Wyze has announced a new version of its electronic door lock that features Wi-Fi, allowing it to be controlled remotely from anywhere using a mobile app or voice commands through Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant.
The original Wyze Lock Bolt is currently featured in our smart lock buyer’s guide as the “best budget smart(ish) lock,” but with only Bluetooth connectivity, its functionality is limited. With the addition of Wi-Fi, the new Wyze Lock Bolt v2 offers more flexibility and peace of mind as you can ensure it’s locked while away from home or monitor who’s coming and going. It’s priced the same as the original at $79.98, too, and is now available through the company’s online store.
The Wyze Lock Bolt v2 carries forward an integrated fingerprint reader, which the company says can identify users and open the door in about half a second, while biometric data is stored locally on the device for added security. The keypad buttons on the original have been replaced with an illuminated touchpad covered in a scratch- and smudge-resistant layer of tempered glass. The lock can store up to 50 unique access codes and create single-use passcodes for guests that expire after a preset amount of time, and you can obscure the codes by tapping a series of extra digits before and after the correct one.
Battery life maxes out at up to eight months, slightly less than Wyze’s original Lock Bolt, which can operate for up to a year. There’s a USB-C emergency port that can be used to temporarily power the lock and gain entry should the batteries die while you’re away, and Wyze includes the option to use a physical key to unlock it if you don’t have a power bank and USB cable handy.
There’s a customizable alarm that will sound if someone attempts to tamper with the Lock Bolt v2 or if there have been too many unsuccessful attempts to unlock it. If you also own a Wyze video doorbell, you can integrate the two devices and unlock your door directly from the doorbell’s livestream.
