Five ways to make your Matter smart home devices stand out
Latest update time：2022-08-25
Reads：
The Matter
protocol provides a common language for smart home devices, allowing them to talk across ecosystem boundaries while also simplifying setup and usability. This is
one of the reasons why
Matter
has received so much attention from the market. But
Matter
poses a big threat that few device makers have thought about: How to stand out in a large, open,
Matter
-enabled
market? As a unified application-level standard,
Matter
creates a level playing field for all brands, making it very difficult to stand out. In this article,
Craig Babcock
of
Silicon Labs
’ smart home ecosystem team
explains five ways to differentiate your product and attract customers in a competitive market.
Matter
smart home
Why are smart home device manufacturers so obsessed with
the Matter
protocol? The reason is simple because it provides universal interoperability for products from different smart home ecosystems and brands.
Matter
also simplifies device setup and usability. It doesn't introduce yet another wireless technology that further confuses device makers and consumers. Instead, it is an application-level protocol built from the best parts of existing proven protocols, including Google
Weave
, Apple
HomeKit
, and
Zigbee
. It also uses three of the world's leading wireless technologies -
Wi-Fi
and
Thread
for operation
, and Bluetooth Low Energy for easy setup. Manufacturers can also
build multi-protocol bridges
for their existing
Zigbee
and
Z-Wave
devices to
work
with
Matter
devices, allowing for a smooth transition into new markets.
What benefits does
Matter
have for consumers?
For example, consumers can confidently purchase smart LED
bulbs
when shopping at their favorite retailers or online stores
and connect them to any smart home ecosystem or control app. They are free to choose bulbs based on their functional needs rather than choosing based on connected alternatives. Even if they have two separate systems in their home,
Amazon Alexa
and
Google Home
, the same
LED
bulb will work seamlessly in both ecosystems.
With
Matter
, consumers can finally purchase new smart home products with confidence knowing they will work with other devices in their home. Any brand of
Matter
smart home device can be set up and paired with the customer's smart home app of choice, and regardless of its manufacturer, it can work with other devices in the smart home while being controlled by a voice assistant. We no longer have to worry about those all-too-familiar and nerve-wracking device installations and session configurations.
Advantages for smart home device manufacturers
Today, manufacturers may need to develop separate stock keeping units (SKUs)
for each ecosystem and each product
. For example, selling a smart home switch to
Amazon Alexa
,
Apple HomeKit
, and
Google Home
users requires three different
SKUs
, and often three separate products with different hardware and software. In the era of connected,
Matter
-enabled
markets, device makers and manufacturers will only need one
SKU
per product
. This is a huge economic benefit because it cuts development and production costs, simplifies the entire supply chain, and has the potential to significantly increase profits.
Matter
creates a large, fast-growing market for smart home device manufacturers—an ecosystem that’s compatible with multiple ecosystems. Breaking down barriers between ecosystems and creating a more seamless user experience will accelerate smart home adoption and enable many device manufacturers to earn a lucrative revenue stream. But
is
Matter
a blank check from the wireless industry for device manufacturers? Not exactly. Despite
all of its advantages,
Matter
also brings challenges that many manufacturers didn’t anticipate: How to make smart home devices stand out in a large, open,
Matter
-enabled
market?
Five ways to make
your Matter
smart home devices stand out
While
Matter
simplifies the world of IoT for consumers, it also levels the playing field for device manufacturers, making it very difficult to stand out in the market. How can you build a device that is different from the rest? How do you develop unique features that people actually want and are willing to pay for? How do you create products that customers become obsessed with, become fans, and
follow your brand in a sea of
Matter-
enabled gadgets?
Craig Babcock
of
SiliconLabs'
smart home ecosystem team
doesn't believe in cheap tricks for product differentiation. For consumers who have seen all this, it is even more important to correctly grasp the fundamentals. Here are
five ways to impress consumers
in the
Matter
smart home space in
2022
and beyond
!
1.
Normal wireless connection
Poor wireless performance is often one of the biggest headaches for users. A single customer support case or unwarranted warranty return due to poor wireless performance can destroy product profits. But it also presents an opportunity, because by making
Matter
devices reliable wireless, manufacturers can turn this challenge into an effective way to differentiate. Always-connected wireless technology is like a guarantee against poor user experience. However, as a product manufacturer, you know that developing wireless technology is difficult—you never know where your product will be used, and how much RF interference will be in the room.
The best wireless performance can be achieved through a combination of high transmit power and receiver sensitivity.
Silicon Labs
'
EFR32MG24
wireless
SoC (MG24)
provides
the
Thread
protocol
for
Matter
, with the highest link budget on the market
(124dBm)
, transmit power up to
+19.5dBm
, and receiver sensitivity
(-104.5dBm)
leading the world. This way, your device indoor range can reach about
300m
, equivalent to
3/4
mile
(1.2km)
of line of sight
in an open area
, ensuring reliable connection in every room.
2.
More intelligent
Smart home devices are no longer just gadgets to satisfy vanity. They must meet real-life needs, save time, smoothly complete given household tasks, interact with users intuitively
(
preferably through voice commands
)
, and even recognize who is giving the commands. For example, a home security camera should be smart enough to classify objects to distinguish between a dog, a mail carrier, and a thief, thereby avoiding false alarms. A smart washing machine will detect vibration anomalies and predict bearing wear before the machine fails completely.
The level of intelligence in smart homes is being pushed to such high levels that product differentiation now requires artificial intelligence and machine learning
(AI/ML)
capabilities, even on battery-powered devices.
MG24
wireless
SoC
has a unique built-in
AI/ML
hardware accelerator that can achieve up to four times
the ML
inference speed while consuming only
1/6
of the original energy
. This way, you can integrate more smart features into your battery-powered device. Even when the Internet connection is interrupted,
AI/ML
-enabled applications at the most edge can avoid cloud connection delays and keep
Matter
devices running normally.
3.
Reduce battery and charging
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA)
, Americans purchase nearly
3
billion dry batteries every year to power a variety of smart portable items. Today, only
5%
of the world's lithium-ion batteries can be recycled. Environmental awareness is growing day by day and no one likes the hassle of replacing, recycling and recharging batteries. Energy-saving wireless devices that waste less battery and are more durable and have longer battery life may be the next pursuit of sustainability-conscious consumers.
Silicon Labs
'
MG24
wireless
SoC
for
Matter
and
Thread
functionality
has very low operating and standby currents and can run on coin cell batteries for years, helping you make long battery life a differentiator.
4.
Safe and trustworthy
Privacy is a top consumer concern in the smart home space, and it’s easy to understand why. People shudder at the thought of someone hacking into their home’s security cameras, smart speakers, or burglar alarms. A single high-profile privacy breach could cause significant damage to a device manufacturer’s brand and severely impact product sales. Could “trust” be the
ultimate smart home differentiator in 2022 and beyond? Yes, but
Matter
alone
as an open protocol
won’t protect your devices from sophisticated, rapidly evolving cyber threats.
The MG24
can run
Secure Vault
, the most advanced IoT security suite on the market
. With its highest
PSA Level 3
security certification and the longest product lifespan in the industry
(
up to
10
years
)
, you can “trust” your brand’s differentiating advantage.
5.
Long-lasting
Matter
equipment
Environmental awareness increasingly influences consumer purchasing decisions. People want to consume sustainably and prefer products that last longer. However, they want new, more advanced features every year. Durable consumer electronics sounds like a paradox, doesn’t it? If your device supports large memory capacity and over-the-air update possibilities, such as
the MG24
, which has up to
256kB
of
RAM
and
1536kB
of flash memory to accommodate future software updates, protocol versions and security patches. Now you can impress your feature-demanding user base with something new every year while standing out with durable
Matter
devices.
Buy a gadget, set it up, and it will work with your smart home system. Pair the device with your favorite smart home app and control it with the voice assistant of your choice, regardless of its manufacturer. For consumers and manufacturers alike,
Matter
's promise sounds like a dream come true. But when you want to stand out in the market,
Silicon Labs
'
MG24
Wireless
SoC
gives
your
Matter
smart home devices always-connected wireless capabilities while reducing battery and charging hassles. You can integrate more intelligent features into edge products to build products that last longer and that users can trust.
Original link:
https://www.silabs.com/applications/home-and-life/smart-home/how-to-differentiate-matter-smart-home-devices
;
This article is simultaneously published on the electronic technology design website:
https: //www.ednchina.com/news/a9864.html
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