Zigbee’s Next Big Update Lets You Add Smart Home Devices Without A Hub

The Connectivity Standards Alliance has released Zigbee 4.0, an updated type of its wireless mesh networking modular pinch amended security, improved artillery life, and batch setup of caller devices for illustration smart lights, switches, and plugs. It’s besides announcing a caller characteristic called Suzi, which is short for Sub-GHz and Zigbee. 

While Zigbee smart location devices typically run connected nan 2.4GHz band, which tin acquisition awesome nonaccomplishment caused by obstacles for illustration heavy walls, Suzi-branded devices will beryllium capable to activity connected nan European 800 MHz and North American 900 MHz wave bands. That way, nan group says they’ll connection sum for smart devices installed extracurricular and farther distant from a home, without nan request for further hardware to widen nan networks.

Suzi is akin to different branded features that person been added to nan 802.15.4-based spec complete nan years, for illustration Zigbee Smart Energy usage monitoring gear, and nan low-power / low-maintenance Zigbee Green Power devices that harvest power from sources for illustration ray aliases power alternatively of utilizing batteries.

As companies for illustration Ikea person been making nan modulation to Matter complete Thread, which besides operates connected nan 2.4GHz band, nan advantages of Suzi will thief support nan Zigbee protocol competitive, and not conscionable successful nan home. “Suzi is simply a beardown fresh for commercialized and business use-cases, which present challenging environments specified arsenic heavy walls, aggregate levels, and ample deployments,” Genie Peshkova, chair of nan Zigbee Product Marketing Group, explained to The Verge successful an email.

The database of improvements coming pinch Zigbee 4.0 includes a simplified certification process, accrued accusation speech betwixt devices, amended security, and improved artillery life for devices pinch communications that tin beryllium constricted to group schedules.

A caller characteristic called Batch Commissioning will streamline large-scale installations by allowing aggregate smart devices to beryllium group up simultaneously. An electrician could instal Zigbee-compatible ray bulbs passim a caller location agelong earlier there’s moreover power, and erstwhile a hub is later installed and running, they tin beryllium activated astatine erstwhile alternatively of having to adhd them to nan web individually. 

Zigbee Direct, a antecedently optional characteristic added 2 years ago, is now modular successful 4.0. It allows smartphones to straight connect, control, and moreover adhd adjacent Zigbee devices to a web utilizing Bluetooth Low Energy without a hub.

Zigbee 4.0 is afloat backwards compatible pinch Zigbee 3.0 and Smart Energy devices, and devices pinch “sufficient operational resources” tin perchance beryllium upgraded over-the-air erstwhile certified, according to Peshkova. But precisely which devices will beryllium eligible to return afloat advantage of nan improvements isn’t yet known. The Suzi certification programme is scheduled to commencement sometime successful nan first half of 2026.