and platform compatibility. If you set it up over Wi-Fi, you can use it without an additional hub and lock and unlock it remotely using Kwikset’s app. It will also work with Kwikset’s new Auto-Unlock by Distance feature, which launched this summer, to unlock your door “hands-free” as you arrive home.

Other features of the Kwikset app include creating codes for friends, family, and temporary visitors, scheduling the lock, setting up an auto-lock, and receiving alerts when the door is left ajar — detected by the company’s new slim magnetic door sensor.

Connecting the lock to a smart home platform like Amazon Alexa or Google Home also adds voice control and the option to use the lock in smart home routines. Kwikset says the Halo Select should get six months of battery life on Wi-Fi using AA batteries and up to nine months if you buy its new lithium-ion battery pack. This is the first lock I’ve seen that can use both power options.

If you opt for Matter-over-Thread connectivity, you can’t use the Kwikset app to control the lock, but you can use any Matter-compatible platform — including Apple Home, Samsung SmartThings, Amazon Alexa, and Google Home. You will need a Matter controller and a Thread border router.

Of course, the Matter standard can work over Wi-Fi, too, but the benefits of Thread are particularly attractive for devices like smart locks. Thread connectivity should significantly improve battery life (“12 months plus,” says Dougherty), as a local mesh network it should help ensure your lock stays connected — even if the Wi-Fi goes down.

However, by using Thread, you will lose access to most features of the Kwikset app. This includes creating passcodes, auto-lock, and door ajar alerts. Instead, you have to rely on the capabilities offered by the platform(s) you choose. Today, these are largely limited to locking and unlocking. Apple Home and Samsung SmartThings also let you set up passcodes for door locks in their apps, but Amazon and Google don’t.

“We have been as vocal as we can be encouraging ecosystems to support features, giving them our opinion on priorities in the category,” said Dougherty. “We’ve had some influence here, so we hope these will be supported in the near future.”

Along with the launch of the Halo Select, Kwikset teased an NFC-capable lock — the Halo Select Plus — coming in early 2025. While the company wouldn’t share any more details, with NFC aboard, it could be compatible with Apple Home’s tap-to-unlock Home Key feature.

However, what’s more likely is that the lock will support Aliro, a new open standard designed to make smart locks compatible with any smartphone or smartwatch for tap-to-unlock. Both Apple and Samsung are helping develop the standard and have announced their phones will support Aliro next year. Kwikset’s parent company, Assa Abloy, is “very involved” in Aliro, said Dougherty.