When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. With everything from ultra-precise presence detection to Z-Wave LR integration, Xthings' Ultraloq smart locks aim to serve DIYers and security pros alike. Smart home brand Xthings is rolling out an ambitious lineup of new Ultraloq smart locks at CES, ranging from locks with cutting-edge biometric access to models designed for professional Z-Wave installations. The company says the new products are built to support both homeowners looking for advanced convenience and service providers managing connected security systems. Leading the pack is the Ultraloq Bolt Mission, a Matter-certified smart lock that uses Ultra-wideband (UWB) technology to detect a user's precise location and automatically unlock when the user is physically at the door--not just nearby with their phone in a pocket or bag.

I recently described how a recent flurry of smart home failures made me turn to Home Assistant, the increasingly polished DIY smart home platform that you can host yourself without relying on the cloud. Starting today, Home Assistant users have an awesome new toy to play with. The Home Assistant Connect ZQA-2 ( 69) is a new smart home adapter with a very tall antenna. And before you ask, it's not for Matter, the latest and hottest new thing in smart home. Instead, the Connect ZQA-2 is all about Z-Wave, an older but widely used smart home technology that's getting renewed attention thanks to its new "Long Range" capability, which allows for connectivity with Z-Wave LR (Long Range) client devices up to a mile--yes, a mile--away.

Leviton, one of the biggest electrical component manufacturers in the world, makes high-quality products and offers a comprehensive collection of Z-Wave-compatible devices in addition to this Z-Wave 800 dimmer and switch. Smart lighting controls that operate over Wi-Fi are great, because they don't require a hub; they connect directly to your router. The downside is that they must compete with all the other clients on your home network: Your computers, gaming consoles, media streamers, smart speakers, home security cameras, smart plugs, and many, many more. I live in a very small home--less than 800 square feet--but there are still more than 80 devices connected to the Eero 6 router in my Ring Alarm Pro. Given that the Eero 6's practical limit is 128 clients, there just isn't a lot of room for light switches and dimmers.

You might have detected a "bit" of intentional tongue-in-cheek in my recent coverage of the most "intriguing" products released at the 2017 Consumer Electronics Show, but rest assured that the news wasn't all bizarre. Some truly significant technologies (and products based on them) were both introduced for the first time and notably advanced from prior versions. I thought I'd devote this particular post to showcasing three that particularly stuck with me. Learning goes deep While the world may not need an electric toothbrush that claims to have "artificial intelligence", both that term and the comparable "deep learning" were everywhere at CES, often for good reason. Traditionally, computer vision, audio analysis, and other similar applications have relied on special-purpose algorithms custom-designed to recognize particular patterns.

The Amazon Echo was the one of the darlings of the online retailer's record-breaking holiday season, so it was only a matter of time before a competitor popped out something similar. That competitor will be LG with its SmartThinQ hub, which looks very similar to the Echo and includes a large speaker for streaming music. But LG's device will focus on the connected home--monitoring various sensors and monitoring and controlling smart home appliances--where the Echo is more of a personal digital assistant. To that end, the SmartThinQ will support the Z-Wave, ZigBee, and Bluetooth protocols, as well as Wi-Fi and the AllJoyn Internet of Things platform. Also unlike the Echo, LG's SmartThinQ will have a 3.5-inch LCD on its angled top, which will display notifications from connected devices as well as reminders from personal calendars.