Eve has rolled out the very first firmware update for its customers that will see some of its current products upgraded with Matter smart home standard compatibility at no extra cost.
Eve Energy, Eve Door & Window, and Eve Motion will start to gain access to an optional firmware update via iOS or iPad on iOS 16.2 beginning December 12, 2022.
The products above, some of the best HomeKit devices on the market, will be the first existing products to support the Matter smart home standard.
Existing device owners can sign up for the Eve x Matter Early Access Program.
Upgrade Eve to Matter
To upgrade your Eve products to Matter, you’ll need the following:
- Make sure a Thread Border Router capable Home Hub like a HomePod mini, Apple TV 4K (2nd gen.), or Apple TV 4K (3rd gen. 128 GB) is connected to your network, updated to the latest tvOS version.
- Upgrading the firmware on an Eve device to Matter requires an iPhone or iPad running iOS/iPadOS 16.2 (or later).
- Apply to enroll in the Early Access Program by completing the form here. Once enrolled, users will receive an email from Eve with Test Flight access to the firmware update over the coming days, but starting on Monday 12/12.
Upgrading to Matter won’t cost you any of your HomeKit features, but will enable you to use Eve products with Alexa and Google Home, as well as Samsung SmartThings going forward once those brands make support available. There’s nothing to lose, but remember you can’t downgrade from Matter once the upgrade is done.
As it takes shape, Matter will become the new standard of smart home connectivity, and is backed by giants Apple, Amazon, Google, and more. Think of it as the equivalent of Bluetooth for headphones, providing interoperability wherever you need it in the smart home. Other Matter products are on the way from companies including Philips Hue and Nanoleaf, the former plans to offer Matter through Bridge updates to all of its existing products.
This article originally appeared on imore.com.
About the Author
Stephen Warwick has written about Apple for five years at iMore and previously elsewhere. He covers all of iMore’s latest breaking news regarding all of Apple’s products and services, both hardware and software. Stephen has interviewed industry experts in a range of fields including finance, litigation, security, and more. He also specializes in curating and reviewing audio hardware and has experience beyond journalism in sound engineering, production, and design.
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