Knog Scout Bike Alarm and Finder Full Review

The short version: This doesn’t replace a true GPS bike tracker, but if you have an iPhone, the Knog Scout at $60 is a great piece of bike security to add to your bike. Buy the Knog Scout

Knog Scout Bike Alarm and Finder Features

• $60 USD
• Requires an Apple phone (sorry)
• One part alarm and one part “Finder” using Apple Find My ecosystem
• Is not a true GPS as it relies on the Apple “Find My” system
• 85 db audio alarm
• Notifies phone via Bluetooth connection if alarm sets off
• Rechargeable with USB-C cable (not supplied)
• The battery does not seem to be replaceable
• Up to 6 months of battery life
• Can be mounted on any water bottle bolts alone or under a water bottle cage
• Can not be shared between multiple users or iPhones
• Water-resistant IP66 rating (wash-proof) with the provided cover

Other articles of interest:

• GPS for Your Bike

How Does the Knog Scout Bike Finder Work?

Basic Overview of Install and Setup

This relatively compact and slim piece of hardware mounts to your bike with the waterbottle cage bolts. If you don’t have those, look for metal zip ties to install it with. See below for the full install and setup guide. It syncs to your iPhone (this is an Apple-only device) through the Knog app which connects via Bluetooth. The Knog app then adds the Scout to your Apple tracked devices to utilize the Apple Find My network to keep track of the Knog Scout and your bike if it is to go astray.

The Bike Alarm

Once installed on your bike and on your phone, you can then set the motion sensed alarm either on your phone or with a button on the Scout. Your phone being connected by Bluetooth is required for the alarm to be turned off. The alarm isn’t the loudest at 85db but I think it will draw attention and give pause to a thief. Now, if you are in NYC where car alarms are going off all day, this may not draw much attention.

The alarm will also notify you on your Knog app if you are within Bluetooth range. Unfortunately, I am not seeing a way for the Scout to log events internally so if your alarm goes off and you are not within range then you wouldn’t know.

The Bike Tracker

This device requires an Apple phone because it relies on the Apple “Find My” ecosystem to track the device and your bike. If you aren’t familiar with this, most Apple devices, and now 3rd party devices, are constantly pinging each other. The devices that are connected to cellular or WiFi are updating Apple on the location. So your Knog is constantly pinging another connected Apple device to let you know where it is. This is how it avoids GPS charges, and has a longer battery life than a GPS tracked device.

Unfortuantely, neither the Knog app or the Find My device is something that can be shared. Hopefully as Apple opens up the Find My Devices to be shared, as announced in early June 2023, we will see Knog Scouts able to be shared across families or shared devices.

Pros

Here’s the deal, if you have an iPhone and a bicycle, this is something I highly recommend to anyone with a bike over $500 – even if you are a recreational rider that just leaves your bike in the garage between rides. Having an alarm go off if someone tries to take the bike, and the “Find My” ecosystem to track the bike if it is stolen is worth the $60 in my opinion. I will continue to hide a 2nd AirTag on my nicer bikes for good luck and a GPS tracker on the ones I ride or lock in questionable areas, or when I’m traveling with demos.

Cons

There are two major cons for me personally:

1. This isn’t shareable across devices, which is a huge headache if it is a cargo or electric bike I share with family or as a demo. I want someone else to be able to lock or unlock it.
2. On that note, it requires a phone. I would love for this to have a bluetooth key so my daughter can alarm/disarm her bike at school.

Other concerns:

1. Non-Apple users don’t even need to look at this since it only works on Apple iOS devices.
2. Requires Bluetooth connection to be alerted if the alarm is set off
3. The Knog unit does not recall events to tell you once you are connected that the alarm went off

Who is the Knog Scout Bike Alarm and Finder For?

If you have a bike over $500, think about purchasing this. If you are an avid road or city biker that locks up, add this to your bike and set that alarm even when the bike is in your storage locker or garage. Sure, the device isn’t perfect but for the price, it is a few steps above an Apple AirTag in my opinion.

Detailed Install and Setup of the Knog Scout

Buy the Knog Scout

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Knog Scout Bike Alarm and Finder Review Video

Disclaimer: I did purchase the first Knog Scout for review, and Knog provided a 2nd to be able to test multiple devices on their app. This website is reader supported. If you purchase through some of the links I do make a small commission.