Shop E Store Zigbee just took a big step forward. The Connectivity Standards Alliance has announced Zigbee 4.0, a major update to the long-running smart home protocol.
The main change is a feature that many users have wanted for years: you can now add Zigbee devices directly from your smartphone, without needing a hub.
The update brings Zigbee Direct to the standard, allowing phones to use Bluetooth Low Energy to pair and control nearby devices. In practice, that means you’ll be able to configure things like lights, sensors, and switches even if you haven’t installed a hub yet, a welcome convenience for renters, beginners, and anyone who’s ever crawled under a cabinet looking for a network reset button.
But the other major addition could have an even bigger impact. Zigbee introduces Suzi, short for Sub-GHz and Zigbee. While traditional Zigbee devices remain in the crowded 2.4 GHz band, Suzi-certified products will be able to operate on 800 MHz in Europe and 900 MHz in North America. These low frequency bands travel further and adapt much better to walls, making them ideal for outdoor sensors, sheds, garages or longer distance installations where Wi-Fi and Thread often have problems.
The CSA says Suzi won’t just help in homes, either. Sub-GHz support should be a good option for commercial and industrial spaces: places with thick concrete, multi-level designs, or huge deployments where range and reliability matter more than raw speed.
Zigbee 4.0 also brings several quality of life improvements across the board. There’s improved security and more efficient data sharing between devices, along with better battery life for sensors that only need to communicate on a set schedule. The certification process has been simplified for manufacturers and a new batch commissioning feature allows installers to configure large groups of devices at once. In practice, that means an electrician could install Zigbee light bulbs throughout a new building before even turning on the power, and then activate them all together instead of adding them manually.
The update supports Zigbee 3.0 and Smart Energy device products may be eligible for over-the-air updates, although it’s too early to tell which ones.
The Suzi certification program will begin in the first half of 2026, but major improvements to Zigbee 4.0 are now officially part of the standard. And while the smart home has leaned heavily toward Matter and Thread in recent years, this update is a stark reminder: Zigbee isn’t retiring, it’s evolving to stay in the game.
