Smart Home: Matter 1.5 can handle cameras and water beds

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The Matter communication protocol now understands command sets for networked security cameras. These are part of the new specifications of Matter version 1.5, which the responsible certification organization Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) published today, Thursday. This will allow Wi-Fi cameras to be set up and operated in the future without prior setup in the manufacturer's app, using overarching Matter control platforms such as those from Amazon, Apple, Google, Samsung, or Home Assistant.

Matter's repertoire will also include floor sensors and computer valves in the future, which help with automated plant watering. Furthermore, the CSA is adding control functions for motorized window darkening and facilitating energy management with dynamic electricity tariffs.

The new specifications are now available for download for development teams. The CSA, as usual, did not announce when which manufacturers will equip old or new devices with them.

First Matter cameras from TP-Link

However, concrete plans from manufacturer TP-Link are known. It intends to give its already released models Tapo C260 and Tapo C560WS corresponding Matter capabilities. The company announced at IFA 2025 announced this and confirmed it upon current inquiry from heise online. "Since the final specifications are now available, we will develop a firmware update as quickly as possible and submit it to the CSA for testing. Our goal is to be among the first manufacturers to offer Matter cameras," explains Turbo Lin, Product Manager at TP-Link Germany.

Cameras whose software embeds the Matter protocol in version 1.5 can be accessed by authorized third-party apps via uniform command sets. According to the CSA, practically all common video, audio, and storage functions are available for them.

Accordingly, image and audio tracks can be streamed live based on WebRTC technology. If speakers and microphones are built into the cameras, an intercom system can also be realized. Furthermore, Matter 1.5 knows control commands to pan, tilt, and zoom camera lenses, provided they support these functions. Additionally, areas can be defined where the cameras should exclusively or not at all react to movement.

More cloud features than expected

When cameras record clips, Matter allows them to be stored locally or in the cloud. Access to the data is possible both within the home network and remotely via the internet. For this purpose, Matter 1.5's underlying structure incorporates proven IP-based network protocols, such as STUN (Session Traversal Utilities for NAT) for peer-to-peer contact via a possibly hidden public IP address, and TURN (Traversal Using Relays around NAT) to avoid bouncing off a firewall. The use of TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) is intended to ensure that large amounts of data do not overload the home network's bandwidth, slow down Matter hubs, or excessively shorten the cameras' battery life.

This means Matter's camera capabilities go beyond what was expected. Integrated cloud storage functions in particular were considered unlikely, as this would run counter to the commercial interests of some camera manufacturers.

For some providers, the business model is based on paid subscription models, through which they make extra functions and storage space exclusively accessible via their own manufacturer apps. This exclusivity is diluted if other companies can also offer such services for cameras of various origins via the Matter interface. It remains to be seen to what extent camera brands will find ways to shield their previous unique selling propositions against competition.

Smarter watering, darkening, and energy management

In addition to Wi-Fi cameras, floor sensors and smart irrigation valves will be accessible via the Matter interface for the first time in the future. The sensors can be used to check how moist and, depending on the model, sometimes also how warm the soil around plants is. Based on this, watering times can be more flexibly adjusted instead of watering rigidly by the clock, potentially over- or under-watering the root system.

For the control of blinds, roller shutters, or curtain motors already included in Matter, version 1.5 provides additional commands. Instead of just "Up" and "Down," more is possible in the future. For example, multi-part sliding panels can be moved to the desired partial position or blind slats can be rotated.

Matter 1.5 expands the existing capabilities for energy management with a device category with the cumbersome name "Electrical Energy Tariff Device Type." While this sounds like hardware, it is actually a workaround to visualize a software interface. Through this, current or forecast price, consumption, or performance data from sources inside and outside one's own network can be accessed.

In this way, data from utility companies, grid operators, and energy service providers, as well as from smart meters or one's own PV system, can serve as triggers for automated switching. Consequently, energy-hungry Matter devices will switch on or off – depending on whether a lot of energy is cheaply available now or soon, or not.

(mack)