I’d happily give up a few features to buy this smart lock for $70

Price When Reviewed

$69.99

Best Prices Today: TP-Link Tapo DL100

Best recognized for its cheap routers, TP-Link is quickly rising its Tapo line of budget-priced sensible dwelling gadgets, and the Tapo DL100 sensible lock is a wonderful dwelling safety worth.

You’ll discover loads of sensible locks that look prettier, pack extra whiz-bang options, and help extra sensible dwelling ecosystems, however you received’t discover a $70 lock that’s practically nearly as good as TP-Link’s Tapo DL100.

Design and construct high quality

The Tapo DL100 isn’t flashy, however it doesn’t look low-cost. The black-and-silver end blends properly with most doorways, and the keypad glows softly for nighttime visibility. While the housing is plastic as a substitute of metallic, it doesn’t really feel flimsy within the hand.

The Tapo DL100 is BHMA licensed as a business lock rated ANSI Grade 3, the bottom of the three ANSI business lock grades (the upper ranges being Grade 1 adopted by Grade 2). If you need a stronger lock, you’ll must spend more cash. You can examine ANSI lock grades on the ANSI blog. We clarify the BHMA’s residential lock standards on the previous hyperlink.

In phrases of weatherization, the lock is rated a modest IP54, which in keeping with our IP code guide, means it received’t permit mud ingress to the purpose of inflicting failure, and that it may possibly stand up to being sprayed with water (however positively not from a stress washer).

James Barber/Foundry

I don’t know if I’d use it for an oceanfront seaside home, however it ought to stand as much as extra typical environments. That stated, most of the locks we’ve reviewed these days have had the identical water resistance rankings as this lock, however they’ve been impervious to mud ingress (having a 6–as a substitute of a 5–as the primary digit of their IP codes).  

More specs

The Tapo DL100 sensible deadbolt options each a numeric PIN pad with bodily buttons (it’s not a touchscreen) and a standard key cylinder, and it may also be locked and unlocked with the Tapo app in your cellphone through Bluetooth, or—when you’ve related it to your house Wi-Fi community (2.4GHz networks solely)—with an Amazon Alexa or Google Home voice command.

The lock additionally helps SmartThings and IFTTT, however not Apple’s HomeEquipment or, by extension, Apple’s Home Key . There’s no help for Thread or Matter, both, and the DL100 additionally doesn’t present the choice technique of unlocking it with a fingerprint. If that’s a should—have characteristic, think about the upscale mannequin Tapo DL110 that has that characteristic—plus an built-in doorbell; it’s priced at $150.

The lock operates on 4 AA batteries, which TP-Link says ought to final for 10 months utilizing a Bluetooth connection. That declare drops to seven months with the lock related to Wi-Fi, which I count on most individuals will go for, because it provides you distant entry to the lock. Should the batteries die when you’re out and about, you’ll be able to plug a smartphone or a conveyable battery right into a USB-C port on the underside of the lock

Installation and setup

James Barber/Foundry

Physical set up ought to be a breeze for anybody changing an present deadbolt, and also you don’t want any kind of hub or bridge to benefit from all its options with out the necessity to enroll in a subscription or different service plan.

I changed an present deadbolt lock, and all the course of from eradicating the outdated deadbolt to opening the DL100’s field to strolling away from a accomplished mission took lower than fifteen minutes. If it is advisable to minimize into your door and jamb for set up, the method will get much more difficult—as it will with every other deadbolt.

James Barber/Foundry

A Phillips-head screwdriver was the one software wanted for the mission and, after putting in the Tapo app on my cellphone and inserting the batteries into the lock, the DL100 related through Bluetooth nearly instantly. Your subsequent steps will probably be to create a 4- to 8-digit PIN and add the lock to your Wi-Fi community. You can create as much as 200 distinctive PINs with various ranges of permission. You’ll additionally need to activate the App Lock/Unlock setting in order for you to have the ability to unlock the door remotely through the web.

The app additionally lets you generate a one-time code that company, house-cleaners, contractors, restore companies, and different folks can use to achieve licensed entry to your house. You can select from preset occasions (as much as one full day) or set a customized time window on a future date. An exercise log retains tack of everybody’s comings and goings.

James Barber/Foundry

If you’re involved that somebody may uncover your PIN by watching you unlock the door, or by finding out which numbers on the PIN have telltale fingerprints, benefit from Tapo’s Scramble PIN code possibility. This helps you to press as much as 20 random numbers, together with your PIN code included in sequence and/or after your PIN, and the lock will disregard the opposite numbers however unlock when it acknowledges your PIN.

TP-Link’s Unlock Attempt Limiter one other safety characteristic. It helps you to outline the variety of failed unlock makes an attempt earlier than the lock freezes for an outlined size of time: as much as 5 minutes, in 1-minute increments). You also can set an Auto-Lock timer that may mechanically relock the door after the passage of an outlined variety of minutes after opening it: 15- or 30- seconds, or 1-, 5-, or 15 minutes.

Wi-Fi connectivity is a recognized battery hog, so you’ll be able to program the lock to mechanically flip its Wi-Fi adapter off at night time and fall again to Bluetooth connectivity solely. The lock will mechanically reconnect to Wi-Fi at a time of your selecting. It’s a really cool characteristic.

So, what’s lacking?

James Barber/Foundry

Here’s what you don’t get on the cut price value of $70: There’s no fingerprint recognition (once more, TP-Link gives a costlier lock that does have that characteristic) and there’s no geofencing help, so your cellphone can’t mechanically lock the door once you depart your house’s geocircle or unlock the door once you come again into it. The Tapo additionally app doesn’t ship notifications on a per-user foundation (“so-and-so just unlocked the door with their PIN”).

I additionally typically skilled a delay when unlocking through the app over Wi-Fi, often only a few seconds, however lengthy sufficient to make me marvel if the message went by means of. Voice assistant instructions labored properly however often required a repeat. That could possibly be extra of an Alexa difficulty than a Tapo one. I didn’t check the lock with Google Assistant.

If you need to use the distant Wi-Fi options, you’ll must arrange a Tapo account within the Tapo app. That’s to be anticipated in order for you long-distance entry to a tool, so be mindful you’ll be able to’t be 100-percent in charge of your connection in order for you these options. 

Should you purchase the Tapo DL100 sensible deadbolt

At this value, the DL100’s most evident competitor is the Wyze Lock Bolt, TechHive’s earlier choose for best budget-priced smart lock. Wyze gives native Bluetooth management and fingerprint recognition however not Wi-Fi connectivity. If distant entry and voice assistant compatibility are priorities, the Tapo DL100 is the clear winner.

The Tapo DL100 isn’t flashy, however TP-Link has delivered one of the absolutely featured sensible locks you should purchase for lower than $100. For this value, getting Wi-Fi entry, real-time alerts, code and administration with no paid subscription is actually spectacular.

If you need premium options like fingerprint recognition or Apple HomeEquipment/Home Key help, you’ll must spend more cash—perhaps even much more. But at this value, the TP-Link’s Tapo DL100 sensible lock is simple to suggest.

Further studying: This evaluation is a part of TechHive’s in-depth protection of the best smart locks.