A smart home without a smartphone: buttons, voice and automation

What still needs an app

Be honest about this at the start. A phone or tablet is normally required to:

• Set up devices, scan the Matter setup code and connect them to Wi-Fi.
• Create the home, rooms and automations.
• Install firmware updates and approve security prompts.
• Add or remove people and change codes.

The practical answer is a division of labor. One person, such as a family member, a neighbor or you with an old phone kept for the purpose, handles setup and a quarterly check. Everyone else uses the home without ever opening an app.

Five ways to control things without a phone

For the speaker-or-display choice, see smart display vs smart speaker.

Let the home do the work: automations

The most phone-free setup is the one where nobody needs to ask. Examples that need no daily input:

• Hall and bathroom lights on at low brightness when a motion sensor sees someone at night.
• Porch light on at sunset and off at a set time.
• A morning schedule that raises the thermostat before breakfast.
• A leak or door alert sent to a family member’s phone, not to the resident.

These run on the controller in your home. Google’s list of starters includes time, sunrise and sunset, device state and sensor readings; Apple’s Home app offers time of day, sensors, accessory control and people arriving or leaving. See routine ideas for patterns to copy.

Make sure a controller owns the automations

Automations should live on a device that is always on at home, not on a phone. Each ecosystem has its own requirement:

• Apple Home: a home hub (HomePod or Apple TV) is required to add Matter accessories and to run automations.
• Google Home: a Matter-enabled hub on your network controls Matter devices locally.
• Alexa: a compatible Echo device acts as the Matter administrator; Thread devices need a Thread border router.

If the controller is unplugged or moved, automations can stop. Put it somewhere out of the way and label the plug.

Buttons, remotes and labels

• Place buttons where hands go: by the bed, beside the door and near the favorite chair. A large single button is easier than a row of small ones.
• Label them in plain words: “Lights off”, “Bedtime”.
• Keep the wall switches working. A bulb cut off at the wall is the most common reason a smart home “stops working”.
• Keep the key. If you add a smart lock, choose one that keeps a key or keypad as a backup, so a dead battery or a down network never locks anyone out.

Privacy and consent

Speakers and displays listen for a wake word, and some displays have cameras. Choose devices with a physical microphone switch, and check the camera. Google documents a hardware switch on the back of its camera-equipped display that turns off both the microphone and the camera. When the smart home is for an older relative, agree with the person on what is monitored and who receives alerts. See our smart speaker for seniors guide.

If the internet or the power goes out

Voice assistants that depend on the cloud stop during an internet outage, while local automations and wall buttons on a Matter controller keep working. Physical switches, keys and keypads always keep working. Test each by unplugging the router once, with the person who lives there.

For longer-term setups for older adults, see the aging in place kit and the voice control kit.