August's Smart Lock Pro is one of our long-running top picks among the best smart locks for its ease of use, compatibility with a host of other smart home products, and wide feature set. However, we had two issues with the lock: It was very big, and you would need a separate device—the August Connect—if you wanted to control the lock remotely, or link it with other smart home devices.
Well, August is addressing both those issues with the August Wi-Fi Smart Lock, announced at CES 2020. Not only is it considerably smaller than before, but it now connects directly to your Wi-Fi network.
The company said the Wi-Fi Smart Lock will be available this spring, and that its price would be comparable to its existing Smart Lock Pro, which historically has been around $249.
The August Wi-Fi Smart Lock has a similarly substantial aluminum body as its predecessor, with subtle grooves along the outside that provide a nice grip. However, the August Wi-Fi Smart Lock is 20 percent slimmer and 45 percent smaller in volume than the Smart Lock Pro. And, it uses Wi-Fi in addition to Bluetooth.
However, according to the company, there's little tradeoff in battery life, due to improvements in the chips, and the switch from using AA batteries to smaller, but higher-capacity 3-volt CR123 batteries.
August says the batteries should last between six months to a year, and a new feature in the August app will let you link it to Amazon's Dash replenishment service, which can automatically order new batteries (the brand of your choosing) when those in the lock run low.
August's new smart lock is not the first we've seen that uses Wi-Fi instead of Zigbee, Z-Wave, or Bluetooth, but it's becoming more popular as companies figure out better power-management.
Be sure to check out our CES 2020 hub for the latest news and hands-on impressions out of Las Vegas.
