The founders of August Smart Lock are back with a smart front door

It looks like someone may have finally done the smart door right. Homea new company of innovators August smart lockAnnounced its first product: Doma Intelligent Door. A motorized smart door that automatically opens as you approach and closes after you enter, the Doma Door also features built-in sensors, a video doorbell, a keypad, a smart lock, and a smart home control panel.

Doma founders Jason Johnson and Yves Béhar designed their own doors and partnered with manufacturers to integrate Doma’s technology platform into standard doors. Everything is made to order, and the price varies depending on the type of door. You can register on Douma website To be notified when it is available, which should be next summer.

It uses the Doma Home platform ultra wideband (UWB) Holographic infrared facial recognition technology automatically unlocks and unlocks the door when an authorized user approaches using a built-in open/close mechanism – a first for a residential door. Built-in mmWave sensors track the precise location of people or pets as they pass by, helping to ensure the door doesn’t close at the wrong time. It also features a clutch safety mechanism that prevents it from moving if it senses resistance.

The circular outdoor touchscreen includes facial recognition sensors, a 4K video doorbell, and LED status lighting. It can also display a welcome message and double as a keypad for the combination lock, which can be an electronic lock or a European-style multi-point lock, and be either keyed or keyless.

Inside, a second, larger touchscreen serves as the main control panel for the Doma system and can also be used as a display for the video doorbell. The door is designed to be hard-wired and includes a built-in 21,000mAh backup battery for the automatic opener, lock, doorbell and control panels. It supports Power over Ethernet (PoE) via a built-in RJ45 jack, as well as Wi-Fi.

In an interview with EdgeAlways make sure the door functions just like a standard door in every way, Johnson says; Technology is an enhancement, not a replacement. Johnson says all facial recognition data is stored and encrypted locally, and that they “keep as much of the processing in-house as possible” to support privacy, security, integration with other systems, and to reduce latency.

Cloud connectivity is available for remote access, but the system is unreliable, and there are no monthly subscriptions. The doorbell can and will store 30 days of footage locally Article compatible cameraso it can integrate with Matter storage systems.

Doma has partnered with door manufacturers, including ColbyGlassCraft, MasterGrain and Johnson all say the company expects to have 12 partners by the time the doors open in the U.S. and Canada this summer. The company says the final price will depend on the specific door purchased, but “will be equivalent to a premium entry door and hardware and electronics purchased separately.” Premium non-smart doors will cost you anywhere from a few thousand to $20,000, so you can expect a wide range. Irrelevant Masonite M-PWR Smart Doorwhich launched in 2022 but has since been discontinued, started at around $4,000.

The next product from Doma will be Doma Intelligent Windows, coming in the fall of 2026. It will also feature automated opening and closing, electronic locking and unlocking. Built-in mmWave sensors will monitor occupancy, and windows will open and close based on air quality, your HVAC system, and where people are in the home.

In combination with Doma doors, the complete system will allow you to close and lock every entry point in your home with just one click. All of Doma’s technology is controlled by the Doma Home app, but Johnson says it’s all compatible with Matter, so it will integrate with Apple Home, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, and more. Johnson says the company also plans to work with… Alero smart lock standard When launched. “We share the open philosophy we had with August, and we want to work with everyone.”

Doma also focuses on repairability and upgradeability. “We designed all the components so everything is serviceable in the field; the door never has to be removed,” says Johnson. “And if you want to upgrade, you can swap out new parts yourself.” “All components are accessible from the edges and can be removed using just a Phillips screwdriver.”

From smart locks to smart doors

After selling August Home in 2018Johnson and Behar were still interested in developing for the smart home. “We’ve learned a lot in making these products,” Johnson says. “We sold millions of smart locks and learned valuable lessons about relying on battery power and Wi-Fi. We knew we could do it better, and make something more magical and more reliable.”

The duo quickly realized that they wanted to move away from standalone devices and focus on products that were built into the home and could also communicate with other connected devices.

Design was another key factor. They wanted to get rid of the old outboard hardware and hubs. August Locks have always been among the most beautifully designed smart locks, thanks to Behar, the famous industrial designer and founder of August Valves projectwhich is responsible for many good-looking tech products, including Samsung frame tv.

So why now? “Twelve years ago, when we launched August, if we had gone to the manufacturers and tried to incorporate this type of technology, they would have rejected it,” Johnson says. “The smart home has come a long way.”

“We felt like this was an opportunity to use new types of technologies, new types of sensors, to create a fully integrated experience focused on health, wellness, safety and security,” Behar says.

Duma’s ambitions go beyond doors and windows. The system is designed to act as an intelligence layer for your home, combining sensor technology with artificial intelligence, Johnson says. With technology embedded directly into your home’s surfaces, Doma can track its occupants without intrusive cameras or wall-warts sensors, applying artificial intelligence to understand who is in the home, where they are, and where they are not, and respond appropriately. “A smart home shouldn’t require you to do a lot of programming; it should be responsive to its occupants, knowing who they are and where they are in a private and respectful way,” says Johnson.

It’s an ambitious vision, and an expensive one for the homeowner. Although I haven’t seen the door in action, from the details they shared with me, the technology seems well thought out. And the proportions here. August Smart locks And for her Video doorbell line She has always stood out from the crowd thanks to her focus designCombined with ease of use and innovation. August was the first company developed Auto unlock featurewhich has now become an industry standard for smart locks. If you’re in the market for new doors or windows, and Doma’s promises come true, they can offer a significant upgrade over purchasing a premium door and adding individual smart devices.

The open nature of the Doma platform also means it should be able to integrate with products you already have in your home, from smart thermostats to smart lights. But what interests me most is the focus on environmental sensing technology. Where you like companies Google Reportedly, apple They tend to use cameras to provide context to their smart home systems, and so does Doma Take the harder path With ambient sensing technologies. In the end, I think that would be the smarter path as well.

Update, December 10: Door pricing “will depend on which door is purchased,” says Jason Johnson, co-founder of Doma. This article originally reported that the price of a Doma door could start at around $6,000, based on an FAQ document the company provided prior to publication, which Johnson says is incorrect.