Just as USB ports allowed all devices to plug into all machines, so the Matter protocol means all connected devices will work with each other, he said, and users will no longer need to download a different app for each device.Each brand is now trying to convince the public to adopt its app to centralize control of household appliances.Yet for now, consumers have largely limited their buy-in to the connected home to inexpensive "smart" speakers, using them as timers or to listen to music.A spokesperson for CTA, the industry body that organizes CES, said connected home devices were facing "a tough year in the US because of the decline in home sales".In the same field, US company Savant has designed a connected fuse box that will help people monitor energy use."