Digital Glock Device

[jd950]

Watching their video, it actually looks pretty cool for those who might want or need such things. With some imagination I could see some potential uses. Locally we have had a few unmarked take home cars broken into and the occasional rifle or SMG gone missing for a bit. I suppose a proximity trigger lock of some kind on a key ring could be useful? Not sure of that, just thinking about it.

I guess its main value is crippling unsecured guns from house guests and kids. A much cheaper locking pistol box would do the same thing. I don't really need to secure my guns from my kids, when they come over they are always carrying their own anyway :-)

Overall, I don't like the idea of these kinds of things much...too much room for failure and problems and if they become commonplace, they will likely be required by someone. Still, the technology is cool

Upside for me is that most of this stuff is going to be made, at first, for Glocks. I don't have Glocks, so until they make them for my old-guy, discontinued guns, I can't get one. Just one more reason not to have a Glock...

[MattyD380]

I think this is cool.

I guess it was only a matter of time before firearms made their way onto the “internet of things.” Certainly it won’t be for everyone, but I feel like there’s certain segments this will speak to. Those with families, obviously. Personally, the lack of a manual safety on most SFA guns is a barrier for me (a big reason I carry DA/SA). So if manufacturers refuse to provide a manual safety... maybe a “digital safety” could be a solution?

That said, I’m not entirely sure this would function in that capacity. I guess you’d have to swipe something on your device to lock the gun before holstering? Which I guess isn’t... impossible (esp. if you have a smart watch)... but not ideal. It’d also be cool if it could automatically unlock on the draw. And I agree—reliability is paramount. If it’s function isn’t flawless and seamless no one will want it.

In any case, I think it’s a neat idea. Curious to see where it leads. But I think it will have to overcome the “Smartgun” stigma. That said... people have embraced SCD concept pretty readily. I’m sure that had to overcome skepticism as well.

[JCN]

If anyone is curious, this is my wife’s current gun.

I’m demonstrating the magna trigger here:



Here we are doing some drills with it.



I’ll post a review of the digital trigger when I get mine.
Will get my wife’s impressions too.

Because the dudes of Pistol-Forum might not be the intended audience. People like my wife might be. And they might have a different set of preferences and priorities.

[Machine Inc]

The entire design team we have are firearm enthusiasts so a lot of care and details have gone into the design. I personally have a Scar17 with an Elcan specter along with the Glock19, P226, CZ75, and a classic 92S beretta.

For some of the other questions, 100% acknowledged on the reliability front - from early prototype days the mechanical engineers/software devs building the solution are the very same testers out on the range later that day test firing the weapon. It's all hands-on learning and improving. We don't have one team of developers (who have never shot a gun in their lives) and a completely separate team doing the test firing. Reliability is incredibly important - we're constantly testing, improving through manual and automated tests,

On the failure front in case of any mechanical failure - again it's a user configuration option - what do you as an owner want the weapon to do - if locked unlock or stays in the locked position. We're still refining this use case but feel confident about the option.

[BehindBlueI's]

I think this is cool.

I guess it was only a matter of time before firearms made their way onto the “internet of things.” Certainly it won’t be for everyone, but I feel like there’s certain segments this will speak to. Those with families, obviously. Personally, the lack of a manual safety on most SFA guns is a barrier for me (a big reason I carry DA/SA). So if manufacturers refuse to provide a manual safety... maybe a “digital safety” could be a solution?...

In any case, I think it’s a neat idea. Curious to see where it leads. But I think it will have to overcome the “Smartgun” stigma. That said... people have embraced SCD concept pretty readily. I’m sure that had to overcome skepticism as well.

It doesn't appear to be a replacement to a manual safety, it appears to be a replacement for a safe or a trigger lock. The SCD is a completely different thing. It adds zero complexity to the operation of the firearm and is completely passive. If you forget it's there, the only downside is you don't get the benefit of safer holstering. Even if it falls off the firearm, the firearm remains functional.

Because the dudes of Pistol-Forum might not be the intended audience. People like my wife might be. And they might have a different set of preferences and priorities.

Respectfully, where you and your wife are economically may make a larger impact in the decision to try this then you may originally appreciate. I don't know how much time you spend in gun stores or among "the general population of gun owners", but just getting people to spend the money on a quality holster is a rarity. But the real competition is what other options are available for the same or significantly less money.

Which is why I asked, who is this for? Who's leaving unattended and unsecured guns laying around but is willing to spend $200 per gun to secure them with an app? Is that more or less safe then simply carrying the gun holstered and in your control or locked up when that's not an option? What happens when folks forget to lock the gun and leave it laying around? I'm not a fan of stash guns, and this idea doesn't make it more palatable to me.

[Machine Inc]

thanks for the continued spirited discussion.

Our goal is to make firearm ownership safe but in no way whatsoever minimize the freedoms that we all (including me) enjoy daily. We think we've designed a pretty good start at ensuring those freedoms (without compromise) are intact. If we can prevent just one accidental death or injury in the two years we've invested in this project I think this is a good start.

As mentioned before we're gun enthusiasts, we're not software geeks at a desk (or at least all the time), we're in the community, on the range, we're enhancing, refining, and improving every day. This is and continues to be a project where we need input, support, and involvement. Everyone reading this is a valuable component of that.

[MattyD380]

It doesn't appear to be a replacement to a manual safety, it appears to be a replacement for a safe or a trigger lock.

Yeah, that seems to the case. In which case... not anything I'm interested in, at the moment. But maybe the technology could eventually have different applications.

[ViniVidivici]

Who is this for? Who's leaving their loaded gun unsecured and unattended but is willing to spend $200 per gun for this gadget?

This, so much. Frankly I have that thought when I see trigger locks.

Again, we always had a rule. Same as I was taught in the Army:

A weapon is only secured if it's under your direct control or physically locked up.

[Borderland]

This, so much. Frankly I have that thought when I see trigger locks.

Again, we always had a rule. Same as I was taught in the Army:

A weapon is only secured if it's under your direct control or physically locked up.

Seems reasonable.

[UNM1136]

With the uptic in gun sales the last few years, and the observed need of the common gun buyer for training, and obvious mindset issues observed in the common gun buyer, I predict that this thing will be HUGE and sell a whole bunch of units. And communities mandating them not by name, but by well intentioned interpreters and enforcers of the law making "recommendations"...in fact, for most gun owners, this is a home run. It will excuse their willful ignorance regarding mindset, storage, and training. The cost is comperable to a decent bedside safe. And it will take the criminal element a week or two to learn to recognize the tech, and defeat it, either by technical means, like car key remotes, or by swapping parts. Fleabay will have tech and parts in abundance.

I might even be interested in playing with one. Just to test the limits. I am, after all an armorer and formerly the rangemaster of a small department. I have a teenage daughter with mental health issues, and so I also fall into the category of "it is only secured if it is locked up or within my immediate control".

pat