The big smart home initiative continues to gather momentum
CES 2022 was huge for all things Matter and Thread and, just even the show is over, the news keeps a coming.
Netatmo is the latest brand to throw its hat into the Matter ring, with the Thread enabled Smart Security Sensor set to go on sale later this year.
The multipurpose smart sensor, which can act as both a window/door sensor or a motion sensor, will come with Thread connectivity later this year and first Matter-compatible Netatmo product will work with any Thread border router, no matter the brand.
Currently, that’s quite a small list – the likes of the Apple HomePod Mini and TV 4K, along with some Nanoleaf Thread border router capable devices that were announced at CES last week.
Explainer: What is Thread
However, as the Matter initiative makes its way out of the R&D departments and into stores, we should see more Thread border routers come to life – the likes of Google’s Nest Hub range and Eero Wi-Fi routers and nodes are all capable of getting a Thread boost.
Interestingly, in the demo video below, Netatmo uses an image of an Amazon Echo smart speaker acting as a border router – that’s not been officially announced as a thing yet, but it’s highly likely and expected.
The idea of the Matter smart home is that it will be easier for manufacturers to develop products that work with all the major voice assistants and also each other.
Consumers should be able to pick up two smart home products from two different brands and as long as they both have the Matter logo on the box the buyer would know they were compatible.
In the example of the new Netatmo Smart Security Sensor then, you’d be able to trigger routines and automations using other Matter smart home kit, depending on the status of the sensor; think a light coming on at night if motion is detected, or an alarm coming from a smart speaker if a door or window is opened when nobody is home.
The Netatmo Smart Security Sensor will go on sale in Q2, there’s no pricing details as of yet.
