Smart locks
Wi-Fi in the lock, or Thread and a tap of a phone?
Both mount over an existing thumbturn and change nothing permanent. The difference is how they reach the network and how you open the door: one needs no bridge at all, the other joins a Thread mesh and unlocks with an Apple Home Key.
| Compared on | Smart Lock Pro (5th gen) | Smart Lock U200 |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Retrofit | Retrofit, no drilling |
| Network | Wi-Fi built in, no bridge | Matter over Thread |
| Standard | Matter | Matter |
| Apple Home Key | Not stated | Supported |
| Power | Charged at the door | Rechargeable Li-ion |
| Runtime stated | Months per charge | 6 months |
A tick marks the better answer on that line only. Counting ticks does not decide the page — the two verdicts below do, because these products answer different questions.
Buy the Nuki when there is no smart-home hub and none is wanted. Wi-Fi in the lock means it works on its own, which is the shortest path from box to working door.
Buy the U200 in an Apple household with a Thread border router already present. Home Key — holding a phone or watch to the lock — is the smoothest way anybody has made of opening a door.
No. Both turn the thumbturn you already have. The cylinder, the strike plate and the frame are exactly as they were, and those are what resist force. If the door is the weak point, the money belongs in a cylinder and long screws.
Your key still opens the door, because the cylinder was never touched. That is the structural advantage of retrofit locks — and it only helps if the key is somewhere other than inside the locked flat.
Retrofit · built-in Wi-Fi, no bridge · Matter · charged at the door · months per charge
Nuki's fifth-generation lock puts Wi-Fi inside the unit, so remote access needs no bridge or hub, and adds Matter alongside Bluetooth. The battery charges at the door with the supplied cable rather than coming off it.
Best for: A household that wants remote access without adding another box to the hallway.
≈ £189 / 233 €
Matter over Thread · Apple Home Key · rechargeable Li-ion, 6 months stated · no drilling
A retrofit lock with native Matter over Thread, so it joins Apple Home, Google Home and Alexa without a vendor bridge. Aqara states Apple Home Key support, a rechargeable battery quoted at up to six months, and a quiet unlocking mode.
Best for: A household already running Matter or Apple Home, that wants the lock to be part of it rather than another app.
≈ £200 / 170 €
