The Matter Universal Standard and its innovations at #CES2024

The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas 2024 was a breeding ground for the latest advances in home automation, particularly around the universal Matter standard. This standard, developed by the Connectivity Standards Alliance, including giants like Google, Amazon and Apple, aims to unify the connected home ecosystem. Unlike previous standards like Zigbee or Z-Wave, Matter does not require a proprietary hub and operates locally, thus offering greater robustness in the face of power or internet connection interruptions.

Reminder: what is Matter?

Matter is a smart home networking protocol that promises increased interoperability between different devices and brands. It allows devices to communicate locally, even in the absence of internet, and aims to simplify the development of new products for manufacturers while improving the user experience for consumers.

The main advantage of Matter is its universal approach. By standardizing how devices communicate, Matter makes it easier to integrate and control devices from different brands within the same ecosystem. This paves the way for a more cohesive and manageable smart home for users. Matter is full of promise, as it’s something we’ve been waiting for for over 30 years, given the various proprietary protocols that have proliferated on the market.

Matter products at CES 2024

With this standard in full swing, many manufacturers were announcing their compatibility with Matter. It would be difficult to be exhaustive, but here are a few manufacturers that we have retained.

Aqara: Hub M3 and more

Aqara has presented its M3 hub, a bridge for Zigbee devices and a router for Thread, offering deeper integration into the Matter ecosystem. The company also unveiled the Smart Lock U300 and the Border Router Plug, a Thread smart plug.

New Matter-compatible Shelly chip

Shelly is another highly regarded manufacturer in home automation. While its devices have so far operated almost exclusively on Wi-Fi, with no mention of Matter, theannouncement was nevertheless made officially during this CES, with the launch of its Generation 3 chip, which should therefore see Matter support arrive with it.

Ecovacs: Deebot X2 Combo

Ecovacs has launched the Deebot X2 Combo, a Matter-compatible robot vacuum cleaner, integrating advanced cleaning and mopping features. If in the past it was necessary to develop in-house plugins to integrate your robot vacuum cleaner into your home automation system, this will soon be a distant memory! Roborock: S8 MaxV Ultra

Roborock

also unveiled its first Matter-enabled robot vacuum, the S8 MaxV Ultra, which features a motorized arm and a built-in voice assistant. Nanoleaf: New Lights

Nanoleaf has expanded its Matter product line with new multi-color exterior lights and an addressable interior light strip.

LG: TVs with Google Home

LG announced that its TVs will act as hubs for Google Home, allowing Matter devices to be controlled directly from the TV.

Mui Lab: Mui Board 2.0

Mui Lab has launched a crowdfunding campaign for the Mui Board 2.0, a touch-sensitive controller for smart home devices that is compatible with Matter.

The Mui Board displays various information on a wooden dashboard

Lockly has unveiled the Visage, a smart lock that can scan faces for authentication, which is awaiting Matter certification.

Razer: Aether Monitor Light Bar

Razer introduced a Matter-compatible monitor light bar that provides natural lighting and colored LEDs for the background.

Amazon: Matter Casting

Amazon introduced “Matter Casting,” which allows audio and video signals to be cast from Amazon's Prime Video app to compatible devices, such as the Echo Show 15 and Fire TV-enabled TVs.

Conclusion

CES 2024 clearly demonstrated that Matter is becoming a major player in the home automation space. With the participation of major brands and the introduction of innovative and interoperable products, Matter is positioning itself as the keystone of the connected home of tomorrow. This evolution promises a simplified and more integrated user experience, marking a decisive turning point in the history of home automation. If 2023 saw the arrival of the first compatible products, such as the

Eve plug that we tested, 2024 should mark a major turning point for this standard, with the validation of new standards and the arrival of many products.