What it solves in a town that lets by the week
The real gain is not getting rid of keys, it is being able to grant and then withdraw a right of access remotely. For a furnished flat near Prado let between two trade fairs, the tenant’s code stops working the day they leave, the cleaning company keeps its own schedule, and nothing stays in circulation at the end of the season.
A time-stamped log of openings earns its keep when you do not live nearby. An owner with a flat off rue d’Antibes and a home abroad sees the concierge service arrive, then the plumber called out for a leak, then the tenant who checked in the night before, without depending on a phone call or a message the following day.
In the La Californie villas the need is similar but stretched over months: a gardener every three weeks, a company servicing the pool, a neighbour collecting post through the winter. Each one gets access of their own, and the spare set that used to live under a flowerpot disappears from the arrangement altogether.
The limits worth checking before you buy
Battery life comes first. These locks run on cells, and a Cannes property closed from November to April tells nobody when the level drops. Look closely at what backup exists: a mechanical barrel retained, or an emergency power contact on the outside face. That point, rather than the brand, decides whether you will one day be standing outside.
Connectivity next. Bluetooth means being within a few metres; remote control means a bridge and a broadband line that is actually working. In the Suquet houses, with thick stone walls and internal staircases, radio range falls away from one floor to the next, so the position of the bridge is tested before it is fixed.
Then there is the mechanics, which do not change. A motor fitted onto the tired cylinder of a building on avenue Francis Tonner does nothing for the resistance of the door: convenience and resistance to forced entry are two separate subjects. The access log, for its part, reveals when the occupants are home and should be handled as personal data.
How does this service work?
Techniques, typical situations, standards and things to watch out for: it is all on our smart lock page. This page focuses on what the service involves in Cannes.