Apple's new Home Collection includes a smart lock that opens when you walk up — no tapping required

The irony of smart home gadgets is that they can require an awful lot of work (and app downloads) for devices that are supposed to make your life easier.

Apple wants to simplify that process with the new Apple Home Collection, a lineup of smart home accessories developed by LG Electronics and Schneider Electric in collaboration with Apple.

The collection includes a variety of standard smart home devices from security cameras and smart thermostats to a door lock that can recognize when you're approaching with your iPhone or Apple Watch.

But more importantly, rather than requiring a collection of separate apps and accounts, these accessories are designed to work directly with the new Apple HomeView smart home display and Apple Home app, with an emphasis on easy setup, privacy and integration with your existing Apple devices.

Apple Home Collection: The full list of smart home devices

A smart lock that knows when you're coming home

Of everything in the collection, the LG Smart Deadbolt Lock might be the accessory I'm most interested in trying.

Using Ultra Wideband (UWB) technology, the lock can detect when you're approaching with a compatible iPhone or Apple Watch and automatically unlock the door. No need to pull out your phone, tap your watch against the lock or enter a passcode.

That said, the lock does also include a keypad, plus a physical keyhole concealed behind a sliding cover. As much as I like the idea of a door that recognizes me, I wouldn't want to find myself locked out because my phone battery died.

Security cameras that know when you're home

LG is also introducing indoor and outdoor security cameras designed to work directly with Apple Home.

The $199 indoor camera has a particularly thoughtful privacy feature. In lieu of, say, a physical privacy shutter, it can automatically tilt downward when you arrive home. You can also configure schedules for this behavior.

For outdoor security, LG is offering a camera designed to monitor the area around your house, including an option with a motion-activated floodlight.

The cameras integrate with Apple's existing HomeKit Secure Video features, including recognition of familiar faces, pets and package deliveries, with supported video history stored through iCloud+.

A video doorbell with two different views

The LG Video Doorbell features two cameras: one facing outward to capture visitors and another pointing down toward the ground.

That second camera is designed to give you a better look at packages left near your doorstep, which is something traditional doorbell camera angles don't always capture particularly well.

And with Apple's new HomeView smart display, you'll be able to check up to five compatible camera feeds at once from a central screen instead of reaching for your phone. This camera, when set up with an iPhone with Apple Intelligence, also monitors familiar faces and pets for motion activity recaps.

Smart thermostats from LG and Schneider Electric

The collection also includes $199 smart thermostats from both LG and Schneider Electric with slightly different designs, giving buyers some choice in how the thermostat looks on the wall.

Like existing smart thermostats, these can make adjustments throughout the day to help maintain comfortable temperatures while reducing unnecessary energy use.

The thermostats are designed for North American heating and cooling standards, so availability will be more limited than some of the other products in the collection.

Apple Home Collection outlook

To me, the biggest selling point of the Apple Home Collection is how easily they're designed to work together. Simply bring your iPhone near a device, follow a few prompts and add it directly to the Home app. There are no separate manufacturer apps or accounts required.

The accessories will begin arriving in December. Security cameras will be available in the U.S., Canada and U.K., while the smart lock and thermostats are limited to the U.S. and Canada. Prices start at $199 for the indoor camera and thermostats, with the smart lock costing $439.

Apple has supported third-party smart home accessories for years, but collaborating with LG and Schneider Electric to develop them is definitely a different approach. Combined with the new HomeView display, which gives Apple's smart home ecosystem a more obvious centerpiece, there's finally a clearer picture of what an Apple-powered home could look like.

If Apple can truly make setting up and managing a connected home feel less like managing a dozen different gadgets, that might be the smartest feature of the entire Apple Home collection.

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