That’s it, Matter is finally launched. The computer protocol for connected objects aims to unify the interactions between the different devices and ecosystems in order to make the connected home easier to use. Several products are going to be updated to accommodate Matter while others have already been introduced.
On November 3, the launch event of Matter by the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) took place in Amsterdam. The opportunity for manufacturers of connected objects to present their first products compatible with this standard.
How Matter will revolutionize the connected home
The promise formulated by the CSA (not to be confused with the French CSA) is ambitious: to unify all connected objects to make the universe of the connected home easy to handle. It wants to simplify the configuration of products and improve their interoperability. This is why the Matter 1.0 standard was launched at the beginning of October.
The configuration is intended to be as simple as possible: you plug in a connected object, a notification appears on the smartphone or in the home automation application that you use and in one click, you can add it to your connected system. The objective: to eliminate compatibility problems between products and applications and ensure their interoperability. Also, you can use a connected object in several applications simultaneously. All this will also help developers who will be able to reach more people.
One of the advantages of this interoperability is the creation of complex scenarios that integrate several connected objects. Triggering your connected alarm clock could open the blinds, turn on the coffee maker and launch a news bulletin, for example. If it is technically possible without Matter, it is not easy: each connected object must be compatible with the same home automation application and in a sufficiently advanced way.
Manufacturers introduce new Matter products and updates to the standard
Several members of this alliance presented their Matter products, covering several product categories such as presence sensors, weather sensors, connected sockets, locks, everything related to lighting, but also the various bridges and software applications. This is the case for the Google Home application which recently integrated the protocol in addition to a complete makeover. Apple’s Home application will also benefit from the standard in a later update, or even Samsung’s SmartThings, which had set up an early access program with certain manufacturers of connected objects.
As the journalist of Numerama Nicolas Lellouche on Twitter“at launch[…] , Matter will only support a few categories. We will have to wait for cameras, vacuum cleaners, routers, smoke detectors, etc.“. The CSA is nevertheless working on new types of product such as surveillance cameras, door locks, air quality control sensors and smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
The CSA announced that “190 products have been certified or are awaiting testing and certification“. Among the brands present at the event were Amazon, Google, Samsung, Signify (Philips Hue and WiZ), Arm, Apple, Ikea, Legrand, Somfy, Nanoleaf and TCL.
Amazon has also indicated that this standard will be available on more than 100 million Echo and eero devices.XDA DevelopersIncidentally, reports that 17 Echo devices will switch to Matter by the end of the year. For the other products as well as for the support of iOS, it will be necessary to wait until the beginning of 2023.
On the Philips Hue side, the Hue Bridge will soon be automatically updated to Matter to make its products compatible thanks to this intermediary. Also, early access has been opened for developers to this update. At Nanoleaf, four new products were presented, namely four bulbs and an LED strip. Other connected lighting products will be presented at CES 2023, without anyone knowing more.
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