Tag: Aqara

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The Best Smart Lock of 2026 (So Far) Just Got Even Better!

Hey I know that we’re only in month three of 2026 and there are new products being introduced all the time. However, Aqara came out with a banger of a smart lock, the Aqara U400 that has now raised the bar.

It actually dethroned my previous favorite smart lock of all time, the Lockly Visage Zeno on one of my doors.

Why is the Aqara U400 so cool?

The Aqara 400 is the first available smart lock to support UWB (Ultra Wide-Band) here in the U.S. This technology enables you to unlock your door just by approaching it with your phone in your pocket or Apple Watch on your wrist. I’m not talking about waving your phone or watch in front of the lock (that’s Apple Home Key technology which this lock supports too), no I mean just having a compatible device on you.

Apple Home Key vs. Facial Recognition vs. UWB

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Alternatives to Ring

I had one Ring camera left and this was the wakeup call I needed to dump it!

It’s been a while, but if there was ever a time to talk about ditching the blue ring, it’s right now. Honestly, the honeymoon phase with Ring didn’t just end—it hit a wall during this year’s Super Bowl. What was supposed to be a “heartwarming” ad about using AI-powered cameras to find a lost puppy (the “Search Party” feature) actually ended up creepier than intended.

For a lot of people, seeing a neighborhood-wide surveillance net tracking a golden retriever felt like a one-step jump away from tracking them. Toss in the leaked internal emails about “zeroing out” crime, the constant subscription price hikes, and that messy (and now-cancelled) partnership with the license-plate-trackers at Flock Safety, and it’s easy to see why so many of us are over it. If you’re tired of “surveillance-as-a-service” and want your privacy back, it’s time to look at some better ways to keep an eye on your front porch.

My first recommendation is to move to a camera system with local storage and no subscriptions!

My Unifi G4 Doorbell Pro Doorbell
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