# Nanoleaf's Matter-over-Thread lights get Apple Adaptive Lighting in firmware 5.1.45 Nanoleaf firmware 5.1.45 adds Matter 1.4 and native Apple Adaptive Lighting to its Matter-over-Thread bulbs, downlights, GU10s and lightstrips. App 12.0.0, rolling out since October 20, adds support for the new firmware; install it from Nanoleaf's app. Canonical page: https://matterhome.io/news/nanoleaf-matter-thread-firmware-5-1-45-adaptive-lighting Markdown page: https://matterhome.io/news/nanoleaf-matter-thread-firmware-5-1-45-adaptive-lighting.md Author: Matterhome Editorial Team Author profile: https://matterhome.io/authors/matterhome-editorial-team Editorial lead: JC Martinez Editor profile: https://matterhome.io/authors/jc-martinez Published: 2026-10-23T02:30:00.000Z Category: Compatibility update Tags: Nanoleaf, Matter, Thread, Apple Home, Firmware updates, Smart lighting ## Feature Image - Origin: sourced - Image: https://assets.matterhome.io/content/news/2026-10-23-nanoleaf-thread-firmware-adaptive-lighting/feature.c0d81aae1c78a36260cc/source.webp - Alt text: Three Nanoleaf Essentials Matter A19 bulbs with faceted tops lit in rainbow colors and green-ringed E26 bases, on a white background - Caption: Official Nanoleaf store image of the Essentials Matter-over-Thread A19 three-pack, placed on a wider white background for this page. - Source: https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0712/9114/2378/files/bulbs-us-1-essentials-matter-bulb-a19-3pk_1x_abf340d4-2f9b-48ea-9340-cb8feec42353.png ## Sources - https://support.nanoleaf.me/hc/en-us/articles/45269445987092-Products-Firmware-Release-Notes-2026 - https://support.nanoleaf.me/hc/en-us/articles/45268988751892-Nanoleaf-App-Firmware-Release-Notes-2026 - https://apps.apple.com/us/app/nanoleaf/id1049333656 - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=me.nanoleaf.nanoleaf&hl=en_US - https://developer.apple.com/apple-home/downloads/Adaptive-Lighting-over-Matter-Accessory-Requirements.pdf - https://support.nanoleaf.me/hc/en-us/articles/36891488204564-Smart-Tip-Firmware-How-Where-To-Update-Firmware - https://support.nanoleaf.me/hc/en-us/articles/36324247124756-In-the-App-Feature-Using-Circadian-Lighting - https://on.dcl.csa-iot.org/dcl/model/versions/4442/67/327981 - https://community.home-assistant.io/t/ota-nanoleaf-firmware-updates-not-completing-via-matter/1028483 - https://community.smartthings.com/t/nanoleaf-matter-over-thread-firmware-update-5-1-45/311374 Nanoleaf's Matter-over-Thread lights can now use Apple Adaptive Lighting once they run firmware 5.1.45. Nanoleaf's [product firmware notes](https://support.nanoleaf.me/hc/en-us/articles/45269445987092-Products-Firmware-Release-Notes-2026) date the release to October 7, 2026 and list it for its Matter-over-Thread A19 and BR30 bulbs, downlights, GU10s and lightstrips, including the [Essentials Matter Thread A19 three-pack](/devices/nanoleaf-essentials-matter-thread-a19). Nanoleaf says Adaptive Lighting "can be now used natively within the Apple Home app", and lists Matter 1.4 support and better connection reliability in its own app. Nanoleaf added the release to that page on October 13; the previous firmware for these lights was 4.1.3, from September 2025, so a light that still reports 4.1.3 has not been updated. Two groups of Nanoleaf owners are outside this update. The Matter-over-Wi-Fi lights run a separate firmware line; Nanoleaf moved them to Matter 1.4.2 in firmware 5.2.54 on September 23. That meets Apple's Matter version requirement, but Nanoleaf makes no Adaptive Lighting claim for its Wi-Fi lights, so Wi-Fi owners on iOS 26 or later can only check Apple Home for the option. The older Essentials bulbs and lightstrips that use HomeKit over Thread without Matter remain on 3.0.2. The app side followed this week. Nanoleaf's [app release notes](https://support.nanoleaf.me/hc/en-us/articles/45268988751892-Nanoleaf-App-Firmware-Release-Notes-2026) say version 12.0.0 adds "support for firmware 5.x.x on Nanoleaf Matter over Thread devices". Nanoleaf started releasing it on Android on October 20 and on iOS on October 21, and says the rollout will take about a week. On October 23, the [App Store](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/nanoleaf/id1049333656) already offered 12.0.0, while the US [Google Play listing](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=me.nanoleaf.nanoleaf&hl=en_US) still showed version 11.10.1, so Android owners may wait a few more days. ## Why Matter 1.4 unlocks it in Apple Home Adaptive Lighting moves a light from cooler white during the day to warmer white in the evening, on a schedule Apple Home runs. Apple's [requirements for Adaptive Lighting over Matter](https://developer.apple.com/apple-home/downloads/Adaptive-Lighting-over-Matter-Accessory-Requirements.pdf) explain why the Matter version matters: in iOS 26 and later, Apple Home makes the feature available by default to Matter lights that support Matter 1.4 or later and can reach at least 2700 to 5000 K. Nanoleaf rates its Matter A19 bulbs at 2700 to 6500 K, so the firmware supplies the missing piece. That default starts with iOS 26, so update an iPhone still on iOS 18 before looking for the option. Nanoleaf's app already had its own [Circadian Lighting](https://support.nanoleaf.me/hc/en-us/articles/36324247124756-In-the-App-Feature-Using-Circadian-Lighting) schedule for these lights. The difference is that Apple Home can now run the schedule itself, the way it does for other Adaptive Lighting bulbs, so the Nanoleaf app no longer has to run a separate one. If you already use Circadian Lighting, pick one of the two schedules for each light so they are not both adjusting it. Adaptive Lighting is an Apple Home feature, and Nanoleaf names no new controls for Google Home, Alexa, SmartThings or Home Assistant. Matter 1.4 is also not Thread 1.4: Nanoleaf's notes say nothing about Thread, and an owner in the SmartThings community reports that updated lights still run Thread 1.3 on a newer Thread software stack. ## Update through the Nanoleaf app Nanoleaf's [documented update path](https://support.nanoleaf.me/hc/en-us/articles/36891488204564-Smart-Tip-Firmware-How-Where-To-Update-Firmware) is its own app: open More, then My Devices, start the update and keep the app open with your phone close to the light. The same guide starts by updating the app, and 12.0.0 is the first version that names 5.x support, so install it before the firmware. Owners have installed 5.1.45 with the earlier app since October 9, and Nanoleaf does not explain what 12.0.0's 5.x support adds, so this order is a precaution. If your phone has not been offered 12.0.0 yet, the lights keep working on their current firmware while you wait. Owner reports suggest setting aside time. In the [SmartThings community](https://community.smartthings.com/t/nanoleaf-matter-over-thread-firmware-update-5-1-45/311374), an owner who posted on October 9 after updating 12 lights said each took 5 to 10 minutes, some needed more than one attempt, and two had to be removed and added again in both the Nanoleaf and SmartThings apps, which broke their routines. That owner saw no update offered through SmartThings. Another owner noted that the app sends the update over Bluetooth, so it only works within a few meters of each light. Home Assistant offers the update over Matter because the CSA's [compliance ledger](https://on.dcl.csa-iot.org/dcl/model/versions/4442/67/327981) carries 5.1.45 for all five Thread models, as an upgrade for lights already on 4.1.3 or later. Since October 12, [Home Assistant forum users](https://community.home-assistant.io/t/ota-nanoleaf-firmware-updates-not-completing-via-matter/1028483) with A19 bulbs, GU10s and downlights have reported that the transfer runs, then ends with the old version still installed and starts over later. Two posters there pass on reports that the Nanoleaf app's Bluetooth update installs it, which matches most SmartThings owners' experience, though one SmartThings owner had a bulb that took the update from neither the app nor Home Assistant. If Home Assistant's update entity keeps cycling, use the app instead. After a light reports 5.1.45, open it in Apple Home and look for the Adaptive Lighting option. Nanoleaf has not said whether a light already in Apple Home picks the option up in place or needs to be removed and added again. A light that still lacks the option after updating is the case to raise with Nanoleaf support.