Brandon Doyle is a second-generation real estate agent with RE/MAX Results in the Twin Cities. He has a strong interest in the smart home world and believes Matter is a step in the right direction.
Matter is a new protocol that aims to solve one of the biggest problems with smart home tech: devices from different systems don’t talk to each other. The system was developed initially by a group of big companies, including Apple, Amazon, Google, and Samsung SmartThings, and has over 280 member organizations.
The system will work over Wi-Fi, ethernet, and Thread, a wireless technology that creates a mesh network like Zigbee and is ideal for battery-powered devices. You’ll need a device called a controller to onboard your devices to the network, manage communications, and control automations and remote access. The good news is that many existing smart hubs, speakers, and digital displays can already act as a controller for Matter. Most of the newer models from Apple (including the HomePod Mini, HomePod, and 2nd-gen Nest Hub Max), Google (including the original and Nest Hub Pro speakers and displays), Amazon (including the Echo and Fire TV Stick with Alexa), Samsung SmartThings (including some refrigerators and SmartThings Monitor cameras), and others have Matter support built in.
Some older devices, such as Zigbee and Z-Wave sensors and bulbs, will need a bridge to become Matter-enabled. The Zigbee Alliance and Nordic chipmaker Silicon Labs have both solutions to bring older products into the fold. But in the short term, most brands are focusing on upgrading their current lineups to include Matter support. For example, Nanoleaf has promised that its current and future product lines of Shapes and Elements smart bulbs will be upgradable to Matter via firmware updates. Similarly, the company’s new Sengled lighting lineup and the smart lock maker Schlage are both making their new products compatible with Matter. matter residences