Smart Gun Technology Is Here

[Moped]

Saw this this morning.  Looks like it's coming again.  Stands to reason that other mainstream manufacturers will start rolling out their versions very soon.  It's probably wise that if you want something that's not SMART, then you need to start looking to purchase it soon.

 

Exclusive-Smart guns finally arriving in U.S., seeking to shake up firearms market

 

By Daniel Trotta

(Reuters) - Personalized smart guns, which can be fired only by verified users, may finally become available to U.S. consumers after two decades of questions about reliability and concerns they will usher in a new wave of government regulation.

Four-year-old LodeStar Works on Friday unveiled its 9mm smart handgun for shareholders and investors in Boise, Idaho. And a Kansas company, SmartGunz LLC, says law enforcement agents are beta testing its product, a similar but simpler model.

 

Both companies hope to have a product commercially available this year.

LodeStar co-founder Gareth Glaser said he was inspired after hearing one too many stories about children shot while playing with an unattended gun. Smart guns could stop such tragedies by using technology to authenticate a user's identity and disable the gun should anyone else try to fire it.

They could also reduce suicides, render lost or stolen guns useless, and offer safety for police officers and jail guards who fear gun grabs.

But attempts to develop smart guns have stalled: Smith & Wesson got hit with a boycott, a German company's product was hacked, and a New Jersey law aimed at promoting smart guns has raised the wrath of defenders of the Second Amendment.

The LodeStar gun, aimed at first-time buyers, would retail for $895.

The test-firing of the LodeStar gun before Reuters cameras has not been reported elsewhere. A range officer fired the weapon, a third-generation prototype, in its different settings without issue.

Glaser acknowledged there will be additional challenges to large-scale manufacturing, but expressed confidence that after years of trial and error the technology was advanced enough and the microelectronics inside the gun are well-protected.

"We finally feel like we're at the point where ... let's go public," Glaser said. "We're there."

Most early smart gun prototypes used either fingerprint unlocking or radio frequency identification technology that enables the gun to fire only when a chip in the gun communicates with another chip worn by the user in a ring or bracelet.

LodeStar integrated both a fingerprint reader and a near-field communication chip activated by a phone app, plus a PIN pad. The gun can be authorized for more than one user.

The fingerprint reader unlocks the gun in microseconds, but since it may not work when wet or in other adverse conditions, the PIN pad is there as a backup. LodeStar did not demonstrate the near-field communication signal, but it would act as a secondary backup, enabling the gun as quickly as users can open the app on their phones.

SmartGunz would not say which law enforcement agencies are testing its weapons, which are secured by radio frequency identification. SmartGunz developed a model selling at $1,795 for law enforcement and $2,195 for civilians, said Tom Holland, a Kansas Democratic state senator who co-founded the company in 2020.

Colorado-based Biofire is developing a smart gun with a fingerprint reader.

Skeptics have argued that smart guns are too risky for a person trying to protect a home or family during a crisis, or for police in the field.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the firearms industry trade association, says it does not oppose smart guns as long as the government doesn't mandate their sale.

"If I had a nickel for every time in my career I heard somebody say they're about to bring us a so-called smart gun on the market, I'd probably be retired now," said Lawrence Keane, senior vice president of the NSSF.

Guns coming to market could trigger a 2019 New Jersey law requiring all gun shops in the state to offer smart guns after they become available. The 2019 law replaced a 2002 law that would have banned the sale of any handgun except smart guns.

"The other side tipped their hand because they used smart guns to ban everything that's not a smart gun," said Scott Bach, executive director of the Association of New Jersey Rifle & Pistol Clubs. "It woke gun owners up."

When Smith & Wesson pledged in 1999 to promote smart gun development, among other gun safety measures in an agreement with the U.S. government, the National Rifle Association sponsored a boycott that led to a drop in revenue.

In 2014, German company Armatix put a smart .22 caliber pistol on the market, but it was pulled from stores after hackers discovered a way to remotely jam the gun's radio signals and, using magnets, fire the gun when it should have been locked.

(Reporting by Daniel Trotta; Editing by Donna Bryson and Leslie Adler)

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/exclusive-smart-guns-finally-arriving-112255892.html

[Darrell]

I suppose I'm with the NSSF on this one, I have no objection to making "smart guns" available, but would never want to see the technology made mandatory. I believe in the KISS principle, and think that firearms are among those products that need to be stone-axe reliable. The worst thing, in my opinion, about this technology is that it's certain to be followed by a push to mandate it for all firearms. 

[Garufa]

If I’m not mistaken some States already have laws on the books, or at least tried to pass such laws, to require so-called Smart Guns when the technology becomes viable.  Same with  micro-stamping.

[bobsguns]

I think all LEO's should be required to use so-called "smart" guns. Begin with the Secret Service & go out from there. See how well the politicians like them then.  

[E4 No More]

"The fingerprint reader unlocks the gun in microseconds, but since it may not work when wet or in other adverse conditions, the PIN pad is there as a backup. LodeStar did not demonstrate the near-field communication signal, but it would act as a secondary backup, enabling the gun as quickly as users can open the app on their phones."

Mr. Criminal, please wait for me to unlock my gun with the keypad because it's raining. Oops! Wait, I need to pull out my phone.

Yeah, riiiight.

[Choatecav]

Can any of you explain to me why Liberals ALWAYS think they can use legislature or technology to negate the "stupidity" or "evil" factors?

If a person wants to commit suicide, murder, robberies, etc, they will find a way to do it.  

The gun is simply a tool.  Just like a knife, a hammer, a rope, a bottle of pills, etc.

[Grunt67]

17 minutes ago, Choatecav said:

Can any of you explain to me why Liberals ALWAYS think they can use legislature or technology to negate the "stupidity" or "evil" factors?

If a person wants to commit suicide, murder, robberies, etc, they will find a way to do it.  

The gun is simply a tool.  Just like a knife, a hammer, a rope, a bottle of pills, etc.

Because Liberals think you can pick up a turd by the clean end.

[Grunt67]

Thanfully, my gun is smart enough to stay put until I'm ready to use it.

[bobsguns]

3 hours ago, Choatecav said:

Can any of you explain to me why Liberals ALWAYS think they can use legislature or technology to negate the "stupidity" or "evil" factors?

You're asking to apply logic to a group of non-logical people? Puh-leeze!    

[Grayfox54]

Smart guns are a really stupid idea. 

[Capbyrd]

Psshhhh.   Smart guns are old tech.   Smart Revolvers have been around for years!  

[tercel89]

I'm sure they will have a ton of "check engine light" problems.

[bobsguns]

11 hours ago, tercel89 said:

I'm sure they will have a ton of "check engine light" problems.

And what happens when the battery is dead? How will recoil affect the circuitry? It has to shake it loose sooner or later.

No, I want the Secret Service, the Capitol Police, FBI & US Marshall Service to be the first ones with this. I want the moron politicians who dream this chit up to be the ones "protected" with it. 

[JustEd]

California has been pushing for that to be standard on handguns for years now, along with microstamping.  Wonder how they will explain away continued gun violence in that State when these become the dominant firearm type?  Seems that the politicians would be smarter to blame gun violence on criminals rather than the failure of electronic interlocks...jmo

[RED333]

1 hour ago, JustEd said:

Seems that the politicians would be smarter to blame gun violence on criminals rather than the failure of electronic interlocks...jmo

But, but, but that would make sense and we know the leftist commies do not have any sense.

[bobsguns]

3 hours ago, JustEd said:

Seems that the politicians would be smarter to blame gun violence on criminals rather than the failure of electronic interlocks...jmo

LMAO!!!!

Never happen. Can't upset the delicate types with the truth, doesn't fit the narrative.

 

[Blitzen]

I bet "Non-Smart Firearms" will command a premium in the underworld by the year 2030, or 2040, or 2050? 

[Bnashville]

4 hours ago, Blitzen said:

I bet "Non-Smart Firearms" will command a premium in the underworld by the year 2030, or 2040, or 2050? 

Just look at what the internal lock did to the S&W revolver value. If this “smart gun” technology takes hold the impact will be exponential. 

[Colt4530]

You first. 

[DurtyHarry]

Wow technology has came a long way.

[Will Carry]

If someone can program it, then someone can hack it.  The feds will track it. Only nerds will pack it. 

[gun sane]

My personal favorite:  the retina scanner.

 

 

 

[JustEd]

On 1/11/2022 at 9:53 AM, Garufa said:

If I’m not mistaken some States already have laws on the books, or at least tried to pass such laws, to require so-called Smart Guns when the technology becomes viable.  Same with  micro-stamping.

"Hum Hum Hum" here I come.

Right back where I started from

Open up your Golden Gate

"Hum Hum Hum" here I come.

 

forgive the paraphrasing