Matter – a new standard for smart homes

Matter is the name of a new communication standard for smart home devices, and the goal is for Matter to create a single, unified standard that can be used by a wide range of smart home products, regardless of manufacturer.

It began in 2019 as a collaboration between Amazon, Apple, Google, Samsung and other brands in the smart home market, and last year The Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) launched the Matter 1.0 specification – an open source platform that from day one had the support of more than 280 companies operating in the smart home segment.

Sure, developments in smart homes have come a long way in recent years, but what is a source of frustration for many is the fact that it is usually difficult to get things to work together, if you want more than to use a more or less closed system.

The idea behind Matter is to make things much easier for both manufacturers and consumers, by creating a unified standard that enables different types of products from different brands – and different platforms – to communicate seamlessly with each other.

Matter and Thread

Simply put, Matter is not a new communication protocol but a layer that sits on top of other protocols, and the protocols Matter currently uses are Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and Thread. In addition, Bluetooth Low Energy is used for device deployment.

Matter works locally and encrypted. This means your smart home will continue to work even if your internet connection is down for some reason. Many smart home products communicate with cloud services for various reasons, but the idea is that they don't need to do so all the time for everything to work in your smart home.

Thread is an IP-based protocol that uses little energy and builds a mesh network in your home, as products with Thread do not need to communicate via a hub, but all products communicate directly with each other. This means that the system becomes more stable and has better coverage the more products that are connected, and if a product is currently turned off, the signal finds another path via another product – a kind of self-healing system.

Today and tomorrow

The first version of Matter will support a variety of common smart home products, including lighting and electrical, HVAC controls, blinds/awnings, security sensors, door locks, media devices including TVs, controllers and applications, and bridges.

The plan is to expand to include appliances and household appliances this spring, and to also include garage doors, home security cameras, carbon dioxide and smoke detectors, motion and presence sensors, and energy management and monitoring for smart plugs this fall.

CES and Samsung

Matter was demonstrated and discussed at CES 2023 in Las Vegas in January, and Samsung explained that a key part of achieving the complete connected experience today and in the future is increased interoperability, the ability for consumers to connect more of their devices, whether they are Samsung or partner brands. The industry is moving towards a new level of compatibility through the Matter smart home standard, Samsung says.

Smart Home Hub is already available in Samsung's smart refrigerators, TVs and monitors, and at CES 2023, Samsung presented a small wireless charger for mobile phones with Smart Home Hub built in - SmartThings Station, which is the company's first product with Matter support built in from the start.

SmartThings Station can be programmed to turn off the lights in your home and adjust the temperature down a few degrees when you place your phone on the product to charge. And by double-clicking a button on the product, you can return to day mode in your home.

Text: Ola Larsson

Images: The Connectivity Standards Alliance / Samsung

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