Got it - just wanted to clarify that the opinion you responded to didn't come from Hubitat staff.
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@eaton.blumenstein I say vaporware mainly because in cases like this it's like heading cats then everyone gives up regardless and it just eventually gets shelved. Honestly I hope I'm wrong... I've just seen it happen so many times that I suppose I'm a bit jaded..
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I'm skeptable also. But as I said, they stamped their name on the consortium, so they really should have something to say about it. Press releases are quite important, without them, sometimes (I stress sometimes) they self-fulfill the vaporware.
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I see an interesting distinction in how Matter was developed from prior standards.
Previously, you'd see parties spend a long time writing the "standard" then having a massive shakeout as parties got those standards and tried to implement.
The difference here is that Open thread and Matter both took an "implementation first" approach where they implemented in open-source form and the implementation informed the standard which was then drafted to the working body of code. The openthread portion has already been tested (its being used for HomeKit layer now), and the Matter standards, in large part, track Zigbee cluster usage (though not entirely) so they can be seen as an "evolution" rather than revolution to that standard.
So, while certified commercial Matter products aren't there, this is not like typical "vaporware" where there isn't even software. I'd also compare Matter more to an evolution (i.e., a more focused and rigorously defined "Zigbee Cluster Library" over IPV6 evaluation) than to a wholly new standard.
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Matter is not likely to make much difference in data collection for anyone who uses a voice assistant. Many/most of your Z-Wave and Zigbee devices are already being tracked.
And this is one of the first Thread/Matter devices I'd like to get
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It's important to note that Hubitat has joined CSA as an adopter, not a full member or partner. This would be I assume to do what they've said previously, which was to evaluate the market as it develops and adapt accordingly. I wouldn't expect them to announce anything as there isn't really anything to announce, and it would just drive unhelpful speculation if they did.
Good to see the team doing what they said they would do though, and am looking forward to see where we go from here.
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Looks like Si Labs already has developer kits and bridges to Z-wave/Zigbee:
I think it is happening and eventually Z-wave/Zigbee become the new X-10/Insteon...(sigh)
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Deep in each other's pants...
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I agree about Zwave unless the LR stuff takes off but I think Zigbee might be around for a while - there are a lot of products out there now and with the advent of ZB3 a wide variety of hubs are now compatible.
I think the concept of thread is very compelling - a definite upgrade to Zigbee. With Matter I need more data - want to see it working in practice to suss out the limitations / gotchas. Hard for me to believe companies like Philips/Google/Apple will give up control that easily without some sort of strings attached..
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Yep, that's my main concern with Matter... I'd genuinely love to see it succeed meeting its grand ambitions, but corporate greed is a heckuva an animal to tame and let's-all-kumbaya-for-the-greater-good-on-this-rising-tide-to-lift-all-boats kinda thing has me pessimistic about long-term success.
It may be a subtle creep over time, but the big players are eventually going to want to reassert their uniquely-capable walled gardens (to some extent, at least) -- I fear the draw to control data and drive revenue will be too strong.
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You've nailed it - the revenue from selling devices will be minimal relative to the revenue generated by acquisition of user data.
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As far as privacy, for myself, the device needs to meet a simple test. If I install it on a IOT vlan that has no access to the internet will it work. My TP-Link Kasa devices are on a vlan with no access to the internet, they can only talk to one other vlan and that vlan has only Hubitat on it.
The TP-Link devices work fine, when I do the initial connection I use internet, but after that they get blocked. For myself, this meets the test, I don't have to worry about the device "calling home".
I will be curious to see if the same stays true for "Matter" devices. If so, great, I hope HE is compatible once the devices become available. But considering the companies that are developing this tech, I would be surprised if this is the case.
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I wonder if Hubitat stand alone auxiliary Matter bridge is a future possibility. Ethernet communications with the hub and the necessary radios to support new devices and their evolving protocols.
The new yale assure locks are going to offer zwave and thread/matter versions , but no zigbee. Also, the new inovelli zigbee switches will supposedly be upgradable to thread/matter with a future firmware update.
Also interesting to see the new homey pro hub that was just announced will supposedly support zwave 700, zigbee 3.0, and thread/matter … and it’s coming to the US.
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$400! That's a hub of a price...
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Link?
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The new cards are backwards compatible. I've seen some reports that say old cards are forward compatible. But my guess is that there will be no more new Zigbee cards made. Setting up a secondary market like the Lutron Connected Bulb remote
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Interesting, thanks. Strange they don’t seem to make any distinction between Thread and Matter.
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I found Zigbee for locks to be quite hit and miss - so this is a good thing imo. I replaced my Yale Zigbee modules with Yale Z-wave modules and they've been perfect ever since.
