Kisi 4+

Not intuitive at first

...but once you realize that you don’t have to hold your phone to the reader (use Bluetooth instead) you can seamlessly go in. There wasn’t a very good direction from the hostess but we got it quickly. Another nit, was of all the driving gates to get into and all the gates to pool area, you have no ideas what name is what gate. Slight nit, but I do like the name that lights up when you’re close to the gate but doesn’t happen all the time. Probably operator error in some cases. Great app.

Neat solution when it works

I’ve been using this a few years in an office building. It works most of the time and using the pads is slow. There are a few pads that don’t respond to the first tap (or the second, or third…). Honestly I have favorited the doors I use most and unlock them via the app. Usually the touch pad brings up Apple Pay but won’t unlock the door. Tap again. And Again. And open the freakin app. The main office pad blinks red for error and then immediately green on the lock.
It works less reliably on my new iPhone 15 pro than it did on the iPhone 8. I’ve tried enabling location on always, Bluetooth, cell data, background updates. Nothing has helped. And it’s faster to use the app than it is to tap the pads. I just wish the Favorite screen was the default. Each time I open the app I’m at home base and have to click My Office and then open my building (and there’s only 1 choice ). Just keep the app on Favorites. It would be even neater if I could sort them in the order that I travel through the building. There are several pairs for double doors.

Developer Response ,

Thank you for sharing your detailed experience with us. We appreciate your loyalty over the years. Regarding your concern about the default screen, the app remembers the last screen you opened. If you left it on the Favorites screen, it should open there next time.

However, we're sorry to hear about the inconsistency with Tap to Unlock on some readers. This isn't the experience we aim for. Please reach out to our support team at support@getkisi.com so we can investigate and resolve this issue promptly.

Works inconsistently. Greedy for permissions.

I’m a member at a coworking space that uses Kisi at its one solitary entry door. When Kisi works, it’s nice, but far too frequently it fails. Sometimes I’m standing at the door but the app tells me I’m not close enough. Sometimes the app says the door has unlocked, and the reader pad light turns green, but the door latch remains locked. When I’m in a hurry, I just use the keypad instead. The watch app always just bails when I launch it, saying I’m not signed in (I am), so that promising add-on is totally useless to me.

I have reinstalled multiple times. I have the app enabled for Bluetooth and for precise location while open. I will not grant background location permission because it should not be necessary; the app endlessly prompts me that “some required permissions are missing”. My boundaries around this permission cannot be that unusual. I don’t think Kisi intends to do evil things with my data, but I don’t know how seriously they take the risk of a data breach.

Developer Response ,

For the issue with the door latch remaining locked despite the app indicating it's unlocked, this sounds like a separate hardware issue that we'd like to investigate further to ensure consistent functionality. Please reach out to our support team at support@getkisi.com.

We've made updates to improve the performance of the Apple Watch app, and we encourage you to give it another try. If you continue to experience difficulties, please let us know so we can assist you further.

Regarding the app permissions, we understand your concerns. Rest assured, background location permission is not required for in-app unlocks. These permissions primarily enable additional features like tap to unlock and wave to unlock for the best user experience. However, we take your privacy seriously and are continuously working to improve our app's functionality while respecting user privacy preferences.