The Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) today released Matter 1.4.2, stating that this update will deliver a "better user experience" by enhancing ecosystem coordination.
Matter is an industry-driven universal connectivity protocol for smart home devices, enabling direct communication between devices from Samsung, Google, Amazon, Apple, and hundreds of other companies via local networks. It eliminates the need for smart home devices to rely on different apps or company cloud servers for control.
Matter 1.4.2 enables Wi-Fi-only network configuration through a feature called "Wi-Fi Unsynchronized Service Discovery." This means users can access more cost-effective devices, as manufacturers can skip integrating Bluetooth LE radios into their products. It also allows some existing Wi-Fi-only products to gain Matter support through a simple firmware update.
The new version introduces additional scene functionality, enabling users to trigger multiple actions at once, and adds time-based behaviors—for example, allowing lights to dim gradually over a set period instead of turning off abruptly.
Matter 1.4.2 also improves the "quieter reporting" data model to reduce the volume of data generated by smart home devices. The standard now extends this optimization to more features and devices. Prior to this update, the improvement primarily applied to intermittently connected devices such as switches, buttons, and sensors.
Other changes in Matter 1.4.2 include "Consistent Endpoint Unique ID," which prevents devices like smart power outlets from appearing as duplicates when reconfigured.
The protocol also defines predictable behaviors for robot vacuum cleaners to ensure consistent response to commands, and raises requirements for network hardware to ensure home networks can easily handle at least 150 Thread devices.
(Reprinted from China Grid https://news.eccn.com)