This is exactly what Eva showed at IFA. The Matter spec isn’t finalized yet, so none of the devices were running the final Matter-enabled firmware, but it was enough to see the kinds of features we can expect when Eve devices are updated to support it. Matter’s design makes it simple and seamless for users on different platforms to natively control the same smart home products. The result is a more cohesive experience, where whichever voice assistant you choose to use can control all of your Matter-enabled devices, and where configuration changes made to one device through an ecosystem will automatically be reflected everywhere else. Each of the four demonstration stations used the same Eve Energy smart plug model, eliminating the need for separate models for different ecosystems. Because the accessory already supports Thread, updating it to support Matter was a relatively seamless process, Eve PR director Lars Felber tells me. A Nest Hub (2nd generation) that turns off an Eve Energy via voice command. On the Google table, there was both a second-generation Thread-enabled Nest Hub and a Google Pixel 6 Pro running the Google Home app. First, Felber said to the Nest Hub, “Ok Google, turn on my lights.” Once the Google Smart Display recognized the command, the Eve Energy Smart Plug behind it clicked on the attached bulb. The smart display had sent a signal to the smart plug above the Thread to activate it, thanks to Matter. Using the Android phone with the Google Home app was less seamless in my demo. “Phones don’t do Thread,” Felber explained to me. As a result, the headset needed to communicate with the Nest Hub over a local Wi-Fi network for the smart display to send the command to the smart plug via Thread. Unfortunately, trying to control the smart plug from the phone directly didn’t work. The icon on the phone responded to my taps, but the light remained unchanged. It was a shame not to see the Matter working perfectly, but trade show floors are admittedly one of the worst places to show off such technology. Felber told me there were about 50 overlapping Wi-Fi networks in the trade show hall we were in, and even the least congested Wi-Fi channel had nine devices on it. The Thread protocol also uses the same 2.4Ghz frequency as Wi-Fi, resulting in more interference. The amount of noise also made it difficult to issue voice commands without shouting inches away from the base’s various smart speakers. Additionally, the Matter standard is not currently final – so some error is likely to be expected. A SmartThings Hub was hidden under the table. A third panel showed Matter’s integration with SmartThings. Confusingly, there was only one Samsung phone (a Galaxy S22) on this table, not a Thread router in sight. But Felber confirmed to me that the company was using a SmartThings Hub made by Aeotec — which for some reason was hidden inside the table — to relay the signal to Eve Energy. Although completely misleading, the demo worked well. Using the SmartThings app to control the smart plug was a snap. Finally, there was Apple’s table, the least weird of the four, because it showed a hardware setup that its HomeKit-exclusive Eve line already supports just fine — though now it’s been updated to use Matter rather than just its HomeKit Apple. Next to the smart plug and lamp on that table was an iPhone 13 and a HomePod Mini smart speaker that acted as a Thread border router. Controlling the smart plug through either was very responsive. Eve Energy is controlled by a HomePod Mini and iPhone. Photo by Jon Porter / The Verge While the launch of the Matter standard means Eve’s devices are about to get a lot more functional, existing owners won’t need to buy new hardware to reap the benefits. Felber says Eve plans to push an OTA update to all Thread-enabled products (which represent 14 of its 18-strong product line) to use Matter. Eve Energy will be the first, hopefully by the end of the year, with other devices such as Eve Door & Window, Eve Weather, Eve Motion and Eve Thermo to follow. Turning light bulbs on and off is a simple trick for smart home parties, and there are many other examples of smart devices that work in different ecosystems. But seeing a currently Apple-exclusive accessory work (relatively) seamlessly across all these different ecosystems, with both voice and app control, has me very excited about what the Matter can achieve when it launches this fall . Photo by Jon Porter / The Verge
