Amazon Key: What it is and how it helps protect your packages
Between taking over your home with Alexa-powered speakers andEcho smart displays, monopolizing your grocery shopping with Amazon Fresh, and invading your TV withPrime Video, Amazon is doing a great job at making sure you liveinits ecosphere. Amazon Key goes a step further and asks you to hand over the key to your house—well, at least some keys—in the name of convenience. So, what exactly is involved in Amazon Key, and should you let Amazon into your garage to deliver yourPrime Daygoodies?
What is Amazon Key?
In short, Amazon Key is the retailer giant’s attempt tosolve the porch pirate problemplaguing the online shopping industry. When you use the Key in-home delivery service, you allow the Amazon delivery driver to drop Amazon packages off inside your gate or garage. The idea of some random person entering your home may sound scary, but the Amazon Key app and necessary smart-home hardware keep you in control of the delivery. The Key app, smart lock, and door opener control and monitor the driver’s access to your home if you are not there to receive the package. Amazon Key used to offer in-home, in-gate, and in-garage delivery, however, it has since axed in-home delivery and now only offers in-garage delivery and in-gate delivery.
If you have pets in your house or garden, it’s best to isolate them from the door or gate where the driver will enter.
How does Amazon Key work?
If you select the Amazon Key delivery option at checkout, you will receive updates from the Key app on delivery day. The first notification gives you a delivery window. When the driver arrives at your house, the Key app sends anArriving Nownotification to your phone. If you’re home and want to just open up and collect the package, you can do that, or the driver can drop off the package safely inside your garage or garden.
If you opt for in-home delivery, and the app tells you that the package is arriving, you can activate anyRingor AmazonCloud Camsecurity cameras to monitor the driver’s entry and exit in real time. If you choose not to watch the delivery in real-time, you can watch a saved video clip later on the Amazon Cloud Cam or Ring app. When the delivery person approaches your front gate or garage door with a compatible smart lock, they will scan your package so that Amazon can check that the delivery address is correct. Once Amazon confirms your details, the smart lock will give the delivery person one-time access to your gate or garage to deliver the package. After the drop-off, the driver sends a final notification to your Key app and relocks the gate or requests to close the garage door.
One potential point of concern when using Amazon Key is security. If you have any home security systems, Amazon advises that you disable those when you’re expecting an in-gate or in-garage delivery. While disabling your home security system is not great, at least you can take comfort in the fact that neither Key in-garage delivery nor in-gate delivery gives the delivery person access to your security code.
What hardware do you need for Amazon Key?
As you can tell from the delivery process, there are specific hardware requirements for in-home and in-garage delivery. Before we get to the hardware, it’s important to know that Amazon Key is only available to Amazon Prime members in certain ZIP codes. First, you should check Amazon Key is availability in your area. To check your eligibility, enter your ZIP code inthis webpageand clickUpdate location.
Now that you know if you’re in an eligible ZIP code, let’s look at what the hardware requirements are for Amazon Key. If you want in-garage delivery with Amazon Key, you need a myQ connected smart garage, and you need to enable in-garage delivery in the myQ app. While you can use a myQ connected Chamberlain or LiftMaster door opener, even Amazon recommends a $30 myQSmart Garage Hubfor use with Amazon Key. Most openers from after 1993 should work, but you can use myQ’scompatibility checkerto check if you have a Smart Garage Hub-compatible garage door opener. Once you have compatible myQ hardware, you need to enable Amazon Key in-garage delivery in the myQ app in order to use the service.
Of course, for certain people, the garage is a sacred space—or you just store valuable things in there and don’t want to risk it. Amazon Key offers security-conscious Prime members in-gate delivery, although the Key-compatible door locks are a little pricier than the $30 Wi-Fi-enabled Smart Garage Hub. If you want to use Amazon Key in-gate delivery, you need to install a $299 Ring Access Controller Pro 2. Once you have the Ring Access Controller 2 Pro, you can enable Key in-gate delivery from the Ring app on your phone. From there, the delivery process works in much the same way as the in-garage delivery.
Amazon Key for Businesses
While Key in-gate and in-garage delivery is for private residences, Amazon also offersAmazon Key for Business. Similarly to Amazon Hub Apartment Locker, Amazon Key for Business allows businesses to partner with Amazon for streamlined deliveries to residents in apartment buildings and gated communities.
Amazon Key for Business differs from Amazon Key in the sense that eligible apartment buildings and communities can receive more than just Amazon deliveries. Key for Business lets partners grant access to third-party providers like grocery deliveries, restaurants, and couriers. Key for Business uses the technology already installed in the building. Amazon says that its Key technology works with 90% of the electronic access systems on the market without giving away any remote controls or codes for keypads. Although Key for Business is free, you do need to contact Amazon to confirm eligibility.
What happened to stranger danger?
Amazon is no stranger to trust and security issues, so why should you allow them into your house? After all, the Amazon delivery person is still a person, and Amazon’s vetting process can only be so thorough. It’s worth weighing the pros and cons and deciding whether the risk is worth it to you. If you order off Amazon enough, or if your area is rampant with porch pirates, it may well be worth it to invest in Key for the convenience. If you’re not comfortable using Amazon Key, you may want topick up your packages from an Amazon Hub Lockerinstead.
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