Matter is a new standard that aims to fix the smart home’s biggest problems: interoperability, reliability, security, and being easy to use. With Matter, your smart lights, smart lock, smart thermostat, and other smart devices will all work with together, easily. All the major smart home platforms are on board — Apple Home, Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and Samsung SmartThings — and so are almost all the big device brands, from Philips Hue and Lutron Caseta to August, Ikea, and TP-Link. If you see the Matter logo on a product, you know it will work with any other Matter-compatible gadget in your home.
Tapo’s new Smart Wi-Fi Switch and Dimmer work with any Matter-enabled platform, including Apple Home, Alexa, Google Home, and SmartThings.
I’m excited about these. Switches are a great way to get started with smart lighting, but the few there are that work with all the platforms are expensive. These start at $25.
One connected lock does not a smart home make. If you want to get serious with home automation, start with a smart home platform.
The update began rolling out on May 26th, according to Google. I got it this weekend, and you need iOS 16.5. and version 3.1 of the Google Home app.
With this update, all four major smart home platforms now work fully with Matter on iOS. This should make it easier to deliver on Matter’s promise of cross-platform compatibility.
As the latest entry-level Alexa smart speaker, the $40 Echo Pop packs a lot of value into a small package. It’s not as good as the Echo Dot, but it’s got looks on its side.
The M1 LED light strip is bright, colorful, and compatible with everything, thanks to Matter. But its flashiest features are only in Govee’s app.
I just picked up a three-pack of Nanoleaf’s new Matter bulbs. They’re brighter and have better colors than the ancient Hue bulbs they’re replacing, but boy howdy. Adding them to Apple Home takes two or three tries; getting them onto Google Home requires a second phone. I’m half an hour into trying to connect the second bulb.
A much-needed update brings greater control and customizability. Plus, Google updates its iOS app to support Matter devices.
The first Matter-over-Thread smart lighting line, Nanoleaf’s new lights promise a lot and mostly deliver.
Smart home company Eve’s first out-of-the-box Matter-ready device is now available, as promised at CES. The Eve Energy with Matter smart plug is available today for $39.95, and the Eve Motion and Eve Door & Window sensors arrive on April 17th.
If you already have Eve products and didn’t indulge in Eve’s Early Access program, an optional firmware update is coming then, too. If you did gamble on the Beta, you’ll get a firmware update through Apple Home’s new over-the-air Matter update feature in iOS 16.4.
Eve’s Android app is still MIA, but Android users can onboard these Thread / Matter Eve devices using the Samsung SmartThings or Google Home apps.
SwitchBot, the makers of robotic devices that can press switches, turn locks, and open curtains, launched its Matter-enabled hub today.
The SwitchBot Hub 2 ($69) is now available for pre-order and makes its curtain and blind controllers compatible with Matter. This brings Apple Home integration to these devices, as well as to the hub’s built-in temperature, humidity, and light sensors. I’ve been testing the Hub 2 and will have a full review soon.
The TP-Link Tapo is a perfectly good smart plug that’s among the first to work with Matter. It’s fast and easy to use with Apple Home, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, or SmartThings. But when it comes to sharing it all starts to fall apart.
The newest SmartThings hub can also charge your smartphone and find your keys — plus it’s a Matter controller and Thread border router. But there’s no support for Z-Wave, and too many features are only for Galaxy phones.
The Tapo P125M Mini Smart Plug is one of just two Matter-enabled smart plugs you can buy. The other is from Meross. (Eve’s option requires an OTA update). But judging by recent announcements, we shouldn’t have to wait too long for more Matter stuff.
The new plug will work with Apple Home, Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Samsung SmartThings through Matter, as well as TP-Link’s Tapo app.
Why is Matter such a big deal, and when can you actually use it?
We round up all the new product announcements and look at what’s next for Matter as companies start to monetize this newfound interoperability.
Version 11.1.08.07 of Samsung’s Nearby Device Scanning adds a new ‘Matter EasyPair’ feature (seen via Sammobile), which automatically alerts Galaxy users to nearby Matter-compatible devices for a speedier connection, similar to Fast Pair on Android.
The update has started rolling out to some users via the Galaxy Store.
At a show of wild concepts and far-out tech, this year’s best gadgets got real.
Nanoleaf launches smarter than average smart switches and a stunning new skylight ceiling fixture and confirms its lighting panels will be upgraded to support Matter.
