It might look like one half of a pair of handcuffs, but this is a smart lock for bikes.
It’s called Linka, and it has all sorts of ways of protecting your ride. For starters, it immobilises your bike – press the button, and a 9mm hardened square steel ring slides into place, stopping your wheel from turning. It syncs to your smartphone over Bluetooth, and automatically unlocks as you approach. Or you can enter a four-digit PIN.
Tamper alerts send a notification to your phone if someone starts feeling up your bike, and if it goes further than 400 feet away from you. It also has a theft detector map (from bikeindex.org) that tells you whether the neighbourhood is safe, and will even suggest where else to park and how to get there. In other words, it’s got your back.
Read more: Yerka is a bike that doubles as a lock
Other Linka owners will be able to track your bike too, so if someone does steal it, you’ll have a whole army of people on your side. Justice team, mobilise!
It’s a great idea, and has already raised over twice its $25,000 funding target. Look out for it in November.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
