A connected lock is a computer on the outside of your door. Three things must never depend on the cloud.
1. Opening the door
Fingerprint, PIN, card and key verify locally. If the lock requires an internet round-trip to open, a router failure becomes a lockout.
2. The audit trail
Access logs should be stored on the device and synced when possible, not only in a cloud account the user cannot export.
3. The credentials
The administrator must be able to add and revoke users without a vendor login. Otherwise the customer does not own their own door.
What good looks like
Wi-Fi adds convenience — remote unlock, one-time codes, notifications — while the local layer stays complete and independent.
Takeaway
Cloud is a feature. Local operation is the product.