Alongside the new Wemo HomeKit Smart Video Doorbell, Belkin has unveiled that its Wemo Smart Plug, Smart Light Switch, and Smart Dimmer will be seeing an upgrade this year with Matter over Thread support. That will mean faster and more reliable connections with greater range for the HomeKit devices.
Belkin announced the Wemo news at CES this evening:
The underlying technology Matter is using to enable that is Thread. We’ve already seen a number of smart device company’s adopt Thread like Apple with HomePod mini, Nanoleaf, Eve, and more.
Belkin hasn’t shared specific pricing or release details for the new Wemo HomeKit Smart Plug, Switch, and Dimmer with Matter over Thread support but they will be coming “later this year in 25 countries.”
For reference, the current Wemo HomeKit-enabled Smart Plug goes for $25, Smart Light Switch sells for $30, and Smart Dimmer goes from $40 ($75 for a 2-pack).
It’s great to see more smart home devices getting Matter/Thread support as it offers real-world improvements for smart home setups. I’ve been using Thread with several Nanoleaf smart lights, and the speed and reliability are noticeably better than most of my smart home devices without Thread.
The reason Thread excels is because it’s a purpose-made mesh networking protocol for smart home devices with direct peer-to-peer communication. It’s also self-maintaining and self-healing, which means you’re less likely to see “Device not responding” errors and the like. For a deeper dive into Thread, learn more here.
