iOS 10 Bug Breaks Kwikset Kevo's Touch-to-Open Functionality

[flyinmac]

Switch to Microsoft where serious bugs are less likely to occur.

Actually... I do use both Microsoft and Apple products daily. And, honestly, I run into far fewer bugs in my daily use with Microsoft software. I spend less time trying to work around some glitch.

But, at the same time, I do generally prefer OS X and iOS. And, my prior comment was not saying that iOS is inferior. Just acknowledging that bugs are going to happen with the brand new iOS. And, making light of it. Sorry if you missed the sense of humor in the post. But, I'll break it down for you....

It's a rushed product, been in the works for a year of rapid testing and development.

It's a major new release

It will be introduced to the public today for it's trial by fire

And, it has bugs (as all new major releases do), which will be sorted out in time

And, if we stay on the annual release cycle, iOS 11 will also have bugs when it's released.

And, does that upset me? No

But, from a consumer point of view, it would be better if they repaired more of the bugs that have been reported to them, instead of releasing a final product with bugs that were reported in prior betas.

 

[konqerror]

Funny thing: I've had key-based locks my entire life and never have any old or new fashioned lock pickers try to pick 'em. Makes me think we try to justify some purchases by spinning rare or odd scenarios that almost never happen in real life. Could they happen? Sure. But anything can happen in the imaginations of marketers trying to sell something.

That's only true in private single-family homes. Building codes in most cities are requiring certain security ratings (UL, ANSI) in apartments and such with anti-pick measures. This is like vaccination. Why invest in more expensive locks if you have insurance, and you never get broken into? On top of that, your insurance rates go down if you have a UL-listed monitored alarm system.

Unless all your cars are more than about 10 years old, they no longer rely on mechanical locks either. Car theft was such an issue in some countries, like Australia and parts of the EU, they mandated electronic locks by law, a.k.a immobilizers, and car makers switched over globally. And have you seen the high-security anti-pick keys cars have?

 

[TelegraphRoad]

I used one of these for about 6 months. Totally unreliable. You stand there tapping and tapping only to ring out your phone and launch the app anyway. Nothing like have other people in the house complain because they have bluetooth off or never accepted the $2.99 key I sent them.

 

[Kaibelf]

Why announce a bug during a beta that may be fixed by final release? That would only hurt their brand, and likely would go against the Developer Terms of Service for participating in the beta program.

The background noise and echo in that video left me with a headache, though. They could've done a better job at recording it.

They certainly have known longer than this morning. This is virtually guaranteeing that people will upgrade to iOS10 today and be blindsided. THAT will hurt their brand. Transparency when it comes to accessing one's house is very different than not being able to play Angry Birds due to crashes.

 

[AppLvr4Life]

Wow, I sure hope the three people who bought this product see this article.

Make that 4. We simply love this product on our doors...... and they works great. I have no problem with them letting us know in the time frame. I am sure it will get fixed soon. Just a simple bump in the road....SMH

 

[ArcaneDevice]

Makes more security sense to invest in a stronger steel door frame for when burglars inevitably try to kick the door in than a Kevo. Do any criminals bother lockpicking doors now?

if they do exist do they also leave a calling card and white rose as some kind of signature because they think they are gentleman thieves of fictional novels?

 

[bdkennedy1]

iOS 10 also broke bluetooth compatibility with my Pioneer App Radio 4.

 

[flyinmac]

They certainly have known longer than this morning. This is virtually guaranteeing that people will upgrade to iOS10 today and be blindsided. THAT will hurt their brand. Transparency when it comes to accessing one's house is very different than not being able to play Angry Birds due to crashes.

It's also very possible that they had notified Apple of the bug previously, and were naively expecting that Apple would actually fix the bug. And, now realize that Apple has not fixed the bug, and are issuing a warning to their customers.

 

[69Mustang]

The sentence begins with a "what if"... I wasn't saying it was a news flash. I was more curious about what the earlier poster who drew a line in the sand, would do if that was not an option. I used the light bulb as an example.

My comment was about the absurdity/plausibility of your example, not about "what if". I know what you were trying to accomplish, but using a non-sense hypothetical doesn't help you achieve your goal, imo of course. Plenty of logical examples could further your case.

 

[KeepCalmPeople]

I think Kwikset were hoping/expecting Apple to fix the problem before iOS10 was released, and didn't want to create a problem or confusion by letting customers know, until they themselves knew it wasn't going to be fixed in time.

 

[flyinmac]

I think Kwikset were hoping/expecting Apple to fix the problem before iOS10 was released, and didn't want to create a problem or confusion by letting customers know, until they themselves knew it wasn't going to be fixed in time.

Exactly

 

[crazylegsmurphy]

I have this lock and it doesn't surprise me. This company has been a gong show since day one. I can't tell you the number of hours I have spent complaining to them about various things.

The only "bug" here is that Kevo has no idea what they're doing.

 

[lax28]

I've had this lock for several years w/o any real issues. Strange part is in last few updates to ios9 the lock would rarely but sometimes have this issue. The app would not need to be open on screen, but at least one of the running apps, and phone just needs to be woken up. Now since having the ios10 GM, the lock still works sometimes as it used to and still sometimes needs to be woken up. Not really sure why it is not consistent, or why it started back in ios9 but its not really that big of a deal. I could also easily use my actual key as well. Actually have more issues with my sonos app and speakers now since updating to ios10.
[doublepost=1473786156][/doublepost]

I have this lock and it doesn't surprise me. This company has been a gong show since day one. I can't tell you the number of hours I have spent complaining to them about various things.

The only "bug" here is that Kevo has no idea what they're doing.

wow, never had any real issues and would recommend this as one of the best bluetooth locks to purchase. Ive had my kevo for about 3-3.5 years now too.

 

[rjohnstone]

Unless all your cars are more than about 10 years old, they no longer rely on mechanical locks either. Car theft was such an issue in some countries, like Australia and parts of the EU, they mandated electronic locks by law, a.k.a immobilizers, and car makers switched over globally. And have you seen the high-security anti-pick keys cars have?

Yet those cars still get stolen. Electronic locks are still very easy to bypass. A slim jim or even a coat hanger still works.

The lineup changes a good bit when the NICB focuses solely on vehicles from the 2014 model year. Though a couple of models repeat, there a lot of different marques on this list, half of which consists of cars from Detroit. The ten most-stolen 2014 model year vehicles were:

1. Ford full-size pickup (964 vehicles stolen)
2. Toyota Camry (869)
3. Ford Fusion (819)
4. Chevrolet Impala (746)
5. Nissan Altima (687)
6. Dodge Charger (680)
7. Taotao Industry Co. Scooter/Moped (592)
8. Toyota Corolla (578)
9. Chevrolet Cruze (566)
10. Ford Focus (505)

Source: http://www.thecarconnection.com/news/1099831_the-10-most-stolen-vehicles-in-america

 

[calforhelp]

Actually have more issues with my sonos app and speakers now since updating to ios10.

Ugh, don't tell me that. I just got my Sonos system working well...

I've also had this lock for a few years. I've had no real issues with it and it has always worked well for me. I absolutely love not having to carry any keys around with me. Nothing to jab into my leg when sitting or jingle about on my belt loop. Between kevo and comfort access on my car I never have to touch a key in my daily life. It's fantastic.

 

[macfacts]

They could upgrade to a standalone metal key. No batteries required and not impacted by software failure. My metal key is revolutionary!

The temp solution was a slide to lock/unlock feature but Apple sued

 

[JRobinsonJr]

They could upgrade to a standalone metal key. No batteries required and not impacted by software failure. My metal key is revolutionary!

And as an added benefit, that 'key' comes in a variety of interchangeable colors! Feeling blue? Just switch your key!
[doublepost=1473787329][/doublepost]

As opposed to "new fashioned hackers"?

Funny thing: I've had key-based locks my entire life and never have any old or new fashioned lock pickers try to pick 'em. Makes me think we try to justify some purchases by spinning rare or odd scenarios that almost never happen in real life. Could they happen? Sure. But anything can happen in the imaginations of marketers trying to sell something.

I've had my home broken into twice, and neither was the result of a lock pick. Both times the perpetrators just broke a window. While I love the notion of electronic locks that can be controlled / automated - and will be installing these in my house during a remodel - it *is* a bit of a solution-looking-for-a-problem scenario.

 

[thittesd0375]

Compared to the other issues with this lock, this is a feature.

 

[44267547]

Wow, I sure hope the three people who bought this product see this article.

Wow. I must be one of three people who purchased this product. Frivolous comment.

 

[Wondercow]

People make mistakes. Can't you be a bit more civil?

My comment was, in my opinion, neither civil nor uncivil; it was just a comment. It remains, though, that we should expect more from professionals.

 

[Marconelly]

I have this lock, and the problem iOS10 introduced certainly sucks :\ You really learn to appreciate the effortless unlocking when you approach the door with your hands full of grocery bags. Now it won't be so effortless. I guess there is a bug in Bluetooth LE that Kwickset has reported to Apple since the first beta, but it was just never fixed.

The lock has worked great for me btw. Once in a blue moon, I had to wake up my phone manually, and open the app for it to work. Maybe once every few months. All the other times it has worked great, and I didn't have to worry about the keys. It even saved my butt once when I forgot the phone in the house and locked the door behind me (the lock allows you to lock it with triple-tap). All I had to do is get another iOS device from work, log into Kevo app on it with my account, get back to my door, and unlock it. It felt pretty awesome being able to so easily avoid what is typically a huge nuisance and a headache.

Also, I used to have a keypad lock by Schlage which worked fine until it died one winter. Then the replacement died the next winter. That's when I got this one, and it has so far survived the coldest winter in the recorded history where I live.

I don't understand this. I own this and it has worked better under iOS 10 beta than it ever did under iOS 9. Don't have to unlock the phone or launch the app or anything. Strange...

Did it stop working for you after the notification they've sent through their app?

 

[Heltik]

Wow, I sure hope the three people who bought this product see this article.

Regrettably, I'm one of those three people that bought the product, and damn wish I hadn't. The lock is so poor and unreliable that every member of my household literally uses a key each time to enter. Not to mention the fact they charge you for additional e-Keys, having spent hundreds of dollars on the original product.
[doublepost=1473799128][/doublepost]

Compared to the other issues with this lock, this is a feature.

I preferred him in "That 70's Show".

 

[Pixelryan]

Well I guess all three owners are here in this thread! I hope that everyone who is making fun of this lock enjoys carrying around jingling sharp metal objects all day, and reaching in your pocket to take out your keys, a 150+ year old technology every time you go through the front door, meanwhile I simply tap the lock on my way in our out and don't carry anything extra. As for the smartkey security issue, realize an intruder could break your window to gain entry way easier anyways so its irrelevant.

 

[cswelin]

Interesting...I wonder if this folks tested and reported this issue during the 8 beta releases.

I don't recall the problem existing for all the betas, I only remember having to open the app recently.

 

[Snoozealarm]

I've been beta testing iOS 10, and I've upgraded to the full version of it. I've not experienced this problem with my Kevo.