As a brand new industry, Smart Lock has an amazing expansion rate. In 2015, there were only dozens of smart lock brands on the market, and in 2016, there were seven or eight hundred smart lock brands. Traditional mechanical lock manufacturers, smart home manufacturers and Internet smart hardware cross-border companies have been staring at this huge cake. This has made the lock industry, which has always been weak and unpopular, arouse the interest of many young consumers, and put on the new label of “black technology†and “light luxuryâ€, which is regarded as an entry-level product of smart home.
In recent years, smart locks continue to heat up in Baidu search index and e-commerce crowdfunding. “Spring River Plumbing Duck Prophetâ€, in the upstream of the supply chain, some smart lock manufacturers are clearly stimulated. It is understood that the overall sales of smart locks for Taobao crowdfunding this year exceeded 4 times in 2015. Most domestic smart lock brands can exceed the crowdfunding target, and even the Manshen smart lock has exceeded 10 million for two consecutive years. Taobao, Jingdong and other e-commerce platforms also regard smart locks as the "black technology".
For the whole smart lock industry, 2016 is a “wind comingâ€. It is expected that in 2017, capital will be heavily involved, and the industry will compete. The “window period†of the industry will really come, and in the end, it will form a “head brand†benefit market in 2018. pattern. The lock industry has a high threshold, and it needs the lock company to invest in technology research and development, product quality, product quality control, long-term planning on the service system, innovative ideas in brand communication, and qualifications to become smart in the next three to five years. The "entry level" product of the home.
First, the intelligent fingerprint lock industry born of pain points
From the earliest bolts to the iron generals who have since then, the door is now the hub of the security door. The "lock" is also in the iterative evolution along with the social development. In the minds of the people, it is the most basic need and the symbol of the family's private space. .
Many people have experienced the trouble of losing keys. They have also taught some unconventional unlocking methods such as card type, paper clip type, door handle removal, cat eye opening (security door), violent opening, etc. The statement that "the lock can only prevent the gentleman from defending the villain" has also caused countless tragedies of burglary and family property losses.
The rise of smart locks is the result of the new innovation in the door lock industry. Smart lock merchants take the consumer's original demand for safety and hold the pain point of mechanical locks on security. The main selling point is “safer†than mechanical locks. When consumers buy smart locks, the first thing to consider is that the lock must be “safe enoughâ€; the second is “convenientâ€; the second is “connected or connectedâ€!
In the "more secure" competition, the smart lock comes with buzzer alarm, video intercom and other functions, and has done a lot of Internet + innovations in the opening mode, such as digital password (including dynamic password), mobile app (including WeChat opens the door, Bluetooth or WiFi, iris, fingerprint, swipe, etc. Some smart lock manufacturers still use the key to unlock as an alternative, gradually forming the habit of not carrying the key to open the door. The increase in the way the door locks are opened means that the multiple choice questions are turned into multiple choices, and some technical security holes that are more difficult to overcome are derived. In the dazzling way of unlocking, the fingerprint opening wins with the advantages of security technology maturity and ease of use, and gradually becomes the mainstream product form of smart lock.
The author believes that smart locks will be subtracted in the way of opening. Whose fingerprint unlocking technology is safer, and it is in a more favorable position in the market competition, and other opening methods have the risk of being marginalized. At present, the well-known smart lock brands at home and abroad mainly focus on fingerprint smart locks, with digital passwords as auxiliary. Import locks such as “Samsung†are clamshell fingerprint heads, “Yale†is the main anti-spy fingerprint, and “Dijir†is the main fingerprint biometric technology. Domestic high-end fingerprint identification locks include “Haierâ€, “Manshen†and so on.
Second, the industry standards from chaos to gradual clarity
Compared with mechanical locks, smart locks undoubtedly have a more advanced technological advantage, but this does not mean that the smart lock market will be in a state of flux. The biggest obstacle in the smart lock market is not the staking between the competing products, but whether the smart lock can win the trust of consumers. Is it really "safe enough"? Especially the quality of the smart lock directly determines the whole smart home. Safety, the author also consulted Mr. Zhang Baoqiang, the founder of Xi'an Huijing Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd., who has only made a lock for more than ten years. The fingerprint smart lock belongs to the “optical and mechatronics†product, and the security performance is subdivided into four dimensions: “hardware configurationâ€, “fingerprint head recognition technologyâ€, “fingerprint algorithm†and “cloud securityâ€.
(1) The structure of the lock itself, such as the safety level of the lock core, Class A, Class B (common protection) and Super Class B (Advanced Protection); the material of the lock includes iron, copper, zinc alloy, aluminum alloy, stainless steel, etc. The lock has the lowest corrosion resistance and oxidation resistance, and the smart lock made of stainless steel has the best durability.
(2) The current fingerprint collection technology is divided into two types: optical recognition and semiconductor recognition. Optical recognition is an image for collecting fingerprints. For example, the attendance punching machine adopts optical recognition technology, and the false fingerprint of the silicone film copy cannot be recognized. The semiconductor collects the "minutiae" formed between the finger skin and the capacitive screen. The more feature points are collected, the lower the false recognition rate of fingerprint recognition and the higher the security level. Semiconductor technology fingerprint recognition was first popularized on iPhones, and its security level is superior to optical fingerprint recognition technology.
(3) The fingerprint algorithm is divided into three factors: “recognition speedâ€, “misinterpretation rate†and “rejection rateâ€. The recognition speed is related to the sample base of the system comparison. The larger the sample base, the slower the recognition speed, in order to The probability of a fingerprint lock being misidentified is minimized and the sample must be expanded as much as possible. Many smart locks on the market that have a recognition speed of less than 0.1 seconds may be associated with a small sample base. There is a fundamental difference between the “rejection rate†and the “misinterpretation rateâ€. For example, the iPhone 4S has a certain rejection rate, which must be repeated multiple times to unlock; and the false recognition rate directly lowers the security level of the smart lock, which is the fingerprint. Smart locks are the most important product parameters.
(4) The 315 party has exposed hackers from the cloud to attack the smart home system. At present, many smart locks have the function of opening the mobile phone app, uploading the unlocked digital password to the cloud, then placing the cloud on the mobile phone, and even unlocking the remote can also take the electronic from the cloud. The password goes directly down to the lock, and the remote unlocking itself is a pseudo-demand, leaving a security risk to the industry!
It can be said that the security performance of smart locks is also the embodiment of the comprehensive strength of smart lock manufacturers. However, the smart lock manufacturers that have been developed for less than two years are mixed, and consumers are easily deceived by false propaganda without the market education. But with the future After several years of development and popularization of smart locks, the brand owners of ticket-making properties will eventually be eliminated by the market, and industry standards will naturally form.
Third, in order to surround the C-terminal end of the B market, do so through deep after-sales service entrance release value
The current smart lock market is mainly divided into two different offensive strategies: To B (enterprise market) and To C (consumer market). To B is mainly “pre-installed market†for brand apartments and real estates. The transaction frequency is low and the transaction amount is large. . To C is directly oriented to the end consumers, channel sinking and market education costs are higher. In the long run, as the property market rises again and the post-95 marriage and marriage boom is approaching, the consumption habits of new home decoration and smart locks are gradually becoming popular. It is easier to form a scale effect in the C-end market. At present, 95% of households in China have a blank market that has been converted from a mechanical lock to a smart lock. It can be said that it is a blue market that is seriously underestimated!
In the "retrofit market" subdivided into two lock-up scenarios: First, the "improvement" of the lock cylinder of the smart lock, such as the Mansion iLockX2, iLockA5 and other smart locks are suitable for 99% security door installation; the second is to purchase new The smart lock "eliminates" the mechanical lock. Each anti-theft door body and lock structure vary widely, and the precision requirements are high. The small white users cannot cope with it. In order to securely remove the lock core, the door hole and the lock type, the fingerprint password, the anti-theft alarm function, etc., all need to be installed by a professional master. Guidance . Of course, the author understands that some new smart lock companies in the market hope that users can install them according to the instructions to achieve the goal of light asset operation, which is a short-term operation.
The outbreak of smart locks directly brings about the rise of a huge home-installing business. China's existing hardware door lock industry channel distribution network and after-sales service crowd is very large, this is the smart lock compared to any other giants, other categories Have the advantage of differentiation. Compared with the fingerprint as the starting point of the whole home appliance system is difficult to land, the after-sales service of the smart lock is more grounded .
Smart lock after-sales service includes installation and maintenance, which means that smart lock manufacturers can master the big data of home users, and form brand loyalty and word-of-mouth benefits through smart lock long service cycle, which can greatly enhance the right of smart lock in smart home. . For example, the strategy of Lock Tradelink to build an after-sales service team is to position the online e-commerce platform as an order-taking platform for offline locksmiths, thus strengthening the management of the installation master.
The smart lock industry really attracts capital market bets or lies in its "entry" potential that is vertically digging deep in smart homes. In the future, smart lock manufacturers can customize the product sales and after-sales installation services of smart locks, and then install the smart home Internet of Things system for users, and finally release the entrance value of smart locks.
Conclusion:
The smart lock is in the initial stage of “innovation-diffusionâ€, and the young consumers who use smart locks, such as the fire of the stars, are in the dividend period. “Heavy for the light roots, quiet for the princesâ€, smart locks are not an active stage for “opportunistsâ€. Quality and safety are always the basis for the outbreak and sustainable growth of the industry, while the after-sales service is the door lock industry to smart homes. The advantage of depth, the two masters of quality control and service jointly support consumers' full trust in smart locks. The power of smart home ecological partners and capital markets will also gather in reliable brands, and the smart locks will fly into ordinary people. The home market is full of variables and expectations ••••••
Dongguan HengTaichang Doors Co, Ltd. , https://www.dghtcdoors.com