Samsung adds SmartThings Now to Home tab and expands local control

SmartThings Now puts suggestions at the top of the Home tab

According to Samsung, SmartThings now serves 470 million registered users and supports 430+ Works with SmartThings (WWST)-certified brands worldwide. The new update builds on Home Insight and combines relevant information with actions users can take right away.

Samsung gave several examples of how the cards work:

• If a Family Care member, such as an older parent, shows no device activity for an extended period, SmartThings Now shows the caregiver a care card with options to check in or call.
• When the user arrives near a home location pre-registered in the app, it suggests turning on lights and air purifiers in advance. After the user acts, it prompts them to create a routine so the same actions can run automatically in future.

SmartThings Now also adapts to usage patterns. It analyzes the past week's activity to suggest changes to Home tab Favorites, including devices, services and routines. Samsung's examples include removing an air conditioner card as usage drops in cooler months, or adding an AirDresser card as that appliance is used more during the change of seasons. A Routine Insight card lets users review their routine activity over the past week and delete routines they no longer need. Routine Insight is also available in the Automations > Suggestions tab.

Redesigned Home tab and Floating Bar

The updated Home tab reorganizes key information into a more streamlined view covering dashboards, device cards and service cards, each shown in a format meant to be easier to browse. Service cards use a more space-efficient design, so more services fit on one screen and show details such as device status and numerical readings. Live Wallpaper changes through the day.

A new Floating Bar places frequently used features at the bottom of the screen. Samsung says this improves one-handed use on larger smartphones and reflects the latest One UI design direction.

According to Samsung, the updated Home tab, including SmartThings Now, is available across SmartThings-supported devices such as mobile devices, Samsung Smart TVs, Family Hub refrigerators, Samsung appliances with 7-inch or 9-inch screens, and Windows devices.

Local control and Matter 1.6 support

The update introduces local control technology meant to keep devices working more reliably when the home network changes or external internet service is disrupted. When a mobile device and a SmartThings Hub are on the same Wi-Fi network, the phone can talk directly to the hub instead of routing commands through the cloud. Samsung says local control can improve response times by approximately 30% compared with cloud-based control, based on tests it conducted under controlled conditions. It adds that actual performance may vary with the user's environment.

SmartThings switches automatically between local and cloud-based remote control depending on whether the mobile device is at home or away. Local control is available on Android and iOS devices with the SmartThings app, for SmartThings Station, SmartThings V2, V3 and V4 Hubs, and for hub-enabled Samsung Smart TVs and Family Hub.

An updated Offline Device Diagnostics page helps users restore offline devices by updating new network information across all registered devices at once.

Samsung has also added support for Matter 1.6, the latest smart home connectivity standard from the Connectivity Standards Alliance. The company says this improves stability and Group Control performance. Four new device categories are supported:

• Energy Meters for real-time power monitoring
• Closures for specialized door and gate types
• Irrigation devices such as sprinkler systems
• Soil Sensors for measuring ground conditions

What it means for SmartThings users

Jaeyeon Jung, Executive Vice President and Head of the SmartThings Team, AI Platform Center, Samsung Electronics, said the update is "another step in SmartThings' ongoing efforts to move beyond a home experience where users search for and launch features." The direction is a home app that offers the next relevant action instead of waiting for users to find it.

For people with hubs, local control aims to keep devices responsive during short network problems. The Matter 1.6 support and the four new device categories widen the range of equipment the platform can handle, from energy monitoring to garden irrigation.