- What's the Difference?

Matter is the new smart home connectivity standard that enables compatibility between devices from different brands. As Matter devices start hitting the market, you'll see them refer to "hubs" and "bridges". What exactly is the difference between these two terms?

What is a Matter Hub?

A Matter hub is a central device that controllers connect to and communicate through. Hubs help manage the various devices on the network. They allow you to control connected devices from a single access point in one location. A Matter hub is required if you want to add, control, and manage various Matter smart home devices in one single platform.

Some Common Matter hubs include:

- Amazon Echo/Alexa devices

- Google Home/Nest Hub products

- Apple HomePod

eWeLink-supported Matter Hub

Sonoff's NSPanel Pro is the eWeLink-supported Matter hub with which you can add the Matter smart home devices to eWeLink. Please note that the latest version of NSPanel Pro firmware(version 2.0.0) is required if you want to add it to serve as a Matter hub. Next year, SONOFF iHost will also function as a Matter hub.

What is a Matter Bridge?

A Matter bridge is a device that can bring non-Matter products into the Matter ecosystem. It acts as an intermediary between Matter and non-Matter devices. For example, if you have an older Zigbee plug, a Matter bridge could connect it to your Matter network. The bridge translates between the two protocols allowing compatibility.

Bridges help integrate your existing smart home tech with new Matter devices. They bring legacy products into the new standard. Right now, if you don't have the budget for Matter-compatible devices, consider the Matter bridge to transform your non-Matter devices into Matter-enabled ones. For example, you can connect your Zigbee, Z Wave and Bluetooth devices to Matter network.