Smart Home covers a wide berth these days. The simplest of smart homes might use a Google Nest Doorbell, or have an Amazon Echo in the living room.
At the other end, users could have fully automated processes that leave their home looking like something Tony Stark dreamt up in Iron Man.
One problem that has always plagued smart home users, regardless of where you are on that scale, is connectivity. Specifically, connectivity between different brands.
Up to now, if you wanted to have any substantial degree of interconnectivity in your smart devices, you needed to buy them all from one company. For some, that's not an issue. But when you want to cherry pick the best devices for the job, regardless of brand, you're going to come unstuck.
That all changes now, thanks to Matter.
What is Matter?
Matter is a smart home connectivity standard. The theory here is that pairing a Google Home Hub with a Ring Video Doorbell is just as simple as doing so with Google's Nest offering.
This allows users to mix and match between brands rather than accepting something slightly sub-par because it links up with the rest of their devices. Users will simply select the best video doorbell, the best smart speakers or the best smart thermostat, for example.
Why does it matter?
Smart homes are getting more intelligent. Yesterday, the Google Nest smart home range got a massive upgrade, which sees greater control over automation than ever before. No longer will you need to trigger automated processes – the sensors in devices you already have can do it for you.
In the future, getting the most out of your smart home will rely on each individual device communicating as part of a larger network. Thanks to Matter, that's possible.
To take advantage of the Matter connected network in your smart home, look out for compatibility assurances from manufacturers.
