I bought the Aqara U400 about less than a month ago using a $20 Aqara discount code and switched from a Yale Assure Lock 2 mainly because the U400 looked more future-proof, especially with UWB, which was the big draw.
Setup wasn’t the smoothest at first since I didn’t have an Aqara hub. I added it to Apple HomeKit and later to Home Assistant which took some effort, but I eventually got UWB and Apple Home Key working. I recently picked up the aqara M100 hub which helped, though the Aqara app still feels a bit clunky and unclear around unlocking all features like fingerprint access.
In daily use, UWB works well most of the time, and when it doesn’t, Apple Home Key has been a solid fallback. There were a few hiccups early on, but things have been slowly improving.
Overall, the U400 feels like a solid, well-built lock with a lot of promise, especially if you’re invested in the Apple ecosystem. That said, it does make you pause on the price when cheaper locks from Yale, Eufy & other awara models already do the basics really well. If Aqara continues to refine the software and setup experience, this could easily become a great option.
Verdict:
Good hardware and forward-looking features, but still needs a bit more polish to fully justify the premium.
