by Dan Moren
There’s a Thread running through many of Apple’s latest products
No, not Meta’s social networking platform: Thread, the smart home radio chip.1 You know, the one Apple quietly put in its HomePods, iPhone 15 models and, *ahem* some Apple TVs. The Verge’s Jennifer Pattison Tuohy reports that the company has also been sneaking it into all sorts of hardware since last fall, including the brand new iPad Pro and iPad Air, the latest MacBook Pros, and more:
While the company doesn’t list Thread on the specs of any of these products, FCC reports indicate that many of Apple’s latest devices have had Thread radios tested for compliance. Generally, you don’t test a radio that’s not there.
Yes, it’s a mystery that can best be exemplified by a Ryan Reynolds GIF. It’s unclear whether or not these radios are active and, if they are, what they’re being used for.
Thread is a mesh system, and adding the capability into more devices could help improve connectivity and coverage for smart home devices across your home, especially as the Matter standard (which supports Thread alongside Wi-Fi and Ethernet) continues to roll out. But it’s also possible that Apple’s just throwing them in there because, oh well, they could be useful at some point in the indeterminate future. Kind of like the Ultra Wideband chip. So I guess the company will probably just keep including Thread until it’s in all of their devices and product lines2, at which point…profit?