Ugh, my front door. Solid wood, grandpa says it’s oak? Or maybe maple? Dunno. Heavy though! Built like a tank… back when tanks were made of wood? Anyway, the old deadbolt rattled like a skeleton last winter. Time for an upgrade. My buddy Raj kept banging on about his new LS-S61 smart lock. “So sleek! So secure!” he raved. But mine’s wood! Not fancy reinforced metal like his apartment door. Will this fancy tech even WORK?
So I jumped online. Searched “smart locks good for wood doors”. Big mistake. Info overload! Saw the LS-S61 again. Talked about ”anti-drill plates” and ”brute force alarm”. Sounded tough. And C-grade lock cylinder? Raj mentioned that. Supposed to be super hard to pick? Like, harder than that jar of pickles I could never open. Cool. Also hyped the fingerprint sensor. Finally, ditch the keys (which I lose constantly… seriously, where do they GO?).
Price hit me. Think Raj said he paid 195? My screen definitely flashed $199.99** at one point. Ouch. Enough to skip pizza that week! Or was it two? Definitely planned on ordering wings… sigh. Are wooden doors harder? Cost extra? Install fee? Brain starting to hurt already.
Installation dude showed up. Nice guy. Took one look at my door. “Solid wood! Thick. Good… mostly.” Mostly? Uh oh. Said “standard install”… BUT needed “modification”. Drilling. Into SOLID WOOD. Sounded like a angry badger trapped in the wall. Dust everywhere! Felt like it took longer than my nephew’s school play last month. Nervous watching him drill. Hope he knew what he was doing? Did he measure twice? My door IS important. Kept the monster under my nephew’s bed out for years! Finally, it sat there. Looked… kinda cool? Modern black on old wood. Jury’s out.
Fingerprint time. First impression? Fussy like my cat. Dry thumb? Nope. Slightly damp? Nope. Perfect conditions only? Registered thumb… twice? Maybe three fingers? Okay, works okay now. Except after gardening (mud!), washing the dog (wet!), or just… existing sometimes? App? Forget it. Tried connecting for “remote access”. Got error “DHCP-WTF” or something silly. Router hates me. Or lock hates router. Either way, that feature’s dead. BUT, the keypad? Works! Mostly. Except in direct sunlight, hard to see sometimes. Minor thing… unless it’s sunny?
Security though? Feels SOLID on the wood door. Heavy mechanism. Does it make the old wood creak louder when locking? Dunno. Might just be the house settling? Or the monsters… Anyway, the ALARM! Woooo! Triggered it accidentally myself. Sounds like a nuclear siren crossed with a startled peacock. Would definitely make anyone (thief, squirrel, annoying neighbor kid) RUN. Good peace of mind. Battery life is… meh? Changed them after like 4 months? Maybe 5? Not great. Guess it works harder on my thick door? Or cheap batteries? Came with Energizers… I think?
So, IS IT a winner among other top rated smart locks for actual wood doors? Honestly… mixed feelings. The LS-S61 is definitely tough, LOUD, looks good on wood (weirdly), core security feels legit. Price? High, but okay compared to others. BUT… the install was messy on thick wood, fingerprint is temperamental, app useless (for me), batteries drain faster than I hoped. My door thickness? Like, 1.75 inches? Solid? Yeah, mostly. Probably? Is oak harder than maple? Security is key… literally! Lock needed tho, so… yeah. It works. Mostly. Is it perfect? Nah. Would I buy it again? Ugh… maybe? Let me finish my coffee first. Ask the lock? Ha!