If you need any more indication that Matter is not going to kill all of the pre-existing standards in the smart home anytime soon, check out the launch this week of Trident IoT, a new company devoted to building Z-wave chips. Trident was founded in April to design and support Z-wave devices, and launched this week with news that it is a month out from taping out its chips and plans to sample them to customers before the end of this year.
This is huge news for the smart home and the Z-Wave standard in particular. For decades, when I spoke to people about the Z-Wave standard, I heard praise for the mesh network’s reliability and frustration that only one company, Zensys, provided the silicon. This worried customers because they wanted a second source for chips to keep pricing in line, and act as an option in case Zensys went out of business.
In 2008, Zensys was purchased by Sigma Designs, and hopes for another silicon provider or an opening up of the standard rose, but Sigma Designs didn’t open up the radio protocol. In 2018 when Silicon Labs decided to buy Sigma Designs, Z-Wave customers got excited again. And in 2020, Silicon Labs started the process of opening up the standard by spinning out the Z-Wave Alliance. Then in 2022, the Z-Wave Alliance announced that the source code was available for anyone, and that the technology had been ported to a new chip.
So it’s been a long road to get to Trident IoT and a second source of Z-Wave chips. And in that time the smart home got more popular and talk of radio standards were subsumed in talk of interoperability between different vendor ecosystems. Instead of focusing on Z-Wave or ZigBee, customers were trying to figure out if a sensor worked with Nest or Alexa. Security companies still used Z-Wave in their systems, and hardcore DIYers could buy hubs that included Z-Wave radios, but after the big tech vendors said they would get behind the Matter standard for the smart home that would use Wi-Fi and Thread, it seemed like Z-Wave would fade away.
And it might, but not without a fight. I still talk to companies building security system hardware and access control devices that are invested in Z-Wave, and the Z-Wave Alliance has put a lot of effort into creating a long-range version of the mesh network that can send data over distances of a mile. As of March of this year, there were more than 4,000 certified Z-Wave devices, and Trident IoT Founder and CTO Mariusz Malkowski, says he’s talked to potential customers about building more.
Malkowski also explained that Trident IoT would focus on other protocols to ensure its customers could build devices that worked with Z-Wave, Matter, Thread, ZigBee or whatever the client needs. The company has engineers that specialize in many different IoT protocols. Trident’s embrace of all standards reminds me of Silicon Labs’ focus on becoming a dedicated IoT chip company.
Malkowski says Silicon Labs supports what the company is doing and there’s a quote from a Silicon Labs’ employee in Trident’s press release. I expect that if Trident does become successful it will encourage more companies to use Z-Wave or keep existing Z-Wave customers happy, as there’s now a secondary source of chips. This benefits both companies.
And frankly, it’s beneficial for customers too, especially if hubs are indeed making a comeback. Matter so far has its growing pains, and the potential benefits of a long-range Z-Wave option to power sensors in yards or distant access control devices is large. It looks like that XKCD comic about there being yet another standard is playing out in the smart home, but at least if you’re a company betting on Z-Wave, you have another option.
This is great news. I recently had some problems with ZWave JS and an 800 Series dongle, and I had thoughts of my whole ZWave network going into a box in the attic next to my Insteon gear. Everything is back to working order and this news means I can have faith that it will work for years to come.
That’s quite the step down from Insteon down to Zwave. I run an Insteon system and having a Zwave 800 series dongle and a few Zwave devices I dumped the Zwave for the immediate furure. Hearing so many attempting the route from Insteon to Zwave, most admit Zwave was a big step down for them too.
@Larry: Interesting. I was being a bit over-dramatic. I have a number of Insteon devices that have been working fine for years and years, although my PLM failed and I had to go to ebay to get a used one. I use Universal Devices ISY-994 which is controlled by Home Assistant. I use the Home Assistant add-on ZWave JS UI module to run the ZST39 dongle and the network. However, if any Insteon unit fails, it gets replaced with a ZWave or WiFi device. It’s a shame that SmartLabs failed. The dual mesh Insteon network seems so reliable. If only they had opened up the standard, and gotten multiple vendors (like ZWave alliance now has) SmartLabs could have kept a piece of a much bigger pie. Sad.
Hi there, is great to hear about your experiences with home automation technology!
@cwoodhouse, it’s wonderful that you were able to resolve your Z-Wave issues and that your smart home is back up and running smoothly.
@Larry, thanks for sharing your perspective. Every home automation system has its unique strengths, and we appreciate your insights. If you ever have any questions about Z-Wave or want to explore how it can compliment your existing setup, please feel free to reach out to us at [email protected] we’d love to help out as much as we can.
Regards,
Trident IoT – Support Team
Hi there, it’s great to hear about your experiences with home automation technology!
@cwoodhouse, it’s wonderful to hear that you were able to resolve your z-wave issues and that your smart home is back up and running.
@Larry, thanks for sharing your perspective. Every home automation system has its unique strengths, and we appreciate your insights. If you ever have any questions about z-wave or Trident IoT, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at [email protected]
Best regards,
Jonatan T. – Technical Support Manager.
I suspect the security system manufacturers (Vivint specifically and probably Ring) are doing backflips behind closed doors. Z-wave is the only vendor-agnostic wireless standard that meets UL standards for security systems. Having a second source of silicon will ease supply constraints and make z-wave component pricing much less erratic.
By the same token, security system companies make long-term contracts for supplies. That likely gives Trident a completely different kind of financial model when they can sign a 5-year contract with Everspring or whoever to provide z-wave components for motion sensors or door sensors that will go to ADT, Vivint, Ring or Alarm.com.
Hello JMcP,
You’ve raised an excellent point about the impact of Z-Wave advancements on the smart home industry, particularly for security systems. We greatly appreciate your insights.
At Trident IoT, we are committed to fostering innovation and accessibility in the IoT space. One of our primary goals is to empower small vendors and startups by providing them with a reliable source of Z-Wave components. By offering a diverse range of components and easing supply constraints, we aim to help these small vendors bring their innovative solutions to life.
We also believe that by facilitating access to these components, we can contribute to the growth and diversity of the smart home market.
If you have any questions or if there’s anything specific you’d like to know about us, please feel free to contact us at [email protected]
Best regards,
Trident IoT – Support Team.
Uptime and long range must be no#1, then you win our hearts
Hello Brengt,
Thank you for highlighting the importance of uptime and long-range capabilities in smart home tech.
Exciting news: our latest chip (coming soon) offers impressive improvements, with pin-to-pin compatibility and significant upgrades, including extended range of over 1 mile with Z-Wave LR.
For more details on this game-changing chip, visit https://tridentiot.com/products/#tzm8202. It’s designed to redefine your smart home experience.
Feel free to explore and reach out to us for any inquiries at [email protected] or, if you need a quote, email [email protected]
Best regards,
Trident IoT – Support Team.
Someone tell Inovelli, they desperately need a new Z-Wave chip supplier.
Hello Ledhed,
We appreciate your comment and understand the importance of reliable Z-Wave chip suppliers in the smart home industry.
If you have any suggestions or if you believe that Trident IoT’s Z-Wave offerings could benefit Inovelli or other smart home device manufacturers, please feel free to share our contact information with them. We’re always open to exploring partnerships and collaborations to enhance the smart home ecosystem.
Your input is valuable, and we’re here to support a thriving community of smart home enthusiasts and manufacturers alike. If you have any questions or would like to know more about our Z-Wave solutions, please do not hesitate to reach out to us at [email protected]
Best regards,
Trident IoT – Support Team
Hubs (that can work offline) are really the only way to go
Hello Steve,
You’re absolutely right about the significance of hubs, particularly when it comes to offline functionality in the smart home.
Offline capabilities indeed play a crucial role in ensuring continuous and reliable smart home operations. They are essential for maintaining connectivity, even in situations where internet access might be intermittent or unavailable.
If you have any questions about or Z-Wave offerings, please feel free to reach out to us at [email protected]
Best regards,
Trident IoT – Support Team
Hello. I began years ago with the serie 500 but I was not very happy with. The items are expensive compared to other technologies. If I send commands to 10+ items than some not reacting. The state provided back from the items are not arrived/updated every time. Some actors stop to communicate with the hub in every 2-3 months and they need to be deleted and paired again. Lot of annoying things… I hope it would better
Hello Rin,
Thank you for sharing your experiences with the Z-Wave 500 series. We appreciate your feedback and understand your concerns.
Reliability and consistency are paramount in smart home technology, and it’s disappointing to hear about the challenges you’ve faced. We’re sorry to hear about the issues you’ve encountered with items not always responding and the occasional need to re-pair devices.
It’s worth noting that Z-Wave technology has evolved over the years, and newer series, such as the Z-Wave 800 series, bring improvements in range, performance, and reliability. We’re continuously working to enhance the smart home experience, and we hope you’ll consider exploring these newer options.
If you have any questions or if there’s anything specific you’d like assistance with, please do not hesitate to reach out to us at [email protected]
Best regards,
Trident IoT – Support Team