If you want a real smart home, it is almost mandatory that the front door be smart as well.

Introductory

There are many types of smart home, and now I don’t think that one is based on Xiaomi and the other on Amazon’s Alexa system, for example. A smart home, like an onion, has many layers. Anyone who wants to smarten the apartment starts with the burners, then comes the complete lights, smart switches, sensors for door and window.

In the next stage, the smart machines, the robot vacuum cleaner, the smart micro and the refrigerator come, but they still don’t need more serious intervention, we just plug them in and then they work. Then there’s the next layer, where we’ll be forced to reach into the spiritual world of our things better. We will install a motor in the shutter, the garden gate and the garage door will also be smart. The smart door lock of the Xiaomi also belongs to this group, because it is here to transform our door.

I waited a long time to write this article because back in November I was hoping to soon be able to install it in the new door of the new house (at least new to us) so I could show not only the lock but also the installation itself. However, fate has brought about the fact that the move just doesn’t want to approach, which is why I decided to write the article without the actual installation. If anyone is interested in the further story, come back sometime at the end of the summer and ask, by then we will hopefully be over everything, moving, installing, commissioning.

In the meantime, let's see what the Xiaomi Aqara N100 smart door lock knows!

Packaging and exterior

The Aqara N100 is quite bulky and comes in an even heavier box. When the courier brought it, I suddenly didn’t even know what it was because I was somehow expecting a much smaller package. Opening the box, it turned out that the big box is needed, because the structure is not small, and there are quite a few accessories.

Opening the lid, we first find a template printed on slightly thicker cardboard, which marks the location of the holes to be drilled on the door. On the "shelf" below, we find the cylinder that goes on the outside and inside of the door, which in this case is much more and much bigger than the traditional cylinders. In the lowest part, there are the accessories and the lock mechanism itself.

The accessories include everything you need to install, so we really have no choice but to search Youtube for a video of the installation, and you can get started.

The structure looks quite futuristic from the outside. According to the description, its size is 38 x 7,6 x 2,5 centimeters, which means it is really not small. I’ve written above about its weight, it’s no less than 4,2 pounds. Of course, this includes the outer and inner part, as well as the locking mechanism itself, which is not featherweight in itself.

The cover is glossy on both the outside and inside, I read somewhere that it is tempered glass, but no, it is not, just plain plastic, which could be shaken, even tempered glass. On the outside you will find the hidden keyhole, on the handle the fingerprint sensor, above the handle the number lock and on the bottom of the structure a USB Type-c connector. It is also important that the number plate shows the battery charge on the outside.

The inside is a bit simpler, here there is only a mechanical, rotatable latch, there is a mechanical knob on the handle.

The lock itself, the lock insert, and of course the whole structure is made burglar-proof. The lock is drilling and acid resistant, but we are also protected against the weed burglar dismantling the structure and breaking the lock insert. I will write about how to do this a little later. Anyway, unscrewing the cylinder is not an easy task either, the whole structure is made of a very resistant aluminum alloy, so have a person on your foot who knocks it out of place.

The outer and inner parts are connected by a cable, and we also have a separate cable at the lock, all of which must be connected to the indoor unit, where the batteries that supply the power supply are also placed.

abilities

The Aqara N100 will be an integral part of our smart home, so it has a tremendous amount of capabilities. Perhaps most importantly, although we get two traditional, or at least traditional, keys, opening and closing will not happen with them most of the time.

The manufacturer provides no less than six ways to open the door. In addition to the physical key, we can use Bluetooth connectivity, NFC, number lock, fingerprint detection, phone password, and of course, in a smart home-like way, even other Xiaomi sensors can be connected to the lock.

There is not much to write about the traditional key other than that it is a knife-like fold-out, it knows no other specialty. NFC does not need to be introduced either, it can be paired with a smartwatch, smart bracelet or a phone that knows NFC. Of course, the number lock is not mechanical, we can stamp the numbers on the upper half of the outer part, on a touch-sensitive surface. Again, Bluetooth is just a solution through our phone, as is the password we set on the phone, but it can be pounded on the number lock by anyone who wants to use it, but I’ll write about that even below. The last thing left is fingerprint detection, which works extremely fast and accurately, according to the factory description, using some sort of 3D technology. As a matter of fact, the recognition was flawless and quick to recognize.

In terms of capabilities, it’s important to mention that, like all Aqara gadgets, the door lock supports the Apple HomeKit system. Of course, not only that, since we are talking about a Xiaomi product, that is, it is obvious that the Xiaomi smart home ecosystem is also supported, I will use it myself well.

Installation and use

The installation chapter, due to the above, will be omitted for the time being, but I hope to be able to add this to the article soon. However, due to the test, I did the installation without equipment, the thing also caused an unpleasant surprise.

Installation, at least based on online videos, doesn’t seem too easy. Quite a lot has to be drilled and carved, because quite a lot of things have to be in physical contact, plus the cables have to be routed in and out through the door. When we’re done with the physical part of the job, it’s easy from now on. After screwing on, but only afterwards, insert the batteries. We get eight of these, but the truth is, everything works with up to four pieces. So, we can put in all the included batteries, but we can also use it with four pieces and the other four are waiting to be charged when the batteries need to be replaced. Instead of batteries, you can use a pencil battery, the larger one, type AA.

It’s no coincidence that I’m writing that it’s worth putting everything in place before inserting the batteries, because that’s where an unpleasant surprise came in. We put the kids to sleep in the afternoon and I started putting things together on the kitchen table. I connected the cables, inserted the battery, and started configuring the phone. Then, when I got there to enter the leader number code, the smart stalk began to sound disgusting. Miraculously, the knuckles didn’t wake up, but I could barely win the batteries out of the structure.

I didn’t really understand what had happened, but I soon realized the mistake. This is because there is a hidden pushbutton on the outer side of the door, which is pushed in after being screwed on. Of course, trying it on the table wasn’t like that, and the lock thought I was just trying to get into the apartment illegally, which made it start to sound deafeningly. I have referred to this above, according to which the structure is also protected against dismantling, so if it is pulled off the door when it is switched on, the dead will also wake up from its sound.

Commissioning is not a complicated thing anyway. As I wrote in the introduction, there is little chance that someone will start cluttering the apartment right away with the lock, i.e. if this is true, the Xiaomi Home app will already be up on our phone. When you start the program, all you have to do is use the automatic scan to find the new device, in our case the lock, click on it, and the setup can start. Importantly, the N100 worked with the Chinese server for me.

Configuring the structure takes a little more time than, for example, a clever one. For the basic settings, we need to enter a control code, then we need to enter our own code (anything can be six digits), and finally we need to add our fingerprint as well. If we have these, our door, or more precisely, our smart stem, is essentially functional.

Of course, the configuration does not end here, because later each member of the family must be added to the system as a separate user. Everyone gets a numeric code (the software warns you if the code is too simple) and you can add a fingerprint to everyone. In addition, if we want, we can assign a different code to the cleaning lady, if there is one, but if we feel safe, the postman and the pizza boy can also get a unique number code that they can use to open the door.

The latter code, i.e., generated for non-family members, is called the Xiaomi virtual password. The code itself can be up to 20 digits long, although that will require a notebook, at least for me, because by the time I memorize 20 numbers, it will take half a year. It’s even more interesting to stay with the postman or the pizza boy to create a code for them that can only be used once, while family members and relatives can get one that never expires.

Anyway, we can try to enter the number code five times, if all five are incorrect, the number lock will also be switched off, no more attempts can be made.

Once the entire structure is installed and operational, we can test that everything is working properly. Successful and unsuccessful opening attempts are indicated by an illuminated hoop placed above the handle. If the lock is released, it glows white, but if it failed, for example, it did not recognize the fingerprint, it will turn red.

Speaking of fingerprints, it is important that the sensor is very comfortable to use. For older locks, the sensor was placed on a separate, usually slightly recessed, sloping surface, which was quite macerous. We had to touch one of our fingers while pressing down on the handle. Now the sensor is at the end of the handle shaft, where by grasping the handle, we can comfortably place our thumb on it, while also pressing down on the handle.

Finally, let's talk about the USB Type-C connector. You probably won’t surprise anyone by surprise that this connector is there to keep you from being locked out of your home when your batteries are running low. As I wrote above, the charge of the batteries can be seen on the outside of the structure, it’s also worth noting, but if we were inattentive, we can power the device through the USB port while we open it. If that is not the case, the last resort is still the physical key that can be used to open the lock without any current.

Integration into the smart home system

I honestly admit, since the lock hasn’t been tested in its final location yet, i.e. not built into the door, I haven’t set any automation on it. I looked at the interface, it is the same as the other smart devices in the Xiaomi Home app. The bottom line is that we can attach a lot of functions to the lock, as well as to a sensor, and what, really, is limited only by our imagination. For example, you can turn on the electricity in the hallway at the same time as the lock is released, but you can also turn on the lights, the TV, the air conditioner, or whatever you want, to bring the whole apartment to life. The same can be done the other way around, ie turn off the lights to close.

The stalk isn't just good for that. Because each family member is set up separately for the system, wherever we are, we can see through a push message on our phone when the seedling arrives home from school or when it leaves the square to play instead of learning.

The lock itself can, of course, be opened and closed remotely. That is, if we have not yet reached home, we can still allow a more distant family member into the apartment, for example, who does not have a user profile set up for our lock. But, if you just want to be comfortable, say we cook in the kitchen, you don’t even have to walk to the entrance to open the lock, just push your phone to unlock it, and the door can be opened.

Summary

Now, at the end of the article, there will probably be a lot of people asking the question, what’s the point of all this, since we’ve been gone without such a smart lock so far. They're right. We were without him, just as we were without smart burners, lamps, robotic vacuum cleaners. In fact, I didn't need a washing machine in the past, just a manger and a stream, and then I could go wash my shirt and my bubble.

By that, I just want to say that the smart door lock is also something that is indispensable, but if we are already smartening an apartment, but really, it is still very useful. We can attach a lot of automation to it, so we can make our lives much more comfortable. We will be able to remotely do things we can’t do without it, like we can let an unexpected guest into the apartment until we get home. Then there might be a million and one other things that I can’t think of right now, but then, when used live, I’ll love it, as has happened with all my new smart home devices so far.

The only problem, not too small, is the price, and I think for many, no matter how much you like the Xiaomi close, here the story will bleed. This is because the structure costs no less than $ 200. It was a bit cheaper for me in HUF at the end of last year, then the forint-dollar exchange rate was better, but if you want to buy it now, you have to leave no less than 60 thousand forints for it at the checkout. Not only does this need to have a framework, but it also requires some fanaticism. That's it. such as those who are able to spend many millions more on an electric car than on a conventional one, knowing that in a stinky life they will not spare the price difference, i.e. a net failure of the whole thing.

However, anyone who, like me, has embarked on smartening your home and realized how comfortable it can be to be at home with these gadgets may not feel sorry for the money, just as I didn’t regret it.

If you think you belong to this group, you can buy it by clicking here. Don't forget that you have to choose the Priority Line delivery method for duty-free shipping!

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Xiaomi Aqara N100 smart door lock

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