LockSafe Biometric Pistol Safe

I just got this today so I can't comment on how long it will last and how it will function over time. However, I can give my first impressions.Packaging:I had mine delivered on Saturday so it was delivered by a freight company. The outer box was a little beaten up but inside was a second, pristine box and inside that was a third, also pristine, box containing the pistol safe. The safe itself was inside a huge Ziploc bag and protected by cardboard inserts. The safe was in perfect condition (no scratches, dings or defects). By the way, it's made in China if that matters to you. It doesn't to me.Operation:The manual was usable if a little sparse. One of the illustrations in the manual had an arrow pointing to the reset button location but it was misleading (it is actually UNDER the locking mechanism. Locksaf might want to edit the manual to make this clearer. I had a hard time finding the reset button so I called Locksaf. The owner (Rich) called me back within twenty minutes and this was after 4:00 PM on a Saturday! By that time, though, I had already found the button. Just the same, Rich was really nice and we spent well over half an hour just chatting about the virtues of the biometric technology in addition to him giving me some personal instruction on setting up my fingerprints. You can tell that he is enthusiastic and very proud of his product.I have really dry and cracked hands (apparently, I am one of the five percent of the population with this problem). I couldn't get the Locksaf to open consistently for me so Rick suggested using some lotion on my hands and trying it again. He talked me through the procedure and waited until it worked. And it did! The lotion 'plumps up' your fingertips if you happen to have dry hands like me.While we were chatting, I kept trying the safe and it worked each and every time. Because of my dry hands, it might not work in an emergency so I plan to keep the key close by in a hidden but easily reachable spot - just in case.While researching pistol safes, I had considered a Fort Knox product (not biometric) because it was fifty bucks or so cheaper and had good ratings. I also considered the upgraded 'digital' version of the Locksaf but it was fifty dollars more. So, I compromised on the price. The deciding factors for me were the positive comments I had seen here on Amazon in addition to the fact that the Locksaf has 9-gauge steel compared to the slightly thinner 10-gauge Fort Knox. By the way, this thing is heavy! You can tell it's a substantial and high quality product.By the way, if you have problems with the initial setup, there are three videos on the Locksaf website that walk you through it (no sound, though). You can also call the company for support.Once you've entered your fingerprints, operation is a snap. Push the silver function button and then put your finger in the slot. Within a second or two, the lid pops up albeit not silently. I don't see how the sound of the lid popping up or the little beeps it makes would have any effect on personal security. Some people might find this objectionable but I do not.Warranty:When I was comparing products, I noticed that the Fort Knox products have a lifetime warranty but the Locksaf only has a one-year warranty. This was troubling to me so I mentioned it to Rich. He said he would support the product and 'figure something out' if it happens to fail after the one-year period. He assured me that it's not one of your typical devices that's designed to fail as soon as the warranty expires. Most electronics tend to fail - if they are going to fail at all - within the first thirty days of use. He says he will stand behind his product even beyond the one-year warranty period. We shall see.Pros:- Good, sturdy construction- Prompt and personal customer service (Did I mention that the owner himself returned my call and on a Saturday afternoon at that?). You simply cannot ask for more!- Well-designed product- Scanner works perfectly for me as long as my hands aren't bone dryCons:- The one-year warranty (thirty day return policy) makes me a little nervous about long-term dependability.- The manual could be a little better written (especially on the location of the reset button).- Battery (He said it was a 'demo' battery that should be replaced soon with a Duracell alkaline). Why not provide a good battery in the first place?Conclusion:Even with a few, very minor quibbles, I highly recommend the Locksaf PBS-001. I hope to get many years of use from it.

Although this safe seems relatively high quality compared to all the other safes I have seen in the same price range (and lower).There are a few features I didn't like, and some functions which I didn't find acceptable. I have returned mine to the seller because it didn't fit my needs.Please note that I didn't go out and buy a cheap safe. I looked around and read reviews and spent $299 because I wanted something that met my admittedly high standards.GOOD STUFF FIRST:The key is amazing, I can't imagine ANYONE being able to pick this thing in less than a few hours with an extensive tool set. Would be easier to just go at it with a sawsall or a crow bar! It would probably stop someone with a big screw driver, or a hammer, but wouldn't stop anyone with power tools and metal bits/blades, or a crow bar longer than 2 feet long. I think it would definitely stop kids or teenagers who don't want to leave a mark on it though.Seems well made, and sturdy. Easy to use and program.MY DIS-SATISFACTIONS: (others may disagree with my findings, but this is what *I* experienced.)The fingerprint scanner has a loud beep every time you use it. No way to turn it down or OFF. The Fingerprint scanner is good, but not as fast as I thought it would be. Even if you carefully hold your finger in a similar position and pressure every time, it sometimes takes more than 2 seconds to recognize your finger. And maybe one out of every 5 times or so it fails to recognize your finger and you have to try again. This means every 20-40 times you open with a finger you might have to try three times to get it to open, and it could take up to 6-7 seconds total for that time. To me that is not good enough. I can understand a requirement to carefully and consistently place and pressure your finger pad. (which actually isn't that important on this scanner!) But I want something that is 95% effective or better and would expect that at least 50% of the time it should open in less than 1 second and never longer than 2.