Peace breaks out on the smart home front
Amazon, Apple, Google and a raft of companies have finally reached agreement on a new Internet of Things standard – here’s why it matters
Amazon, Apple, Google and a raft of companies have reached agreement on a new Internet of Things standard – here’s why it matters.
Since the first Internet of Things (IoT) devices first emerged a decade or so ago, the promise has been that eventually we would live in fully “smart” homes. Everything from lights to locks and thermostats would be connected and controllable.
Today, the vast majority of homes remain dumb rather than smart. The numerous, mutually incompatible ecosystems and IoT standards meant homeowners could never be confident that their devices would actually work together. At least, until now. Maybe.
In May, the Connectivity Standards Alliance (which was previously known as the Zigbee Association) announced a major peace treaty between all of the manufacturers who matter, and the creation of a new connected devices standard that should result in IoT devices all talking the same language.
“I was very surprised and excited,” said Reed Kleinman, the owner of Smart Home Solver, a website and YouTube channel that covers IoT in-depth. “It will simplify things for the average person.”
“Matter” is the name of the new standard, and its three-arrow logo will soon be appearing on devices from companies including Amazon and Google, as well as Philips Hue,
Samsung SmartThings, Ikea, Huawei and countless others. Even Apple, which normally prefers to cultivate its own walled garden, has signed up to the new alliance. “The fact that they [Apple] were on board, that’s huge for everyone,” said Kleinman.
The new standard is IP-based, but it doesn’t prescribe the specifics of how different devices must connect. Although the first Mattercompatible devices will run over Wi-Fi, Zigbee and other types of connectivity will still be allowed, meaning that additional hubs and dongles might still be required. However, crucially, this reduces the problem of software support.
The other notable rule baked into Matter is that it’s standardising Bluetooth for provisioning devices.
What’s exciting is that it’s not just going to be us technology enthusiasts who are really into this
This means that when a device is set up for the first time, it could put an end to the awkward dance where the new device creates its own wireless hotspot that the user must connect to. Instead, Wi-Fi passwords can be sent via Bluetooth.
Even with the new standard, though, there are still pain points that could frustrate the march towards us living in smarter homes. For example, the standard doesn’t guarantee for how long devices are supported by manufacturers, which is particularly important when in many cases they must literally be installed into the fabric of our homes.
“There’s still always going to be legacy devices that aren’t compatible,” said Kleinman, who also notes that new devices don’t have to be Mattercompatible, meaning that if there is competitive advantage to be had by being, for example, Alexa-exclusive, device makers could choose to opt out of Matter on specific devices.
But ultimately, now the standard does exist, Kleinman hopes that the logic of the market means that Matter-compatibility begs more Matter-compatibility. And this will only be good for the smart home. “What’s really exciting is that it’s not just going to be us technology enthusiasts who are really into this,” Kleinman said.