It’s actually a very simple question, but I’m having trouble understanding some of the basics.
According to various threads and posts, using Homey Pro to manage Thread and Zigbee devices in parallel can cause problems, I’d like to manage my Thread devices using an Apple HomePod mini instead.
But what do I have to do to get it?
With the Homey smartphone app, it is possible to add Thread devices via Homey or via iOS.
The support article “Thread for Homey Pro and Homey Pro mini” explains that if you want to integrate a Matter device into an existing iOS Thread network, you should select the “Connect via iOS” option:
So when I connect the device via Homey, the Homey network address appears in Developer Tools → Matter, and there is only one entry listed under “Fabrics.”:
I think that you need to add the Thread devices to Apple, and then use something like the HomeKit to get them into Homey. However, I don’t have experience with Apple home or Matter/Thread so this is just a guess
I think Dirk likes to use an Apple TBR to connect Matter-over-Thread devices to Homey instead of using Homey’s TBR.
That should be possible imho.
It’s for sure not possible when one uses the web app + Homey BLE to pair Matter-over-Thread devices
Like when an Android device is locked onto a Google TBR, it uses that TBR to add Matter-over-Thread devices to Homey.
F.i. with Home Assistant I can select any available TBR as default TBR, like OTBR / Google hub / Homey Pro.
I’m aware it’s not the same environment, but the way Matter/Thread connectivity works is kind of universal?
But if you want to use another bridge (the Apple device instead of the Homey), then you first need to add the devices to Apple (so that you can control them there in their app) and then find a way to add the Apple devices to Homey, right? Similar to how you can connect Hue bulbs to a Hue bridge, and then get the Hue bridge into Homey via the cloud or LAN API
To add the device to an Apple TBR is a further possibility, that’s correct. But it isn’t necessary to import the devices into Homey using another Homey app. In theory, you should be able to generate a Matter QR code for each device using the Apple Home app, and then scan that code with the Homey smartphone app so that the device becomes available in Homey.
But that’s not how it’s explained in the support article…
Correct
Correct
That’s correct, too, but it seems to work differently with Apple.
It’s true that the devices, whether Matter over Wi-Fi or Matter over Thread, are able to communicate with each other using the universal Matter language.
I think I don’t quite understand Matter in that case, so you mean that unlike Zigbee, a device can connect to multiple Thread networks? The only experience I’ve had with Matter was with Google Home where it was either not able to find the devices or the devices would disconnect randomly, after which I completely gave up on it.
No, a Matter device can only be connected to one network at a time, just like Zigbee devices.
But Matter devices can communicate with other Matter devices connected to other TBRs.
To be more precise, I tried to say the way how Matter-over-Thread devices should be added to some system.
If it pairs with H.A. in certain ways, the pair procedure should work in some similar way with Homey, like, pick your preferred TBR when you add your first Matter-over-Thread device
Matter-over-Thread/-wifi is still a pretty vague technique to me.
I still don’t like it
