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Tapo is the latest brand that tries to let you open your front door with just a wave of your palm. The company today announced the PalmKey smart door lock, which lets you enter your home with a PIN, fingerprint or palm scan.
The palm scanner requires your hand to be about 4 to 10 inches away from the reader, and according to Tapo, it will work if your hand is wet or dirty or if you have worn fingerprints. The system allegedly uses AI to assess the vein patterns in your palm.
The Tapo lock has a removable, rechargeable 10,000 mAh battery that should last a full year on a charge, which should make maintenance fairly effortless. There’s also support for a physical key backup, according to the press release, although Tapo didn’t say where it’s located on the drive. It also works with Alexa, SmartThings and Google Home.
Details are limited beyond that — Tapo hasn’t shared pricing or a release date.
Palm scanning is one of the newest trends we’re seeing in smart locks. Philips already it has a palm scanning pattern for sale, and Eufy announced a model in December. What this Tapo model lacks is some of the truly hands-free technology that is likely to start hitting the market this year. Those closed will be rely on ultra-broadband on your smartphone to automatically open the door when they sense you approaching, without having to raise your hand.
