In the home of the future, you can skip the keys. Just tap your phone, your door swings open.A new company with a high-powered designer is hoping to take that vision to the masses. That company, August, introduced its version of the so-called smart-lock to the public last week. The lock is the brainchild of CEO Jason Johnson and renowned designer Yves Béhar.While people may like the idea of smart homes, according to research firm IHS, only 5.6 million smart platforms have been installed globally. But the number is expected to rise to 44.6 million by 2018.Smooth and round, August’s lock allows users to unlock their doors by using their phones. Customers can also let in a babysitter or a maid by issuing them a temporary wireless key. “We’re approaching it as a consumer product rather than a piece of
technology,” says Béhar.The lock, which uses Bluetooth, fits smoothly over an old-fashioned door with the help of two screws and some wing flaps so customers can retrofit their doors without altering the appearance. Users open the door by holding their phone app up to the lock or tapping a button on their phone screen.August has raised over $10 million in venture capital funding for their lock. It faces a lot of competition from both well-established brands and startups. Yale has its own line of smart locks while Kwikset released its smart-lock, Kevo, last year. Meanwhile, start-up Goji plans to release a sleekly designed smart-lock that will take pictures of people who knock on your door and send the pictures to your phone.This lock is August’s first product, but they don’t seem too worried about the competition. “We’d love to see other people enter this market,” says Johnson. “It helps us if more people start using smart locks.” He adds: “We’re about changing the way you interact with your home. We have keyless cars, why not keyless homes?”
August introduced its version of the___B__to the public.
A. so-called smart-car
B. so-called smart-lock
C. so-called smart-phone
August’s lock is__A___ .
A. smooth and round
B. square and smooth
C. smooth and oval
August’s lock fits smoothly over an old-fashioned door so__A__.
A. customers can retrofit their doors without changing the appearance
B. customers can retrofit their doors by altering the appearance
C. customers don’t need to retrofit their doors
___C___ allows users to open their doors by holding their phone app up to the lock or tapping a button on their phone screen.
A. Kwikset ’s lock
B. Yale’s lock
C. August’s lock
___B__has released its smart-lock, Kevo.
A. Yale
B. Kwikset
C. August
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