Andrew O'Hara
Brands are announcing a huge array of products ready for market, including new Hue bulbs and Eve's new Thread-enabled light switch. We break it all down on the latest episode of the HomeKit Insider Podcast.
Hue had the most news this week with 15 announcements for its portfolio. For smart lights, the smart home company is offering new candelabra bulbs that can change white temperature, a gradient light strip for computer monitors, and new Guide Lights to create a striking statement lamp.
Signify also had new software changes such as the ability to sync with all music on Android devices via Samsung SmartThings, a security mode to mimic your presence, and the folding of the Hue Sync Box app into the primary Hue app.
Eve Systems had news as well. It updated its long-overdue light switch with support for Thread. The switch will also now work with three-way switch setups.
Unrelated to Eve's other news, the brand confirmed on Twitter that a new Flare light with Thread support was on its way. The brand promised it would bring the light to market by early 2023 at the latest.
Finally, Ikea announced a new Matter-compatible hub. It's set to launch this October, likely to coincide with the official release of Matter.
Links from the show
- Signify announces new bulbs and app feature for Hue line
- Hue Sync Advice
- Eve Flare Update
- IKEA Matter Hub
- Aqara officially released the E1 Thermostat
- Govee Space Heater
- Abode Security System
- Smart Security | ecobee
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Christine McKee
Malcolm Owen
Amber Neely
Chip Loder
1 Comment
I don't think AppleInsider should even bother talking about Matter. That's because as long as a consumer plans to stay within the Apple ecosystem, Matter-compatibility in devices doesn't matter. All that matters is HomeKit compatibility (and for cameras, HomeKit Secure Video compatibility.) Just make sure that you don't install the manufacturer's app, which could add extra features but could potentially compromise your data (especially for camera devices, although Matter doesn't support cameras yet, and won't support them for years.)
One thing we can't predict is whether manufacturers will remove labels like "HomeKit compatible" and "Amazon compatible" and simply say "Supports Matter." The consumer might not be knowledgeable and confident enough to buy products without the name of their ecosystem on the box. My opinion is that they will continue to include ecosystem compatibility labels for years to come, until the majority of consumers are sufficiently educated that all they need to look for is "Supports Matter."
I'm wondering at what point in the future companies like AppleInsider will stop saying "HomeKit compatible" and start saying "Matter compatible." Their readers are more educated than the average consumer, so they could stop talking about HomeKit-compatibility much sooner. In fact, they may soon have to rename their other podcast from "HomeKit Insider" to "Matter Insider." They probably should reserve the new name now.