Thread Vs Matter: What’s the Difference (Easy To Understand)

Matter and Thread are two new(ish) technologies that are used in the world of Smart Homes. There is often some confusion about what the difference is between Matter and Thread. This article will use a simple analogy, easy enough for even a young child to grasp, to clarify their differences.

Imagine you’re talking to a friend on the phone. To have a good chat, you need two things: a working telephone so you can hear each other, and a shared language so you understand what the other person is saying. If you only have one but not the other, the conversation can’t happen. The same idea helps us understand Thread and Matter in smart homes.

Thread is the Telephone

Thread is like the telephone. It’s the thing that lets devices in your smart home connect to each other. Just like telephones can connect to anyone with a phone number, Thread creates a network where smart devices, like your lights, door locks, and sensors can connect to send messages back and forth.

Thread:

• Reliable Network: If one part of the network breaks (like one telephone line going down), Thread finds another way to get the message through. 
• Low Power: Thread doesn’t use much electricity, so it’s great for small smart home devices that run on batteries
• Thread Hardware:  To use Thread a smart home device must have Thread hardware. Thread is not software, so devices can’t be upgraded to use Thread.
• Thread Border Router: Hardware is required to connect Thread network devices with WiFi, giving access to the internet. Som smart home assistants have a Thread Border Router built-in, for example, Apple  HomePod, Google Nest Hub and some Amazon Echo devices

Matter is the Language

Now let’s talk about Matter. Matter is like the language you use when talking on the phone, like English, Spanish, or French. It makes sure that everyone on the call understands what’s being said, no matter what brand of telephone they’re using. In smart homes, Matter makes sure devices from different brands (like Apple, Google, and Amazon) can all talk to each other.

Matter:

• Universal Language: Devices that “speak Matter” can talk to each other. It’s like using English to chat with friends from different places.
• Easy Setup: It’s simple to teach devices the Matter language, so setting up your smart home is less tricky.
• Security: Matter makes sure the conversation is private, so no one outside your smart home can listen in.
• Future Proof: As more brands learn to “speak Matter,” you’ll have more cool devices to choose from, like smart toys for your room!
• Protocol: Matter doesn’t require special hardware to work. It is more like software that runs on hardware

How Thread and Matter Work Together

Thread is the telephone, how devices in your smart home connect. Matter is the language, how those devices understand each other. Without Thread, devices can’t “call” each other. Without Matter, devices can’t “talk” to each other properly. But when Thread and Matter work together, they create a smart home where all your smart devices can communicate.

Matter can also use WiFi or Ethernet to talk with smart home devices, it isn’t limited to just using Thread.

Matter doesn’t work over specialised smart home tech like Zigbee and Zwave, which use their own special language.