Amazon Bringing Matter to Echo Devices, But No iOS Support Until Early Next Year

[MacRumors]

Amazon today announced that it will be updating 17 of its Echo devices to support the new Matter smart home standard over Wi-Fi next month, according to The Verge. The phased rollout will initially only be supported on Android and allow those Echo devices to serve as controllers only for plugs, bulbs, and switches. Amazon's Matter support will expand early next year to include iOS devices and Thread networking, and support for additional categories of smart devices will come over time.

Amazon told The Verge that it is taking a phased approach due to the sheer number of devices involved and the complexity of getting everything transitioned over to the new standard.

"We're bringing Matter support to well over 100 million devices across 30 Echo and Eero devices," Chris DeCenzo, a senior principal engineer at Amazon and the company's CSA board director, explained in an interview with The Verge. "This is an effort unprecedented in scale and complexity. It's a big deal, and we need to make sure it goes smoothly."

In particular, he pointed to the lack of available products in the other Matter categories for Amazon to test. "There aren't many [Matter-compatible] locks, window shades, and thermostats out there yet, and we want to test everything in our beta program first."

The delayed rollout of support on iOS is also reportedly due to Apple's requirements, with Amazon saying that upgrading its Alexa app for iOS to be compatible with Matter requires using new APIs that Apple only just released and which Amazon will need to test to ensure everything is working properly.

The Verge says the following Echo devices will be updated with Matter support next month: Echo Dot (fifth-gen), Echo Dot (fifth-gen) with Clock, Echo (fourth-gen), Echo Dot (third-gen, 2018 release), Echo Studio, Echo Show 8 (second-gen, 2021 release), Echo Show 10 (third-gen), Echo Show 5 (second-gen, 2021 release), Echo Dot (third-gen) with Clock, Echo Dot (fourth-gen) with Clock, Echo Show 5, Echo (v3), Echo Dot (fourth-gen), Echo Input, Echo Flex, Echo Plus (v2), and Echo Show 8. Additional Echo and Eero devices will be receiving the upgrade in early 2023.

Article Link: Amazon Bringing Matter to Echo Devices, But No iOS Support Until Early Next Year

 

[mnsportsgeek]

So I take that to mean the new Eero’s are not getting HomeKit because they are getting Matter support next year?

 

[ProfessionalFan]

So I take that to mean the new Eero’s are not getting HomeKit because they are getting Matter support next year?

Yeah pretty sure HomeKit is gone forever on Eero

 

[mnsportsgeek]

Yeah pretty sure HomeKit is gone forever on Eero

Fine with me. This is a pretty big announcement. Guessing HomeKit secure video will die a slow death. Nobody is gonna bother implementing HomeKit anything anymore when they can just do matter.

 

[Ryan H]

Good that it's in the pipeline. Hope it doesn't go the way of AirPower 😂

 

[iphonehype]

So ring will support Matter so we will have HKSV?

 

[Mediakip]

So the standard that would make all systems work together (Matter) can be limited to only some systems (Android)..? So… what was then the point of this ”universal” standard?!

 

[Kirkster]

From my understanding Matter 1.0 has no camera support. Maybe in 2.0.

 

[KrisLord]

Does matter support cameras and doorbells yet?

I think recording video is a bigger problem to solve than simply the API for how the device is controlled.

 

[Orange Bat]

I’m moving away from Amazon devices mainly over privacy concerns. I‘m trying not to be a nut about it and I still own and use the numerous Echo devices I bought on sale many years ago. But I won’t be buying new ones just for Matter.

 

[Shanghaichica]

So no echo show 15 support.

 

[ethanomnom]

So the standard that would make all systems work together (Matter) can be limited to only some systems (Android)..? So… what was then the point of this ”universal” standard?!

The article says that at this time, it’s only available on Android because Amazon needs to update their iOS app to use the new API’s. iOS support is coming in 2023

 

[Jukens]

I am now a little confused. Does updating the hubs to support matter give inter connectivity between hub APIs and all their attached devices? Or do all the connected devices also have to support matter?

 

[tranceme]

So, basically 2 more years for things to actually work for Apple stuff. Anything around this just will get delayed. I don't expect Apple and Amazon to really play nice.

 

[DaveN]

I can see the new advertising tagline... "Does it Matter?"

 

[LeadingHeat]

Just interested to see how the privacy and security of HomeKit will be maintained with each company’s flavor of Matter support.

 

[PauloSera]

How does that make any sense? The whole point of supporting Matter is to be platform agnostic. To say it will support Matter and not support x platform is a total oxymoron.

 

[CarAnalogy]

"This is an effort unprecedented in scale and complexity.”

Unprecedented? I don’t doubt that it’s a big project. But really? That’s quite a bold statement.

 

[TKSX]

Let the early adopters test the system first. I think it will be a few more years before it will reach maturity.

 

[antnythr]

This makes no sense... if something supports Matter, it's supposed to work everywhere. Why would Amazon need to update some Amazon iOS App? It's not supposed to need the Amazon app, it just connects... THAT'S THE WHOLE POINT OF MATTER.

 

[Logic368]

Fine with me. This is a pretty big announcement. Guessing HomeKit secure video will die a slow death. Nobody is gonna bother implementing HomeKit anything anymore when they can just do matter.

Guess HomeKit won’t MATTER anymore, eh?

 

[ipedro]

So the standard that would make all systems work together (Matter) can be limited to only some systems (Android)..? So… what was then the point of this ”universal” standard?!

This is for older device upgrades. New Matter devices will be cross platform and cross ecosystem compatible from the get go. Frankly, I’m grateful any older devices will be upgraded to Matter at all. Manufacturers could’ve used this as an opportunity to induce a massive upgrade cycle but from what we’re seeing, they’re not.

Amazon is upgrading some really old Echo devices to a brand new standard. That’s commendable, if you ask me.

 

[ipedro]

Fine with me. This is a pretty big announcement. Guessing HomeKit secure video will die a slow death. Nobody is gonna bother implementing HomeKit anything anymore when they can just do matter.

Matter doesn’t have a camera category yet.

Given Apple’s insistence on security and the consortium adopting HomeKit’s privacy technologies in developing the Matter standard, it’s a good bet that video will be built on something like HomeKit Secure Video when the category arrives in Matter 2.0.

 

[ipedro]

Unprecedented? I don’t doubt that it’s a big project. But really? That’s quite a bold statement.

It is. Supporting the cross compatibility of proprietary smart home ecosystems — each with their own codebases and hardware technologies — of not only the major brands like Apple, Google, Amazon, and Samsung, is complex on its own given their rivalries, but also the hundreds of brands with their own systems and interests… is just eyecrossing complex, both technologically and politically. This is a major achievement, if they pull it off.

 

[rworne]

How does that make any sense? The whole point of supporting Matter is to be platform agnostic. To say it will support Matter and not support x platform is a total oxymoron.

If the protocol requires identifying the OS of the host system instead of just the revision of the protocol used by the equipment, there's lots of room for games to be played. If the protocol were truly agnostic, it would need to know the devices on the network, but the devices should not care about the hub aside from the minimum required proper protocol revision.

Frankly, I'm surprised this made it out at all... was there some US or EU attention being made to vendor lock-in on start home goods?