After much deliberation, we decided to try a smart door lock. We made a list of requirements and wishes and the Nuki Ultra emerged as the winner.
The Nuki 4 was ruled out because of the ugly battery lump hanging underneath. In addition, the cylinder lock had to be replaced by a cylinder with a panic function, which we did not have. That would mean that we would have to replace all the cylinders in the house or have 2 different keys for the front and back door.
The LOQED was ruled out because you have to replace the entire shield, and we were afraid that it would not match our current shield and that you would have to start painting again. In addition, we had some doubts because they had gone bankrupt and the quality of the sensor on the outside, and the fact that you have a sensor on your outside door that might attract attention. The Nuki Ultra is invisible from the outside, there is simply a cylinder lock.
Installing the Nuki Ultra is easy. The app neatly guides you through everything you need to do, step by step. Everything you need is included. It starts with measuring your lock (measuring cards are included) and replacing the cylinder with the Nuki cylinder. You make this to size using an ingenious system of spacers and that works fine. You then mount the cylinder in your door, place the lock itself on the cylinder, calibrate it and if everything works in my case, you are basically done with the installation. Total time was 30 minutes, and if I had to do it again I think it could be done in 15 minutes.
You get 3 physical keys (including a card with a code to have more made yourself) in case the lock no longer works, or if you have someone in your family who cannot handle a smartphone or something.
The Nuki app is also super clear, you can configure who should have access (create QR codes in the app and have that person scan them, or share them via WhatsApp for example), what type of access and whether there are any time restrictions. For example, you could choose to only give the interior caretaker access on Mondays, between 08:00 and 12:00 (for example). All very clear and easy to set up.
Furthermore, the lock has geofencing, which means that the lock "knows" where it is and where you are (by means of position determination on your smartphone). If you have been further than 100 meters from your home, you can set the lock to open automatically when you enter the geofence again and the lock makes contact with your smartphone via Bluetooth. This results in the door opening automatically when I come home from work and park the car in the driveway, so that I can quickly get inside, very handy when your hands are full or it is raining heavily.
In the beginning we had some problems with the automatic opening of the door, which turned out to be due to not being far enough from the "geofence". Otherwise, the lock works without any problems. The lock came with 84% battery charge and now has 74% charge, while it is used multiple times a day. Nuki claims up to 6 months of use on 1 charge, I think you can indeed achieve that if you charge it to 100%. Furthermore, you get warnings well in advance when the lock is running out of power and needs to be charged.
Charging is done via a supplied cable (2 meters long) that magnetically clicks onto the lock. So you don't have to remove the battery and the advantage is that the lock can also be used while charging. I think I'm going to use a power bank for this, because I don't have a power outlet within 2 meters of the door.
In terms of noise: it is certainly not a silent lock. We have it on "Insane" speed because the noise level on the other settings is not much lower but does last longer. However, we don't find it annoying, but if you want to install it next to a child's room, I would test that first in terms of noise.
We have been using it for over 2 weeks now and are very satisfied. It is expensive but the build quality and design of the universal cylinder show that.
