FRITZ!Smart Gateway gets Matter fixes

A smart home hub is supposed to be a translator, but a bad translation breaks the whole room. On April 9, 2026, AVM pushed FRITZ!OS 8.26 to the FRITZ!Smart Gateway to fix exactly that kind of problem. (deskmodder.de) The FRITZ!Smart Gateway is AVM’s box for pulling non-Internet radios into one setup, including Zigbee, Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications Ultra Low Energy, and Home Area Network Functional Networking devices. AVM also uses it as a Matter bridge, which means older device types can show up inside newer smart-home systems that speak Matter. (fritz.com 1) (fritz.com 2) Matter is the cross-brand language here, like putting every gadget on the same group chat instead of forcing each brand into its own app. AVM says the gateway can bridge FRITZ!, Home Area Network Functional Networking, and Zigbee devices into an existing Matter network. (fritz.com 1) (fritz.com 2) Before this update, the bridge mostly exposed single devices, which is useful but limited. FRITZ!OS 8.26 now lets groups, templates, and routines appear on the Matter side too, so a multi-device action can travel across platforms instead of staying trapped inside AVM’s own controls. (matter-smarthome.de) (teltarif.de) AVM defines a group as several similar devices controlled together, like multiple lamps acting as one switch. A template stores a preset state, and a routine is an if-this-then-that rule that can trigger those saved states automatically. (matter-smarthome.de) (fritz.com) The practical change is that a Google Home, Home Assistant, or SmartThings setup can now see more of the logic you already built inside FRITZ!, not just the raw bulbs and plugs. That cuts down on duplicate setup, where users had been recreating the same scenes in two different systems. (matter-smarthome.de) AVM also says FRITZ!OS 8.26 improves Zigbee stability and Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications stability, which is the unglamorous part of smart homes that usually decides whether automations feel instant or flaky. The update also adds support for Zigbee sensors with brightness measurement, although already-paired sensors may need to be registered again. (it-blogger.net) (smarthomeassistent.de) One bug fix is unusually specific: AVM says the update fixes an error that prevented IKEA’s Rodret dimmer and switch from being registered at all. If you bought that small two-button controller and the gateway simply refused to onboard it, this release is aimed straight at you. (it-blogger.net) (deskmodder.de) That makes FRITZ!OS 8.26 less about flashy new hardware and more about removing the little incompatibilities that make mixed-brand homes annoying. In a setup built on bridges and radio standards, one failed pairing can block the whole promise of “works with everything.” (futurezone.de) (fritz.com)