What Are Smartguns? I Went to Find out whether they are Legit or Hype.

Last updated on November 18th, 2025 at 12:46 pm

Ok, I will tell the truth, I scrunched my nose when I first heard about smartguns. It was like in a sci-fi film when you have a gun, but it activates once you put on a special ring or activate your fingerprint. However, after a few weeks of research in this technology, I have seen videos, read far more posts on Reddit, and have some thoughts.

So What Even Is a Smartgun?

The truth is as follows: a smartgun is just a firearm that does not fire, but it does not fire when it is in the wrong hands. Imagine your Smartphone Face ID but with a gun. Research states that these weapons operate under biometric (fingerprints, facial scans), or RFID (those proximity chips) technologies to ensure that only certain individuals are authorized to draw the trigger.

The reasoning behind this is quite simple, when a person robs your gun, or a child discovers it or in some other way it is taken in a fight, it will be a harmless piece of metal. That is, at least, the claims of the manufacturers.

The Technology behind it: Does It Work?

I looked into what is happening at the moment, and, frankly speaking? It went much farther on than I supposed.

The Large competitor is the Biofire Smart Gun. It was introduced at SHOT Show 2025 and has seven in-built sensors. It has got fingerprint scanning, facial recognition, and even grip recognition. The item sells at a price of 1,499 which is approximately triple the price of an ordinary Glock. However, this part interested me the most they put it to a test of more than a million rounds before they released it.

Then we have the LodeStar LS9 that comes with finger print scanning that unlock in micro seconds. Besides, it has a PIN pad as a backup option when your hands are wet or when you are wearing gloves. Smart move, actually.

SmartGunz Sentry 1911 takes another turn with RFID. You have a special ring, and only under the condition of a ring detecting the gun. It sounds easy, though I discovered that earlier prototypes had problems – hackers demonstrated that it was possible to beat earlier RFID systems with $15 magnets. Yikes.

Here’s Where It Gets Tricky

The technology is so impressive, but I needed to pose the difficult questions. In a crisis, when you are genuinely needed, what is your life worth?

Battery problems are real. When your smartgun runs out of charge at the wrong moment, then you are in trouble. This is being addressed on the modern models by the use of low-power mode and charging holsters, but it remains an additional failure mode that typical guns lack.

Reliability issues were continually raised. But what about when your hands are wet when you are breaking into a place? But suppose you are wearing gloves in the winter? It has been tested that more recent models are now able to incorporate backup methods of authentication, yet no system can be said to be foolproof.

Then there is the hacking facet. An earlier smartgun, the Armatix iP1 was famously hacked using cheap magnets. This was supposedly resolved by newer fire-by-wire systems in which mechanical connections are eliminated but security experts still agree on whether this can indeed be true that these guns are impervious to hacking.

Why Anyone Would Want One

Although these are the concerns, I understand why people are interested.

When you have kids back at home, a smartgun would imply that you are much less likely to experience accidental shootings. Better storage would have prevented 70 percent of child shooting deaths. A gun that, literally, cannot be shot by just anybody? That’s pretty appealing.

The statistics are more alarming in relation to suicide prevention. Approximately, eighty-two percent of teens who attempt suicide with firearms do so with a weapon owned by one of their family members. A smartgun produces a firewall at that crisis situation.

They are also being tested by the law enforcement agencies. The concept of avoiding disarmament with weapons in the face of confrontations is rational in terms of officer safety.

The Hype vs. Reality Check

I have come to the conclusion of all my reading that smartguns are no longer vaporware. Real products that you can purchase (pre-order) are them. But they’re not perfect.

The increasing market – estimated at 467-800 million in 2030-2033. Large defense firms such as General Dynamics are spending on R&D. This makes me know that it is not a gimmick.

However, price of this is the key factor of 1,500, doubts about reliability, and because you are putting your life in the hands of batteries and sensors? Those are reasonable issues which the current owners express on forums all the time.

My Honest Conclusion

Are smartguns legit? Oh yes, they exist and they succeed, most of the time. Will they be willing to substitute your home defense gun? That is relative to your position and risk taking.

A smartgun could be considered a decent purchase, although more expensive and with its technological constraints, in case you’re a parent concerned about kids finding guns, or because of suicide risk factors in your own household.

And in case you are a person that wants to be absolutely certain of things regardless of the circumstances, it is likely that you will have to wait another generation or two until the technology becomes mature.

The hype? It’s justified, but tempered. Smartguns are real, they get better quickly, and they give solutions to real problems. They do not by any means represent the holy Grail that everybody was hoping to have, at least not yet.

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