As successful as the release of Matter was and how large the wave of products seeing certification with the new standard is, there’s always room to grow. In Matter’s 1.1 update, newly released devices are easier to onboard, testing is expanding, and the standard hits a big milestone in the number of compatible devices.
What is Matter?
As a quick refresher, Matter is a new technology standard for smart homes. Think of it as a translator for several home ecosystems like Google Home, Apple HomeKit, and Samsung SmartThings. Devices that use this translator (Matter) can communicate with different ecosystems more easily.
Matter can also be considered a universal adaptor for smart home products. As an example, let’s say you have a light bulb that was advertised to only work with Google Home. Once that light bulb is updated with Matter – with the manufacturer’s approval – that light bulb can be used with Apple HomeKit, Samsung SmartThings, and other ecosystems that act as a control board for loads of devices.
This is the simplified version, but Matter can get pretty complicated. More information can be found in our guide, “What is Matter, and why are so many smart home companies supporting it?“
Matter updates to 1.1
Today, the CSA – Connectivity Standards Alliance – announced that Matter would be moving into version 1.1, which brings a few key improvements that will affect both newcomer devices and existing ones. Even with Matter basing itself on an open-source standard that developers can more easily work with, the program is getting a few touch-ups.
Matter 1.1 includes improvements based on feedback from developers, which will hopefully speed up the process for devices switching over to Matter and new ones being developed with the standard in mind.
As for some existing devices, Matter 1.1 enhances support for ICD devices – Intermittently Connected Devices. These tend to come in the form of battery-operated products, like motion and light sensors that you can stick to the wall and have trigger other smart devices in your home.
ICDs can also be door locks since they usually enter a sleep mode when not n use. By nature, that form of product didn’t play well with Matter 1.0. In Matter 1.1, the backend has adjusted so that these devices are unlikely to register as offline in the user-facing portion of your smart home.
With those improvements to the widely growing standard, Matter has also announced that it has reached 1,135 total compatible products. That number is split between 60 different companies that have joined the CSA and have pushed Matter to its products. For the companies developing new tech to work with Matter, CSA has also made a new testing facility available in Portland, Oregon. That testing setup is set in place to provide real-life data to developers working on new tech with Matter, which means the likelihood of high-quality products likely increases.
In all, Matter’s 1.1 update sounds promising. With more devices being added to the list what seems like every day, we’ll be able to see how Matter grows and develops in real time.
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