SwitchBot Lock Pro Review: Home Assistant Integration, NFC & Keypad Touch Tested

As an official distributor of Home Assistant Hardware, we are always looking to add new devices and brands that are compatible with Home Assistant. Some time ago we were looking to add Smart Shades and came across SwitchBot products. I was already partially familiar with the brand because I had previously purchased their SwitchBot Bot, which worked well for me and integrated easily into my Home Assistant via Bluetooth.

We got in contact with SwitchBot and decided to add a variety of their products, including some of their Smart Shades. We are currently running a great promotion: buy 2 get 1 free or buy 3 get 2 free. Check the deal here.

To start this partnership, SwitchBot sent us a few sample units to test, including products we hadn’t yet stocked: the SwitchBot Lock Pro, Keypad Touch, and Curtain 3. We’ve been so busy that we only recently had a chance to test them. Here is my initial review of the Lock Pro and Keypad Touch!

I previously had a Wyze Smart Lock on my front door, but I always felt a little worried that I could no longer use my original key as a backup—the Wyze replaces the entire lock mechanism. That was the first thing I liked about the SwitchBot Lock Pro: it only replaces the interior side of the lock, so you can still use your regular key from the outside. The lock also includes an open/close magnet sensor that should be placed about 1.5 inches from the side of the lock. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get it to work reliably—my door frame isn’t flat and the distance was greater than 1.5 inches. That didn’t bother me much honestly, since I already have my own door sensor in Home Assistant and the auto-lock feature can work independently of the open/close status.

If you use the lock by itself (without a keypad), you can unlock it via the SwitchBot app on your phone. (You can also control it from Home Assistant once added—more on that below.) Luckily, SwitchBot also sent the Keypad Touch, which pairs perfectly with the lock. Pairing through the SwitchBot app was extremely easy: it detected my existing Lock Pro and let me link the two right away. I set up a password (you can create permanent, temporary, or one-time codes), added my fingerprint, and even paired the included NFC card. Tapping the card to unlock is great, but my favorite part came next.

While pairing the NFC card, I saw this note: “For iPhone users, Please add your Transit Card to the Wallet First.” I thought, wait—I can unlock the door with my phone? And yes, you can! Not every card works, but certain Japanese transit cards (and some from other countries) do. I added a Suica card to my Apple Wallet (minimum balance ¥1,000 ≈ $6.40 USD), paired it, and now I can unlock my front door by tapping my iPhone. For a one-time $6.40 charge, I have convenient phone-based entry—and a head start for subway rides if I ever visit Japan again. (This also works with Apple Watch, though you may need a separate card for your phone and watch.)

And of course, going back to Home Assistant, here is where I ran into some disappointment. I do not have a SwitchBot Hub but my Home Assistant does have Bluetooth, so I thought it would be just as easy to add as my SwitchBot Bot. Unfortunately, I faced several issues. First my HA did not automatically detect the lock. After some troubleshooting, the Lock Pro showed up on my discovered devices list via Bluetooth—and it is still there. The first time I tried to add it, I was prompted to add it with my account (recommended) or enter the encryption key manually. I used my account but the first attempt failed and the second time asked for a setup code I could not find. Finally I tried again and it worked without asking for the code. The device showed the correct status, but when I sent a command (for example, unlock), nothing happened immediately. About five minutes later I heard the lock activate—so the command eventually went through via Bluetooth. Because of the delay, I decided to remove it from Home Assistant. It would be nice to have it for remote control since I access HA remotely and don’t have a SwitchBot Hub.

This brings me to my final point: SwitchBot is part of the Works with Home Assistant program. The Lock Pro is listed as supporting LOCK, BINARY_SENSOR and SENSOR entities via Bluetooth. However, my Bluetooth connection (using the built-in BT on the CM5) doesn’t seem very reliable for this device. It can also be added via SwitchBot Cloud (which is a paid service) or using a SwitchBot Hub with Matter over Bridge—for example, the SwitchBot Hub 2.

Overall, I strongly prefer the SwitchBot Lock Pro over my previous Wyze lock. I can still use my original key, plus I have NFC card, fingerprint, code, phone, or watch options. SwitchBot has even released newer Keypad versions with face and palm recognition! We hope we can stock those at ameriDroid soon.

For now, we strongly recommend you grab one of our Lock Pro and Keypad Touch—we only have a few left!

BGP

Watch the video review here: