A Smart Lock That Lives on Your Home's App, Next to the Cameras and Doorbell
New Age Technology installs smart locks and keyless entry across the Twin Cities, binding the front-door lock into the same Control4 or Savant app that runs your cameras, video doorbell, and lights. We assign and revoke codes per person, tie the lock into your 'away' and 'good night' scenes, and confirm the hardware fits an older Deephaven or Minnetonka door before we quote. Licensed and insured, with 15+ years in Hennepin County.
Owner Chad and the New Age Technology team have spent 15+ years wiring whole-home automation across Hennepin County, and the lock is the piece homeowners keep buying twice: a big-box keypad deadbolt that works fine for a month, then strands itself in its own app with no connection to the cameras watching the same door. This page is the straight answer to what professional keyless entry actually buys you, how a smart deadbolt gets onto the same interface as your video doorbell, how keypad, fingerprint, and app entry really compare, and whether a modern lock will even fit the door on a 1970s Minnetonka rambler.
Keyless Entry Door Lock Installation: What Professional Integration Buys You
A keyless entry door lock replaces the key you hide under the mat with codes you assign and revoke per person, plus app and keypad access from anywhere. Off the shelf, that lock talks only to its own app. Integrated onto Control4 or Savant, the same lock joins the system that already knows when you've armed the house and when the cameras see someone at the door. That's the difference between a gadget and an entry layer.
A lock that only lives in its own app is a second login for the one door your cameras are already watching. The value shows up when the lock and the camera on that door are the same event, on the same screen.
Here's what proper installation and integration buys you over a retail keypad deadbolt:
- One app, not another login. The lock's status and control sit next to your cameras, doorbell, and lights on the same Control4 or Savant screen.
- Codes you actually manage. Assign a code to a house cleaner for Tuesdays, a contractor for a week, family that keeps forgetting keys, and revoke any of them from your phone the moment the job's done.
- Action, not just a button. Because the lock is on the platform, a 'good night' scene can confirm every door is locked, and an 'away' arm can lock up behind you instead of relying on memory.
- A shared record. Every lock and unlock lands in the same activity log as your cameras and doorbell, so 'did the kids get home' is answered, not guessed.
Want to watch a door lock itself on a 'good night' scene on the showroom wall in Plymouth? Call (952) 204-7222 and come see it run before you buy.
Smart Door Lock Installation on Control4 or Savant, Not a Retail Island
This is the fork that decides whether the lock is actually part of your home. A standalone smart deadbolt with its own app can lock and unlock from your phone, and for a single exterior door with no other automation, that's a perfectly reasonable answer. We'll tell you so plainly. But it lives on an island. It doesn't know the security system armed, it doesn't show up on your keypad, and it can't lock itself when the rest of the house goes to bed.
### When a standalone retail lock is enough
If you have one exterior door, no automation platform, and you just want to unlock it from your phone, buy a smart deadbolt off the shelf and pair it to its own app. You don't need us for that, and we won't pretend you do. Check that your door is standard bore and your deadbolt is a common backset first.
### When Control4 or Savant integration wins
The moment you're already running Control4 or Savant, or you want the lock tied to cameras, the doorbell, and scenes, integration is the answer. As certified dealers for Control4, Savant, Crestron, and Lutron, we bind the lock into the same platform so it shows up on every keypad and every phone, and so it can be part of an automation instead of a lonely button. The door locking becomes one line in your 'away' routine, right alongside the exterior lights and the garage door.
Chad's rule of thumb: if the cameras on your front door and the lock on your front door are in two different apps, you've split the one entry point that matters most across two screens. That's the one we put back together first.
The homes where this pays off fastest are the ones we wire every week: lakefront estates around Crystal Bay and West Arm with multiple exterior doors and detached buildings, and 1990s to 2000s construction across Plymouth and Maple Grove where the deadbolt and the smart-home system were never introduced to each other. Talk to us about your setup and we'll map how the lock folds into your Control4 or Savant home.
Keypad vs Fingerprint vs App: Which Keyless Entry Fits Your Door
There's no single best keyless entry method, there's the one that fits how a door gets used. We spec the entry type per door rather than putting the same lock on all of them. Here's the honest breakdown we walk clients through:
- Keypad (code) entry. The workhorse. A code per person, no phone required, and easy to hand a cleaner or contractor a temporary code you revoke later. Best for the main family door and any door service people use.
- Fingerprint entry. Fastest for the people who live there, with no code to remember or share. We steer clients toward fingerprint on the door the family uses daily, and pair it with a keypad backup for guests. Worth knowing: fingerprint readers get fussier with wet or cold hands, which in a Minnesota January is a real consideration on an exposed door.
- App / proximity entry. Unlocks as your phone approaches, or with a tap from anywhere. Strongest when the lock is integrated, because the app is the same one running your cameras and doorbell, not a separate one. Best paired with a keypad so a dead phone battery never locks you out.
A lock should have a backup path that doesn't depend on a charged phone or a warm, dry finger. We spec at least two entry methods on any primary door, so no single failure leaves you on the porch.
Most of the locks we install combine two or three of these in one unit: fingerprint plus keypad plus app is common on a main door. The right mix depends on who uses the door and how exposed it is to the weather, which is exactly the conversation we have on-site before recommending hardware. Request a walkthrough and we'll spec the entry method per door for your home.
One Screen for the Lock, the Cameras, and the Video Doorbell
The reason to integrate the lock instead of bolting on a gadget is that the lock, the doorbell, and the cameras all watch the same door, and they should live on the same screen. A retail smart deadbolt in its own app leaves your most-used entry point split across three logins.
### How the lock joins the security layer
As certified dealers for Control4, Savant, Crestron, and Lutron, we build smart-lock control into the same platform that already runs your security cameras, video doorbell, and glass-break sensors, so the lock behaves like any other monitored opening. When the doorbell sees a package drop, the same view shows whether the door is locked. When you arm the house, the doors can lock as part of the scene. When a code is used at an odd hour, the platform can flag it and pull up the camera on that door.
One app. Total control. A lock on a standalone app is a hole in the plan. A lock on your automation platform is one more opening the whole house already watches, right next to the doorbell feed.
This is the entry layer our security systems page treats as a whole: cameras, doorbell, locks, and sensors on one interface. Pair the lock with garage-door automation on your away scene and every way into the house reports to the same place. If you're already running Control4 or Savant, adding the lock is a clean extension of what you own. If you're starting fresh, we design it in from the beginning as part of a full Control4 or Savant home. Call (952) 204-7222 and we'll show you how it ties in.
Retrofitting Older Twin Cities Doors: Fit, Backset, and Weather Sealing
Two questions come up on nearly every lock job: will this fit my existing door, and will it hold up to a Minnesota winter. The short answers are usually yes and only if it's installed right.
Most modern smart locks fit a standard door bore and one of the two common backsets, so on newer construction we typically install onto the door you have. The catch is the housing stock we retrofit every week. Older Deephaven and Woodland homes, and the 1970s ramblers near Hopkins, often have original door hardware, non-standard mortise pockets, or doors that have shifted enough over the decades that the deadbolt no longer throws cleanly. We check the bore, the backset, and the strike alignment before we commit to a lock, so you're not buying hardware that won't seat.
### Why exterior-door sealing matters here
A smart lock is an exterior-door device, and an exterior door in Minnesota lives through 100-plus-degree temperature swings between a January cold snap and an August afternoon. A lock installed on a door that isn't sealed and aligned will bind when the door swells, and a motorized bolt that fights a misaligned strike fails early. We check that the door closes square, the weatherstripping seals, and the bolt throws freely before we call a lock done, because a keyless lock that jams in the cold is worse than the key it replaced.
We'd rather tell you the honest path for the door you own than sell you a lock that won't seat on it. Sometimes that's a simple swap. Sometimes the door itself needs to be squared up first, and we'll say so before you spend.
We handle low-voltage permitting through the City of Plymouth building department on Plymouth jobs, and on new construction we coordinate with your builder so the exterior doors and the lock hardware are planned together before finishes go in. Get an honest read on whether your doors will take a smart lock before anything is ordered.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do smart locks work with Control4 and Savant?
Yes, and integrating them is the main reason to have us install the lock rather than buying a retail one. As certified dealers for Control4, Savant, Crestron, and Lutron, we bind the lock's control and status into the same platform that runs your cameras, video doorbell, and lights, so the lock shows up on every keypad and phone next to everything else. From there it can join scenes: a 'good night' routine confirms every door is locked, and an 'away' arm locks up behind you. Every lock and unlock is logged alongside your cameras. The exact method depends on your lock and platform, so we confirm compatibility before we commit, and we don't promise a binding we haven't verified for your specific hardware.
Can you integrate a smart lock with my cameras and video doorbell?
Yes, that's the whole point of having us build it. On a Control4 or Savant system, the lock, the video doorbell, and the cameras that watch the same door all live on one screen. When the doorbell sees someone, the same view shows whether the door is locked; when a code is used, the platform can pull up the camera on that door; when you arm the house, the doors can lock as part of the scene. Instead of one app for the lock, another for the doorbell, and a third for the cameras, it's a single interface for the entire entry point. If you already run our security cameras and doorbell, adding the lock onto the same platform is a clean extension.
What's the difference between keypad, fingerprint, and app smart locks?
Keypad locks use a code per person, need no phone, and make it easy to hand a contractor or cleaner a temporary code you revoke later. Fingerprint locks are fastest for the people who live there with nothing to remember or share, though readers get fussier with wet or cold hands, which matters on an exposed Minnesota door. App or proximity entry unlocks as your phone approaches or with a tap from anywhere, and it's strongest when the lock is integrated, because the app is the same one running your cameras and doorbell. Most locks we install combine two or three of these in one unit. We spec at least two entry methods on any primary door so a dead phone or a cold finger never leaves you locked out.
Will a smart lock fit my existing door in an older Minnetonka home?
Usually, but it's worth checking first, which is exactly what we do on-site. Most modern smart locks fit a standard door bore and one of the two common backsets, so on newer construction we install onto the door you have. The catch is the older housing stock we retrofit across Minnetonka: 1970s ramblers near Hopkins and original hardware in Deephaven and Woodland homes often have non-standard mortise pockets or doors that have shifted enough that the deadbolt no longer throws cleanly. We check the bore, backset, and strike alignment before committing to a lock, and we confirm the door closes square and the bolt throws freely, so you're not buying hardware that won't seat. If the door itself needs squaring up first, we'll tell you before you spend.
Do keyless locks hold up to Minnesota winters?
They do when they're installed on a door that's sealed and aligned, and they fail early when they're not. A smart lock is an exterior-door device, and an exterior door here lives through big temperature swings between a January cold snap and an August afternoon. A motorized bolt fighting a misaligned strike or a door that swells will bind and wear out fast. Before we call a lock done, we check that the door closes square, the weatherstripping seals, and the bolt throws without resistance. For the family door, we also recommend keeping a keypad backup alongside a fingerprint reader, since fingerprint sensors read less reliably with cold or wet hands in the depth of winter.
Are you a locksmith?
No. We're a low-voltage systems integrator, not a locksmith, and we're clear about that scope. What we design, install, and program is the smart-lock and its integration: the keyless hardware, the codes and entry methods, the binding into your Control4 or Savant system, and the scenes and alerts that tie the lock to your cameras and doorbell. We check door fit, backset, and strike alignment as part of installing the lock, and where a door needs mechanical work beyond squaring it up, we'll tell you before we quote. Think of us as the brains, the wiring, and the entry layer on your automation platform, tied into the rest of your security system.