Leaked code ties unpowered pairing setup on Apple's LG devices to HomeKit

The person fitting one of these LG deadbolts may not need to wait for it to switch on. MacRumors, reporting pdfu's findings, says an iPhone tapped against the unpowered accessory sends the phone's pairing identity and the home's network credentials over NFC into the device's secure element ^[13]. Once it has power, the accessory joins Wi-Fi or Thread and a home hub finishes Matter setup ^[13]. Firmware for the lock and the thermostat identifies that secure element as an NXP SE051H ^[16].

iOS 27 already supports the standard Matter version of NFC setup ^[14]. LG's hardware does not use it. Pdfu says LG replaces the secure element's Matter NFC applet with a HomeKit applet, so the before-power route works only with HomeKit ^[14]. Conventional Matter pairing is still available once the accessory is powered on ^[15].

Control works the same way. Each accessory writes an "apple-deviceid" into the Matter payload stored on its NFC tag so iOS can identify it on a tap, and it broadcasts a Bluetooth Low Energy advert for Apple Proximity Control ^[5]. So the payload uses Matter's format but carries an Apple identifier ^[5]. Pdfu compares the tap behavior to HomePod's ^[8]. 9to5Mac described Proximity Control as a clear example of a feature that will be unique to what it called second-party accessories ^[17].

Early iOS 27 code let controls open the instant a phone came near, with a Launch Automatically setting next to Never and Ask to Launch ^[12]. By iOS 27.2 the three options had become an on/off toggle. On is now equivalent to Ask to Launch, which shows a Dynamic Island hint or notification that the user taps to reach the control card ^[12]. The Home app also lets people switch the feature off after setup ^[10].

How users respond to the prompt is not yet known. Bloomberg says the accessories likely won't be released for at least a few more months, so there is no retention or usage data ^[7]. Pdfu wrote: "The feature is still in active development across beta releases, so the final behavior may change." ^[6]

For an operator buying these for homes or rental units, the decision turns on which controller runs the site and whether the device gets set up before or after it has power. Only a HomeKit site setting up before power gets the tap-to-provision route ^[13][14]. After power, a HomeKit home still gets Dynamic Island feedback on the first tap and the Proximity Control shortcut later ^[9][1]. On another Matter controller, the device waits for power either way and pairs the conventional way ^[15].