Im gonna give it a try. First have to see what device to use it on.
I think the main thing is to understand what you will get from being able to use matter with SmartThings. Whether or not any of these will be of interest to you just depends on your own preferences.
- if a device offers both a matter integration and a cloud to cloud integration, if you use matter, the Matter integration will be local.
A good example is the SwitchBot 2 hub. You get to choose whether you want to add it as a linked service or as a matter bridge. (assuming your smartthings hub model supports matter bridges. For the standalone hubs, that started with firmware version 50.)
Another example is the Leviton Wi-Fi smartplug that supports matter. You can add it through the cloud to cloud integration with âmy Levitonâ or you can add it as a local matter device.
However, itâs important to note that the matter integration might offer fewer features Than the cloud cloud integration. It just varies from model to model.
- some devices can only be added through matter: they donât have any other integration with SmartThings. At the time of this posting, this was true for all thread devices. The ones that were certified for matter can be added through matter. Otherwise, they couldnât be added at all. The Eve, smart plug is a good example of this.
So, if you are using matter, you get a wider selection of devices to consider.
- prior to 2023, there were lots of devices that worked with Alexa or Apple Home or Google Assistant, but didnât work with SmartThings. Now, if they work with matter, they will work with any of the four platforms. That really fits under category two above. You get more devices to choose from.
But there was a separate division, where some devices, like the logitech harmony buttons, could be set up to work with SmartThings, or with Apple home, but not with both at the same time. There were some complicated technical reasons for that, but it could be very frustrating for a user who did research, saw that the device worked with both, but didnât realize they would have to choose which one when they installed it.
Again, under matter, a device should work with all the matter compliant platforms (including Apple home, smartthings, Alexa, and Google Assistant) and be able to work with all of them at The same time.
However, it is important to note that the four different Home Automation platforms have been rolling matter out in different ways. Amazon, for example, took a long time before they added the ability to use matter locks with their platform. SmartThings has been rolling out the ability to use matter bridges one hub model at a time. So there is still some bumpiness in the idea that a matter certified device can work with any of the four platforms. Thatâs the long-term goal, certainly, but bumpy road to getting there. 
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So thatâs what youâll get from matter. More devices to choose from, and more ways to use a device once it is installed. Plus the ability to use the device with multiple platforms at the same time if you choose to.
Perhaps the most significant advantage that should be a plus for everyone is that devices should be eligible to run locally. (Note that that doesnât change anything else about the SmartThings platform, though: the SmartThings app will still require an active cloud connection, and so will some routines.)
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So, being able to use matter should be a good thing, but it might not necessarily make any changes in the current setup that you have.
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For me, i really want to try the switchbot because i have sone switches that i could have changed to just a rocker switch & that would be much cheaper then having run neturals for the power switches. I like the eve power plug because it can intergrate into the smartthings energy usage dashboard. I would really prefer an outlet as it would be cleaner looking & not bulky looking then adding a pocket socket. I also say the eve motion sensor & thought maybe i can try hat outside & somehow incorporate it into one of my.nursing routines i have for my daughter. So all in all, i can wait a little if maybe the switchbot will get an update that allows it to be local. Now my tv is in smartthings but im not sure if i nees to enable somwthing to turn on its hub.
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You can use the SwitchBots now without needing matter: there is a cloud to cloud integration with smartthings that works quite well. I have used that myself for a couple of years.
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You do need a SwitchBot hub, whether you use matter or not. If you want to use matter, definitely get the SwitchBot hub 2. Otherwise, the SwitchBot hub mini is fine.
So you could get the hub (which is also a temperature sensor) and one button pusher just to see how it works.
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https://www.amazon.co.uk/SwitchBot-Smart-Switch-Button-Pusher/dp/B07B7NXV4R
The question of how many devices one Hub 2 can support gets really complicated. Via matter, you can only bring in four of the Bluetooth devices. Via the cloud, the cloud integration, you can bring in more than a dozen, and even more than that of Wi-Fi devices. So how many it can support depends on both the protocol and the integration method. You can ask their support ahead of time, and they should be able to tell you with regard to a specific set up, but it may be a day or two before you get an answer by email. I have found their support over the years to be slow but helpful.
Regarding the hub, i may add a hubitat once i add the wifi adapters to my daikin ductless units. Sonce the change in smartthings, everyone who has one moved over to hubitat where it has support. I thought also hubitat might be the way people are going for zwave support since the new hubs dont do zwave. Im by no means an expert but i cant see zwave just disappearing since its not included in smartthings.
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And, at the moment, the ST Wi-fi hubs do not support Matter at all (and my bet is that they never will), let alone Matter bridges.
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I donât see Z wave disappearing in the next few years, either. For one thing, so far, itâs the only mesh protocol that are UL listed for security systems, which is why both ring security and ADT still use zwave.
Plus the new Z wave 800 series with long range is very cool technology, with connection distances of about a mile, making it suitable, for example, for hotels and hospitals who want to cover their parking lots. (But youâll need a new hub for that, and no indication so far that smartthings is considering one. Hubitat does have a series 800 hub.)
Anyway, different platforms are good for different purposes, and will have to see what happens in the future.
The chip developers already have a project in the works to combine zwave with matter, so, my expectation is that if matter takes off, zwave will eventually provide matter integration through bridges, like Zigbee is doing. But again, no promises, and itâs not here yet.
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Well hopefully thatâs soon but im thinking as i add more devices hubitat could be a good add on concerning zwave & my issue with my Daikin ductless units.
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Quick question, i have to turn yhe hub built into the tv on, before indo that inhave a stupid queation⌠this wouldnât mess up the regular hub would it?
No, it will just add a second hub at your location. For instance, I have the ST Wi-Fi hub and enabled the hub on my Samsung refrigerator so that I can support Matter devices, both Wi-Fi and Thread.
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Ok thank you. Ill enable it when i get home.