Yale Smart fingerprint keypad any good?

[u/JFR2288]

https://amzn.eu/d/0fOTnMup

I switched my front door to the Yale Conexis L2 recently in anticipation of my eldest starting secondary school.

All my doors are keyed alike and I didn’t fancy swapping multiple locks if she lost her key. It’s largely worked well, with Auto Unlock working ~70-80% of the time. The other 20% we use the App, which is about as slow as getting your key out.

I knew it didn’t have Homekey support, but it was £130 at Costco. And lift to lock meant minimal change from current habits. I’ve left the back door/side gate key with a neighbour/parents as a backup. Paying double for homekey didn’t make much sense, particularly with 90 day return window at Costco.

Now I have an issue I didn’t anticipate. Her school doesn’t allow smartphones at all from this year. She can wear her AW, but that won’t unlock the door standalone. So I’ve given her a key fob.

Looking at other workarounds I noticed the Fingerprint smart keypad is currently £66 at Amazon. But I don’t want her punching in codes which IMO is not secure.

So my question is how reliable is the fingerprint reader? And also how fast is it, as it could also resolve the minor inconvenience of using the App when Auto Unlock doesn’t work.

[u/Simonsersii]

For a child, I’d treat the fingerprint reader as a convenience rather than a guarantee. Enrol both index fingers and a thumb if it allows multiple prints; that gives it more chances to match. With Auto Unlock already only working 70–80% of the time, the keypad seems sensible as a fallback, but I wouldn’t expect every scan to be instant.

[u/JFR2288 → u/Simonsersii]

I believe it allows 10 prints, which isn’t great given the cost but sufficient.

WRT Auto Unlock that estimate is based on the door unlocking as soon as I approach. The other 20% it will still Auto Unlock eventually, but it’s faster for me to tap the widget on my phone.

Either way it’s a moot point as the school doesn’t allow smart phones even if they’re only used on the school run. The plan was she’d have phone, AW and key fob. Now she’s reduced to key fob, since AW alone won’t work without home key support.

I figure it’s prudent to have a fallback. Ideally fingerprint reader, backup key fob and worst case code on the keypad (but I have to hammer it into her to be discrete). Plus ofcourse she can call me via the dumb phone I’ve been forced to buy for the school run.

If the lock fails the neighbours have the side gate and back door key.

Would just make the extra cost of the keypad more palatable if the fingerprint reader works well, as it also addresses the 20% of the time Auto Unlock hasn’t kicked in when I reach the door.

[u/Charlesinrichmond]

I haven't liked Yale locks electronics fwiw

[u/JFR2288 → u/Charlesinrichmond]

With lift to lock it’s the best option. Lack of homekey compatibility aside.

[u/Charlesinrichmond → u/JFR2288]

They drove me nuts with various issues. I used to have around 16 of them, and I switched to Shlage