Lock of ages
The battery cove rs
20,000 activations.
This could deplete
quickly on some
premises, so the app
warns you months
in advance.85
TESTED BOLD SMART LOCKDutch firm Bold wants you to ditch your
door keys and place all your trust in an
app... but is it just a lockin’ role fantasy?
■ There’s something amiss with
the Bold Smart Lock – it’s arrived
without keys. Rivals like the
Brisant-Secure Ultion Smart
and August Smart Lock include
key-entry options, but not here.
It’s either your phone or enter
a PIN by rotating the knob.■ Before installing the cylinder
lock you have to connect it to
Bold’s app. The company has so
far refrained from joining any of
the main smart home platforms,
instead opting to use its own
getaway, although integration
is planned for later this year.■ Swapping cylinders is pretty
easy and doesn’t necessitate
a locksmith. From there the lock
senses when you’re approaching
and activates itself. This is an
unnerving if smooth process,
and perhaps the absence of
recognised smart home platforms
helps to speed up the process.■ Giving guests time-limited
access is one of Bold’s strongest
features and it’s simple – you
just send them an invite by text
message. In fact the hassle is
all theirs because they’ll need to
download the app, so you’d better
hope they’re smartphone-s a vvy.■ Bold primarily works via
Bluetooth, but bundle it with
the optional Bold Connect hub
and it becomes internet-connected
for remote management, and
with multiple locks if required.
This worked a treat for keeping
tabs on the gaff while out walking
and meant we could even let the
cleaner in.The first job of a smart lock is to instil confidence in the customer before they’ve even
bought one, and we’re not sure Bold’s overreliance on its app, the completely keyless
entry and the AES128 encryption do that. The product itself is well designed, simple to
install and easy to operate, and we can even overlook the lack of smart home platform
support; but when the specs leave lingering doubts, it becomes a tough sell.It’ll lock around
the clock, but it
falls short in key
areas (literally)
James DayFor those about to lock
STUFF SAYS A smart lock with much to give, let down by some rough edges HHH✩✩
Connectivity Bluetooth
Compatibility Android, iOS
Battery life Up to 2 years■ Lock-blockin’ beats
On the digital security side there’s
two-factor authentication and
AES128 end-to-end encryption.
That’s good, but not great. The
Brisant smart lock has AES256,
so four extra rounds of encryption
for hackers to get through.■ Lock and a hard place
A cylinder lock is the weakest
part of a door, so Bold redesigned
this one from the ground up. It’s
Dutch SKG three-star-rated, the
highest score possible, meaning it
should delay burglars with heavy
tools for at least five minutes.from £180 / stuff.tv/BoldLockTech specs