Matter by Firmware Update: What It Changes on a Device You Own

A Matter update can take away the connection you already use. Leviton says installing Matter firmware on its 2nd Gen Decora Smart Wi-Fi devices “will remove your Decora Smart Wi-Fi device’s current connection to Apple HomeKit.” You then add the device to Apple Home again with a Matter pairing code. If a Leviton dimmer runs your Apple Home scenes today, accepting that update is a setup job, not a background refresh.

Leviton is the clearest case in our records, not the only one. Three different problems show up across makers. An update can swap one connection for another. A product page can promise an update the maker’s support pages don’t list. And a Matter badge can sit on a device whose Matter support hasn’t shipped.

What Leviton documents

The Leviton Decora Smart Wi-Fi Dimmer, 2nd Gen (D26HD) shows how the update works. Leviton has discontinued it in favour of the D36HD, but it still works and still has a Matter path.

• It’s opt-in. Matter comes through Leviton’s Early Access program in the My Leviton app: firmware 1.4.8 or later first, then Matter firmware 2.1.0 or later.
• HomeKit is removed. The dimmer leaves Apple Home and has to be re-added with the Matter pairing code shown in the My Leviton app.
• Alexa and Google Home carry on. Leviton says existing cloud integrations are not affected, so both routes can run side by side.
• Home Assistant gains a route. Our record shows no official Leviton integration for this dimmer. The documented route is the Matter firmware plus Home Assistant’s own Matter support.

Leviton doesn’t say whether Apple Home scenes and automations that used the dimmer survive re-adding it. Our records don’t answer that either, so check each one afterwards.

Apple Home over Matter also has its own requirement. Leviton says controlling Matter accessories from the Home app and Siri needs an Apple home hub, such as a HomePod or Apple TV.

When the product page and the support page disagree

Leviton’s Matter support article names the 2nd Gen devices eligible for the update: the D26HD dimmer, D215S switch, D215P mini plug-in switch and D23LP mini plug-in dimmer. Two other Leviton products advertise the update on their own pages:

• The Leviton D215R smart outlet page says a firmware update in the My Leviton app enables Matter. The outlet isn’t on the support article’s list.
• The Leviton D24SF fan speed controller page advertises Matter too, and it isn’t on the list either.

Our records don’t list Matter for either product until Leviton’s documents agree. If you need Matter, don’t buy either one because of the product page. If you own one and rely on HomeKit, the removal warning above is the reason to wait for Leviton to settle it.

Leviton’s newer D315S switch avoids the update because it ships with Matter. The trade runs the other way: Leviton documents no direct HomeKit route for it, so Apple Home reaches it through a HomePod or Apple TV acting as the Matter controller. Its name is also one digit away from the 2nd Gen D215S, and they are different products.

Same model number, different firmware

Eve lists two units under one model number for each of its third-generation door and motion sensors. The earlier Eve Door & Window (2020) and Eve Motion (2022) advertise Bluetooth and Thread with a Matter update available. The 2023 versions ship with Matter. Old stock or a second-hand sensor may need the update before it pairs as a Matter device.

Eve’s documented upgrade process calls for an iPhone or iPad. Eve doesn’t clearly say whether its Android app can install the update.

Eve’s upgrade page lists eight products with a Matter path. The Eve Water Guard isn’t one of them, and Eve says it has no timeline or order to share. The Water Guard still does its job in Apple Home, but it has no Matter route to other platforms today.

A promise is not a feature

Two products in our records carry Matter on the box or the page without having it yet.

• Eve Flare. Eve says the lamp “will receive a free firmware update to Matter at a later date” and publishes no date. Until then it works only with Apple Home, plus Home Assistant through its HomeKit support, which removes the lamp from Apple Home. Our records show no route to Alexa, Google Home or SmartThings.
• Dreame L50 Ultra. The robot holds a real Matter certificate for this model, but Dreame’s own footnote says Matter is “available through an upcoming OTA update”. Apple Home’s robot vacuum support needs Matter to be live on the device, so the L50 Ultra doesn’t appear in the Home app today. Siri works for basic commands.

In both cases the maker has published no date. A certificate or a “Ready for Matter” line tells you the maker plans to deliver, not when.

Updates change old answers

Firmware updates also make older articles wrong. The Honeywell Home T9 gained HomeKit in a free update in November 2021, so coverage from before then that says it lacks HomeKit is out of date. The T9 is now discontinued, and our record says it will not get Matter. When you research a device, check the date on whatever you’re reading against the maker’s update history.

Before you accept or buy on a Matter update

• List the platforms the device uses now. If Apple Home is one of them, find out whether the update removes that connection, as Leviton’s does.
• Find the model on the maker’s support list, not only its product page. Leviton’s two lists disagree, and the support article is the narrower one.
• Have the new pairing route ready. For Leviton, that means the Matter code in the My Leviton app and an Apple home hub for Apple Home. For Eve, it means an iPhone or iPad.
• Check your automations afterwards. Nothing we read says they carry across when a device is re-added.
• Price the product as it works today. A promised update with no date is not a reason to pay for Matter now.

If Matter itself is new to you, what Matter is and what it still doesn’t fix covers the basics. The smart switch directory shows which switches ship with Matter and which reach it by update.