Gadronics Ikea’s long-awaited Matter-compatible smart bulbs have finally arrived in the US. This comes months after the retailer first announced its new generation of connected lighting.
The bulbs are part of Ikea’s wider Matter smart home push that was revealed late last year. As shared by The Verge, they’re now available through the company’s online store as well as many of its retail locations across the country.
The big change this time around is support for Matter over Thread. Thread is the cross-platform smart home standard designed to make devices work more reliably across different ecosystems.
In theory, that means the new Ikea bulbs should integrate more easily with platforms such as Apple Home, Amazon Alexa and Google Home. They also benefit from the low-power, mesh networking advantages that Thread offers.
Ikea’s lighting range has long been one of the more affordable entry points into the smart home world. It often undercuts premium options from brands like Philips Hue. The new Matter-enabled models continue that approach, with prices starting at just $5.99 for a 450-lumen Kajplats E26 smart white bulb.
Several variants are available, including both E26 and E12 fittings, different brightness levels, and options for either white spectrum lighting or full colour support. Prices range up to $13.99 for the brightest 1,600-lumen model. Additionally, Ikea is selling starter kits that bundle a bulb with its Bilresa wireless remote, starting at $9.99.
The launch hasn’t been completely smooth, though. Early adopters have reported issues connecting the bulbs to Ikea’s own Dirigera hub as well as to other Matter platforms. Ikea has acknowledged the problems and recently pushed a firmware update aimed at improving what it calls “Matter onboarding stability.” However, it’s not yet clear whether that fully resolves the connectivity hiccups some users have experienced.
