Apple Let LG and Schneider Build Its Locks, Which Is the Good News Here

Alongside HomeView, Apple launched the Apple Home Collection: a smart lock with automatic UWB unlocking at $349.95, a wired video doorbell at $249.95, a floodlight camera at $399.95, and a thermostat with a temperature sensor. The lock and the doorbell are made with LG and Schneider Electric.

The co-production is being framed as a question about trust, as if Apple handing part of a product to someone else should make you nervous. I think it is the best part of the announcement.

A lock is a mechanical object that has to survive years of weather, force and daily use. That is not a software problem, and the companies that have spent decades solving it are the companies that make locks. The same goes for anything wired into your house by an electrician. I would rather have a device where the hardware comes from a firm that does hardware and the integration comes from the firm that does integration, than a first attempt at both from one company.

What I will not defend is the pricing. $349.95 for a lock and $249.95 for a wired doorbell are top of the category, and the category has several years of competent, cheaper options behind it. You are paying a premium for the integration, which is worth something if your house already runs on Apple and nothing at all if it does not.

So, do I buy it? Not at those prices. The engineering partnership is the right call and does not make the number right. If you are deep in Apple’s ecosystem and want one place to control everything, price the alternatives first, then decide what the integration is worth to you.