Assessments
Our view of the hardware and platforms we fit, including where each one is the wrong answer. We do not run a test lab and we do not pretend to — see editorial standards.
All assessments
Yale Conexis L1 or L2: the same lock with a different brain
The Conexis L2 is not a new lock. It is the L1's hardware with a new connectivity module, a new app and a Wi-Fi bridge. Whether that is worth having depends on one question: do you need to open the door when you are not standing at it?
16 Oct 2026 · 6 min
Tuya: the platform behind the badge
Tuya gets called a Chinese lock brand. It is not a lock brand at all, and almost every complaint and every bargain in this corner of the market follows from that one fact.
25 Sep 2026 · 8 min
Nuki: the one that leaves your door alone
Nuki made a decision early that most of its competitors did not: change nothing a burglar can see. Almost every strength and every limitation follows from that.
2 Sep 2026 · 7 min
Yale: the safe answer, and what it costs you
Yale is the brand people reach for when they do not want to research the decision. That instinct is largely sound — but it hides a design choice on their flagship lock that not everyone should accept.
2 Sep 2026 · 7 min
TTLock: what it actually is, and who it suits
The most common misunderstanding about TTLock is that it is a brand of lock. It isn't, and almost everything people like and dislike about it follows from that.
7 Aug 2026 · 3 min