Matter and smart home devices

[#2ontheway]

So I recently was reading about Matter and have to admit that I don't really get it, but apparently it will help facilitate how smart home devices work and coordinate.

I just bought a Schlage Encode Plus smart lock and haven't yet installed it but apparently this smart lock won't be upgraded for Matter, so now I'm trying to decide if I should return it, although who knows how long it will take for a Matter-compatible lock to be produced, and I'm not even sure it will really make a difference anyway for us?

Has anyone here figured out this Matter stuff and are you making purchase decisions now because of it?

Thanks!

[AnnieW625]

I did a bit of research on this almost 2 years ago when buying new locks for my house. At that time Matter was known as Ziggbee and there were compatible locks from all of the big manufacturers (Schlage, Kwikset, Yale…just to name a few) that were compatible but I decided against the whole smart home set for a few reasons.

1. Dh and I still work from home full time so we can easily turn off lights if we wanted to and really don’t need to do it remotely.

2. I didn’t want to have to upgrade all of the lighting in our house to make my home a fully capable smart home. We have 22 recessed lights in our house and I thought it would be a major expense that we really didn’t need to take on, and that didn’t even include hiring an electrician to make any wiring changes that may have been needed even though my house has been remodeled in the last 10 years but the home was built in 1969.

3. Our house is one story and not huge so we don’t usually have to worry about having to walk all over the place to turn stuff off (2100 sq. feet).

After researching brands, features, and then reading Wirecutter reviews, CNET reviews, etc. I decided that whole remote technology and or wifi connection while it might be helpful it wasn’t worth it in the long run. Reviews said that the batteries for the wifi enabled units had to be recharged on a regular basis and that when your wifi was out you were SOL if you tried to get into your house and didn’t have a key (I have to admit I am not sure where my keys are for my doors are). It is bad enough I have to remember to charge my Ring doorbell and cameras.

This is the Wirecutter article I read when researching. I ended up with (3) of the Wirecutter second pick Schlage Camelot door locks and they were pretty easy to install. I also decided that I wanted a tactile touch vs. the smooth no see numbers. I figured it was less to break or wear out over time.

I believe this Kwikset was the bluetooth capable model I was considering as well at the time, but I am sure the Schlage is very capable and well made as well. I would probably call it a day and keep the Schlage and don’t worry about the fully automated smart home system (but that is just me and I don’t mind not having a non smart home).


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[georgiegirl]

We purchased the Yale assure 2, and supposedly it will be able to be compatible with Matter if you buy some sort of module thing. We just use Bluetooth and I can see on my iPad whether it’s locked or not through iHome. Also, we have cameras connected to the iHome app. I did a bunch of research, and we ended up with the Yale Assure 2 right after it was released. I liked the look and the options. I have the one with buttons without a key.

https://shopyalehome.com/pages/yale-assure-lock-2

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[saleenl]

So I recently was reading about Matter and have to admit that I don't really get it, but apparently it will help facilitate how smart home devices work and coordinate.

My short answer is, no, Matter compatibility is not inherently important when making purchase decisions right now. It's a nice-to-have but not a must-have. We've had various types of home automation forever and installed pieces that used different standards, found the shortcomings, ripped them out and replaced them, and discovered new shortcomings. There is always the next big thing that is going to fix all the problems and work flawlessly. That said, Matter has great promise as a future underlying standard that will have greater interoperability.

Most importantly, how do you want to tie your home automation together? For example, my parents just moved into a new house and I've been able to design their home automation from the ground up. They are iPhone users, so I moved them to an AppleTV which also serves as a home hub and have been setting everything up using Apple Homekit. They are in their 70s and find it really easy to use the Home app on their phones and iPads to control their lights and more. Which brings me to your lock...

I just bought a Schlage Encode Plus smart lock and haven't yet installed it but apparently this smart lock won't be upgraded for Matter, so now I'm trying to decide if I should return it, although who knows how long it will take for a Matter-compatible lock to be produced, and I'm not even sure it will really make a difference anyway for us?

This is a fabulous lock! If you're already in the Apple ecosystem, the lock is tightly integrated into the Homekit/iPhone ecosystem and Homekit can act as the glue between future Matter devices and your lock. We have two of the older Encodes and I just installed the Encode Plus at my parents and I'm super-jealous. Setup was a little confusing at times, but it has been rock solid.

Don't go Kwikset. They initially installed a Kwikset and it was just terrible. Garbage build quality, horrible app, kept dropping off the network, batteries lasted only three weeks (!!!), and when you went to replace the batteries a loud lock removal alarm would sound until you removed them. I pulled it out and they donated it after six weeks.

For lighting, we installed smart switches instead of smart lightbulbs. While each switch was more expensive than a bulb, there are far fewer so it was cheaper overall. We went with the solution that was widely regarded as the most stable, Lutron Caseta, which integrates into Homekit using a bridge. The nice part of Caseta is that if you ever want an additional switch, you can purchase a flat wireless switch that you attach to the wall, throw on a switchplate, and it looks like a normal switch. No rewiring required! Another cool feature is that you can link switches together. For example, I set it up so that when they turn the lights on at the top of the basement stairs, all the lights in the basement come on right after, even though there are three separate hardwired switches. I also added a motion sensor to the garage that turns on the lights automatically and turns off after 10 minutes of inactivity. The outside lights come on automatically at dusk and turn off at midnight.

I'm happy to answer any questions you might have, as I've been knee-deep in this stuff for months and have a lot of experience with it (and friends that have a ton of stuff installed that are tech junkies that I can ask, too).

Just to clarify, Matter is actually different from Zigbee. Zigbee is an older standard (like Z-Wave) and Zigbee is part of the working group that has been crafting the specifications for Matter. Yes, some of the tech that underlies Zigbee has become part of the Matter specification, but they are not the same.

[jgenie]

My short answer is, no, Matter compatibility is not inherently important when making purchase decisions right now. It's a nice-to-have but not a must-have. We've had various types of home automation forever and installed pieces that used different standards, found the shortcomings, ripped them out and replaced them, and discovered new shortcomings. There is always the next big thing that is going to fix all the problems and work flawlessly. That said, Matter has great promise as a future underlying standard that will have greater interoperability.

Most importantly, how do you want to tie your home automation together? For example, my parents just moved into a new house and I've been able to design their home automation from the ground up. They are iPhone users, so I moved them to an AppleTV which also serves as a home hub and have been setting everything up using Apple Homekit. They are in their 70s and find it really easy to use the Home app on their phones and iPads to control their lights and more. Which brings me to your lock...



This is a fabulous lock! If you're already in the Apple ecosystem, the lock is tightly integrated into the Homekit/iPhone ecosystem and Homekit can act as the glue between future Matter devices and your lock. We have two of the older Encodes and I just installed the Encode Plus at my parents and I'm super-jealous. Setup was a little confusing at times, but it has been rock solid.

Don't go Kwikset. They initially installed a Kwikset and it was just terrible. Garbage build quality, horrible app, kept dropping off the network, batteries lasted only three weeks (!!!), and when you went to replace the batteries a loud lock removal alarm would sound until you removed them. I pulled it out and they donated it after six weeks.

For lighting, we installed smart switches instead of smart lightbulbs. While each switch was more expensive than a bulb, there are far fewer so it was cheaper overall. We went with the solution that was widely regarded as the most stable, Lutron Caseta, which integrates into Homekit using a bridge. The nice part of Caseta is that if you ever want an additional switch, you can purchase a flat wireless switch that you attach to the wall, throw on a switchplate, and it looks like a normal switch. No rewiring required! Another cool feature is that you can link switches together. For example, I set it up so that when they turn the lights on at the top of the basement stairs, all the lights in the basement come on right after, even though there are three separate hardwired switches. I also added a motion sensor to the garage that turns on the lights automatically and turns off after 10 minutes of inactivity. The outside lights come on automatically at dusk and turn off at midnight.

I'm happy to answer any questions you might have, as I've been knee-deep in this stuff for months and have a lot of experience with it (and friends that have a ton of stuff installed that are tech junkies that I can ask, too).

Just to clarify, Matter is actually different from Zigbee. Zigbee is an older standard (like Z-Wave) and Zigbee is part of the working group that has been crafting the specifications for Matter. Yes, some of the tech that underlies Zigbee has become part of the Matter specification, but they are not the same.

This is awesome!! Not OP but would love tips on integrating tech into our home. My contractor will be here in March to redo a bathroom and outdoor kitchen for us. If I have the items here when they come, they’ll put everything in for me. Any advice if we have a google hub?

[saleenl]

I don't have specific experience with Google Home but all of the various systems have more in common than they do differences. What are your goals for the outdoor kitchen and bathroom? I can recommend specifics if I know what direction you're thinking.

I always try to keep things as simple (non-smart) as possible, but add smart solutions to help with points of pain. For example, my parents always forget to turn of lights, so smart switches that could automatically turn lights off at a set time or when not in use were a great solution.

Another thing I weigh when considering if I should integrate smart tech - if your network goes down, does the tech you added have an easy-to-use non-smart fallback? As I mentioned, even the best smart devices will have a time they are flaky or don't work, like after a power outage. How will you troubleshoot?

Again, if you have specific questions I'm happy to do my best to answer.