A new version (1.4.2) of the Matter smart home standard has been released with several improvements that make adding and controlling compatible smart home devices faster and more reliable. After Matter 1.4.1 earlier this year, this is the second minor update Matter has received this year, and it will likely be adopted by Samsung into its SmartThings platform in the coming months.Matter 1.4.2 has been released with connection and reliability improvementsThe Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA), the group which oversees Matter's development, has announced Matter 1.4.2. It improves reliability and performance. Thanks to improved standardization, it improves how devices behave across different smart home platforms like Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, Google Home, and Samsung SmartThings. CSA says this new version should reduce random disconnections and improve device responsiveness. Support for Matter Wi-Fi router settings optimizationsSupport for Wi-Fi routers was added in Matter 1.4, and Matter 1.4.2 allows automatic optimisations for Matter-compatible Wi-Fi routers so that Matter devices connect to the router faster and stay connected. It manages multicast traffic in a better way and stores Thread credentials so that devices can connect to the right Thread network in your home.One of the most common reasons Matter devices won't connect to a Thread network is router settings. With Matter 1.4.2, a Wi-Fi router needs to support at least 150 Thread devices and 100 Wi-Fi devices to get Matter certification. It also supports Target Wake Time for battery-powered Matter devices. This set of minimum requirements and optimised router settings should help solve most of the connectivity issues Matter devices face.Wi-Fi-only based Matter devices are now supportedAnother big change that Matter 1.4.2 brings is support for Wi-Fi commissioning. It means devices only with Wi-Fi connectivity can now get Matter certification. Earlier, Bluetooth LE was necessary to set up a Matter device. Since there won't be a need for devices to include Bluetooth connectivity, it will get cheaper to make Matter-compatible smart home devices. However, to use this feature, Matter controllers like Samsung's TVs and refrigerators would need firmware upgrades.Matter 1.4.2 could improve battery life of battery-powered Matter devicesMatter 1.4.2 also brings network management improvements, including how frequently and why Matter devices need to check in. This should help devices be online and communicate more efficiently. It could also improve the battery life of Matter-compatible devices that are powered by a battery, as devices that don't need to frequently report data could stay asleep for a longer time.Improved security against device cloning and counterfeit productsCSA has also added security improvements to Matter with version 1.4.2. It uses cryptography to verify devices and check they are what they say they are. If they aren't, Matter controllers can revoke devices that are identified as being cloned or counterfeit, and you will get a warning about it.The new version of Matter also brings support for Access Restriction Lists (ARLs) on Wi-Fi routers so that platforms (like SmartThings) can be limited in what they can do on a router.Matter Scenes now work the same way on all platformsMoreover, you can create Matter Scenes that work similarly on all smart home platforms. For example, you can create a Matter Scene that works with just Matter devices. They will work faster and work even when there is no internet connectivity. Matter now also supports time-based conditions, which means you can create a Scene where a light slowly brightens up in the morning over a period of 30 minutes.New devices and functionalities will be notifiedMatter can now also identify devices that were added more than once. Such devices will be displayed just once in the smart home app of your choice.Devices that have more than one functionality will also be more reliably identified across smart home platforms. For example, if a device has a humidity and temperature sensor, both those capabilities will show up more reliably in Google Home or SmartThings apps.If a compatible smart home device gets a new feature via a firmware update, your smart home app will alert you about the new functionality. Similarly, if you add a new TP-Link Tapo device to your Tapo Hub, you will be notified about the new device in your Matter setup.Better support for Matter-based robot vacuum cleanersMatter 1.4.2 also adds improvements for robot vacuum cleaners, so they will work the same way in every Matter-compatible app. A current job being done by your robot vacuum cleaner won't need to end before you can assign another job. Multiple jobs assigned to such a device will be performed sequentially.Samsung could soon adopt Matter 1.4.2 into SmartThings All these improvements will only reach you when platforms like Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, Google Home, and Samsung SmartThings adopt these new versions of Matter. Samsung has usually been among the first brands to adopt new Matter releases, so Matter 1.4.2 could come to SmartThings later this year.The post Adding and controlling Matter devices in SmartThings will get more reliable appeared first on SamMobile.