During CES 2022, plenty of brands began announcing support for Matter, an upcoming smart home protocol aiming to make all devices play well together. A big name at the time was Arlo Technologies, which formally joined the Matter Working Group and pledged to bring its DIY home security products into the specification when it becomes available this year.
Matter devices will work with any smart home platform that supports the technology, but they’ll have to talk to each other using a Matter controller or Thread border router. These devices are always in your home, connected to your WiFi or Ethernet network and act as the bridge between your device, the local network and the Matter protocols that communicate with each other and the Internet.
They’re akin to Wi-Fi routers, except they also run on a low-power mesh technology that can help keep devices in communication even if one goes down. They also use banking-standard, public-key encryption to protect your home’s data and privacy.
At launch, Matter will support a small number of device categories—smart light bulbs and switches, smart plugs, connected blinds and locks and connected thermostats. However, the company’s Echo 4th-Gen smart speakers and its Eero WiFi systems are expected to become Matter compatible in spring 2023. In addition, the Philips Hue brand will move to Matter through an over-the-air firmware update and its Z-Wave bridges may be replaced by ones that are built into products like smart lights and sensors. matter residences