Best Prices Today: Wyze Lock Bolt v2

Three years ago, Wyze did what Wyze does best, introducing a capable smart lock that covered the bases and nothing more, with a no-frills offering that could be had for a song ($70 at launch). Now, Wyze is back with an update to its original Lock Bolt, redesigning and upgrading the device to keep up with the many advances that have hit the smart lock space since 2022.

Good news: It’s still incredibly inexpensive, and the entire package remains a huge winner worthy of consideration by budget-minded smart home enthusiasts.

Specifications

To start, the Wyze Bolt Lock v2 is completely redesigned, now featuring an illuminating glass touchscreen instead of physical buttons, and there’s now a mechanical key option where once there was none. (The fingerprint reader remains intact, and Wyze says it’s been upgraded with an “AI self-learning scanner that logs pressure, angle, and even tiny skin shifts” every time it’s operated in order to refine its model.)

The Wyze Lock Bolt v2 is only $10 more than the v1 was at launch. I’m doubtful we’ll see a better deal than this in the foreseeable future.

The biggest change however is under the hood: While the Wyze Bolt Lock v1 was a Bluetooth-only system, the Bolt Lock v2 adds Wi-Fi (2.4GHz only) to the mix, support for which is de rigueur in the industry today. The unit is powered by eight AA batteries (included, instead of four on the model v1), which Wyze says should last about eight months. An emergency USB-C port is also available on the underside of the exterior escutcheon for emergency use.

IP53 weatherproofing is a bit less impressive than what you’ll typically find on the market, but probably good enough for your front door, and its commercial ANSI Level 2 certification suggests that the physical security of the lock is probably good enough for most suburban homes. For more information, read our deep dive on ANSI and BHMA entry lock certifications.

The device can store a maximum of 50 PINs and 50 fingerprints, which is handy because the Wyze app includes support for a maximum of 50 users. One-time passcodes that expire on a schedule you decide—up to a week away—are also included. Auto-locking is configurable from instantaneously to 15 minutes, though there is no open/close detection system available, so the auto-lock will engage whether you’ve shut the door or not. The lock can also be set to engage at a particular time each day and on certain days of the week, helpful for automating your end-of-the-day lockdown. Lastly, integration with the Amazon Alexa or Google Home ecosystems is included.

Installation and setup

There’s little mystery in the setup of the Lock Bolt v2. Like its predecessor, the exterior escutcheon attaches to an interior mounting frame with two bolts. A single cable connects to the interior escutcheon, which mounts to the frame with three smaller bolts. Unfortunately, the holes into which those three bolts are set were too narrow for my standard screwdriver to fit inside without marring the interior escutcheon’s plastic case. I had to fetch a smaller screwdriver from my toolkit to complete the job, though this made things more difficult than necessary because the screwdriver head was undersized compared to the bolts.

One item of note should be considered when installing the batteries, as a warning label notes that you must use 1.5-volt batteries (standard alkalines, eight of which are included as noted above) instead of 1.2-volt batteries, namely NiMH rechargeables. While NiMH batteries aren’t terribly common anymore, it’s still worth noting.

I spent no more than 10 minutes getting the lock into place, after which it was time to onboard it with the Wyze app. Wyze’s now-overloaded app requires you to select the product you’re adding from a list (or search for it by name), which is becoming an unwieldy way to find your device. As I’ve noted with TP-Link, it’s high time for Wyze to embrace auto-discovery across its product line. Fortunately, Wyze only makes four smart locks at the moment, so finding the v2 isn’t difficult.

Oddly, initial onboarding failed without explanation, as did my first attempt to calibrate the lock. Persistence paid off on both fronts, however, and after trying again the lock made it through the process. After a few quick parameter settings and a brief firmware update, I was able to get started using it.

Using the Wyze Lock Bolt v2

Looking back at my review of the original Wyze Lock Bolt, it’s clear that while the hardware has seen an update, very little has changed within the app in three years.

Functionally, the lock works great, which is in keeping with Wyze’s other smart lock products. I found unlocking the door to be speedy and seamless whether I was using the keypad or a thumbprint—or interacting with the lock via the app whether I was nearby or 200 miles away. User management is intuitive and fast, and Wyze makes it easy to choose among permanent, recurring, or temporary users when setting up new visitors. Fingerprints enroll quickly and the scanner was very accurate (though not perfect) in my testing. One-time codes worked flawlessly as well, and logging is robust and detailed for all of this.

From a hardware perspective, the lock motor is quiet, though it chimes quite a bit during operation, which ultimately led me to turn its “status and operation” volume off altogether. That’s a personal preference more than anything.

Should you buy the Wyze Lock Bolt v2?

The Wyze Lock Bolt v2 is only $10 more than the v1 was at launch, which says a lot about how far this industry has come in just three years. Better looking and far more powerful thanks to integrated Wi-Fi, it’s arguably now the best value available on the smart lock market, at least for the moment. (Numerous other locks are available for less than $100, but they either don’t have Wi-Fi or lack a fingerprint reader—or both.)

That, of course, is a situation that changes rapidly, but I’m doubtful we’ll see a better deal than this one hit in the foreseeable future.

This review is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best smart locks.

Best Prices Today: Wyze Lock Bolt v2

Author: Christopher Null, Contributor, PCWorld