There’s a tradition among electronics companies: With the launch of any new type of product, a years-long battle ensues in which customers are expected to swear brand allegiance to a format or operating system or some other tech specification—all just to get the devices they buy to work right. The smart-home industry has done a bang-up job of following that tired plotline, and as a result, buyers are stuck worrying whether the smart bulbs they want will be compatible with their switches, and their thermostat, and maybe their sensors and smart speakers, too. But a potential savior is on the horizon, a much-ballyhooed “connectivity protocol” dubbed Matter. If all goes according to plan, Matter will make it so that most new, and many existing, mainstream smart-home devices will be compatible with one another and even easier to set up and use—while also being more secure.
from Wirecutter: Reviews for the Real World https://ift.tt/3ADM7OX
