Anyone setting up Matter devices needs a Matter Controller. In many cases, this is a product from Amazon, Apple, Google, or SmartThings. But Ikea, 1Home, Busch-Jaeger, and Athom with the Homey Pro also offer solutions. Now Symcon (link) joins the list: The German company will soon release Symcon 9.0, the latest generation of its control and automation software.
In addition to other new features, the application includes a Matter-Controller. For now, it is still in beta, but CEO Michael Maroszek is confident: “Matter solves a problem that has developed over the past 20 years that Symcon has been on the market. There are too many manufacturers with proprietary protocols whose products are not compatible with one another.”
Finally, according to Maroszek, there is a standard that is sufficiently well known and supported by many major manufacturers. He particularly values its reliance on local communication: “How often does a company discontinue a business unit and, after shutting down its cloud service, leave customers with nothing but electronic waste? This is where Matter clearly scores points.”
Who Or What Is Symcon?
Symcon GmbH is a German software and automation company based in Lübeck. It has built a strong reputation among professional system integrators and electricians, as its products offer greater security in terms of support, product maintenance, and liability than typical open-source solutions. A directory on the company’s website lists integrators who work with Symcon (link). End users can also order system components directly from the manufacturer’s online store and set them up at home.
The core product is the eponymous building automation software, available in German and English. It connects systems and standards that typically do not communicate with each other. For example, a wired KNX installation can be combined with Philips Hue (wireless/Zigbee), Sonos (audio), and a ModBus heat pump under a single interface. The software runs on desktop operating systems such as Windows, macOS, and Ubuntu (Linux), as well as on Raspberry Pi, as a Docker container, and on NAS systems from QNAP and Synology. Alternatively, the company offers the SymBox Pro, a DIN-rail PC with preinstalled software.
A paid license is normally required to run the software. The purchase price depends on the scope of the installation and includes a twelve-month subscription with software updates and online services. After the year has expired, the subscription can be renewed for a modest annual fee. With the release of Symcon 9.0, however, the company is also offering a free community edition for the first time. “It includes all of Symcon’s offline functions but may not be used commercially,” explains Michael Maroszek.
Instead of manufacturer support, users rely on the Symcon community (link), and the installation size is limited to 500 data points. “Matter devices typically have multiple variables – for on/off, color temperature, or battery life. If we assume ten variables per device – which is on the high side – at least 50 Matter products can be set up in the Community Edition.” The download can be requested via a link on the website (link).
The Matter Features Of Symcon 9.0
As a controller, Symcon 9.0 provides the standard functions for setting up new devices. The manufacturer’s app scans the unique QR code of the Matter product. Alternatively, devices already installed in another ecosystem can be shared there and integrated into Symcon using the Multi-Admin feature.
For development, the Lübeck-based team uses the Matter 1.5 SDK but initially implemented only the most important device types from Matter 1.4. These include lights, actuators, sensors, thermostats, window coverings, and door locks. Robot vacuums, air purifiers, air conditioners, and battery storage systems are also supported.
Large household appliances such as refrigerators and washing machines, as well as heat pumps and EV chargers, are not yet included – either because corresponding products are not yet available on the market or because they are costly. Symcon follows a strategy of acquiring at least one unit of each device type and testing it in practice. The CEO notes: “We now have various hubs, bridges, and numerous devices supporting Matter over Thread as well as Matter over Wi-Fi. The team affectionately calls this collection their hardware tower for testing.”
Remote controls are planned for the next release, and the visualization of certain device types is to be further optimized. In addition, Symcon hopes for a cross-platform solution for Thread credential sharing, as provided for in the standard since Matter 1.4. This would simplify the use of Thread products because Symcon could access installed Border Routers on the network. “Particularly on Android, we depend on the border router manufacturer’s app properly storing these Thread credentials in the smartphone’s operating system so that we can use them,” explains Maroszek.
Platforms such as Amazon, Apple, Google, or Ikea do not face this issue, as they use their own hubs with an integrated Thread Border Router. With purely software-based controllers such as Symcon’s, this is not possible. And the SymBox Pro would not be the ideal location either: mounted on the top-hat rail in the metal distribution box, it is not ideally placed in terms of radio technology.
Beta Status – Also Due to Thread
In general, the Symcon boss would like to see more transparency when Thread connection issues arise: “Such errors are currently very difficult to isolate at the customer’s end. The question always arises: Is it the Matter SDK or our integration? Is the route to the Thread Border Router currently missing? Is IPv6 misconfigured? What about mDNS? Or is the end device malfunctioning and in need of a firmware update?” In his view, “there is still room for improvement before integrators can confidently deploy Matter on a large scale.”
For that reason, the “Beta” label will only be removed once these initial issues have been resolved and Symcon considers its Matter Controller fully stable. Michael Maroszek sees strong prospects: “We assume that border router functionality will, in the long term, be integrated into Wi-Fi access points and that Thread will be available in every home as infrastructure, serving as a backbone for Matter – or other systems.”
For the company, the controller is a logical continuation of its corporate philosophy. SymBox & Co. already support a wide range of manufacturers and professional gateways or interfaces – from 1-Wire to BACnet, digitalSTROM, EnOcean, LCN, KNX, and ModBus. With Matter, the automation and control options now become even more extensive.
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