Swedish furniture giant Ikea has added Thread credential sharing features to its app and Dirigera hub, marking a strong push toward a unified Thread network experience. Ikea is the second primary smart home platform to add this feature, following Samsung SmartThings.
How to use the new sharing feature
First, users will need the latest Ikea Home Smart app and Dirigera hub firmware. You can manually check for updates in your device’s app store and within the Ikea app’s hub settings.
Once updated, a new option named “Thread Network” will appear under your hub settings. The app provides two options:
If you are setting up a new Thread Border Router (TBR) and want it to join your existing Ikea network, you can generate a code. This code can then be pasted into the setup app for the new device – such as the SmartThings app – allowing it to join the Dirigera’s network.
Conversely, if you want your Dirigera hub to join a different, existing network, you can select “Join another network” and enter the code provided by that network’s managing app. However, please note that you may lose control of Thread devices on the old network if the Dirigera hub was the only TBR managing them. Unlike some hubs that run Zigbee and Thread on the same chip, this move will leave your Zigbee network untouched.
Why this matters
As Thread has grown in popularity, more smart home hubs and even appliances include Thread Border Router (TBR) capabilities. However, they usually create their own network instead of joining others, leaving you with a hidden mess of networks at home.
Imagine you have multiple Wi-Fi access points that won’t mesh with each other, even with different names; this is basically the case for Thread. You won’t know which network your devices are added to, or how to improve the network mesh if you are having connectivity issues. And sometimes, if a TBR goes down, other TBRs cannot pick up the job if they belong to a different Thread network.
Things started to improve with Thread 1.3, when Apple and Google added APIs for app developers to upload and fetch Thread network credentials. Now, with this new Thread 1.4 feature, you can simply share a Thread network just as you would a Matter device, using a QR code or numeric code. You should end up with a single, strong Thread mesh at home, increasing robustness.
Looking ahead
Apple, Amazon, and Google are all likely to add this feature. Apple previously rolled out Thread 1.4 support in a beta update for its HomePods and Apple TVs, but soon rolled it back. Google has demonstrated the feature, and some of Google’s and Amazon’s devices – like Nest Wi-Fi and Eero routers – are already running Thread 1.4, making them ready for this capability.
(Source: Ikea, Image Source: Ikea, Matter Alpha/Ward Zhou)
