Google Nest

ADT launched its first Nest-integrated security system earlier this year, but it seems another device is around the corner, and with some of the best features from the Nest Secure that Google is killing in a few months.

The Nest app is slowly on its way out, as Google puts all of its smart home efforts into the Google Home app. And now, you can bring old Nest Cam units into the Google Home app with a simple transfer process – here’s how it works.

As part of Works with Nest (WWN) shutting down next week, Google says it will stop supporting the “legacy Nest skills for Alexa.” To avoid any control disruption, owners need to migrate from Nest to Google Accounts and activate the newer “Google Nest Skill for Alexa.”

Arlo has been a Google Nest alternative for quite some time, and in our experience, the hardware is generally quite good. Today, Arlo is launching a new series of cameras, as well as a clever little tag for disarming your security system that feels it’s trying to replace what Nest Secure tried to do.

A curious and restrictive change to Google Home makes it so that newer Nest devices can now only be placed in one speaker group at a time.

Google today started informing customers (in the US) of a Nest Aware price increase. This monthly or yearly subscription enhances Nest Cams, Doorbells, Smart Displays, and Speakers.

It’s been over two years since the Google Home app took over the Nest experience, and we’re still far from the point of feature parity. Soon, though, another major hurdle will be passed as the Google Home app is getting support for manually creating Nest Cam clips.

Two years ago this month, Google rebooted the Nest brand with the debut of the first new hardware in ages, and a reinvented software experience. And, two years later, everyone is still waiting on Google to fix the software issues that continue to hold back Nest cameras, doorbells, and more.

Home security has been around for decades and can be very expensive and complicated to set up depending on what you’re trying to get. Over the past couple of months, I’ve been using ADT’s new Self Setup system that launched back in March, a DIY system backed by ADT’s monitoring and Google’s Nest hardware. It’s a solid security system, but a sad reminder of what Google gave up when killing its own hardware.

Over the past 48 hours, a big number of Google Nest owners have noticed that their cameras are marked as “offline” despite content still recording. As it turns out, the underlying cause was a server update on Google’s end.

As an ongoing issue is causing washed-out video quality for some Nest Cam devices, another bug is causing various Nest cameras to appear offline, which breaks the ability to view live feeds.

Last week, Nest Cam owners started noticing washed out colors and what seemed to be degraded video quality. Google today is detailing a new update for battery-powered Nest Cams and the Nest Doorbell that improves HDR and makes “other image quality enhancements.”

Google’s new Nest Cam products have been getting better, thanks to an improved companion app, but a new update rolling out is taking a heavy toll on video quality with washed-out colors and more.

Google released its first battery-powered Nest Cam in 2021, but using the camera solely on battery power tends to take away from the experience. With the addition of a solar panel, however, the Nest Cam gets not only a steady source of power, but also better overall functionality.

Almost two years after effectively sealing the fate of the Nest app, Google is finally bringing its older Nest Cams into the Google Home app alongside new models.

Nest has been an incredibly popular brand in the smart home world over the past several years, but ever since Google took over, the pillars that customers loved about Nest have been slowly chipped away at. And while there’s still a lot to love about Nest in 2023, Google has failed its customers in some major ways.

ADT and Google have been working behind the scenes for years now on a new partnership that, finally, has resulted in a new “DIY” security system. But, after getting started with “ADT Self Setup” as a Nest Secure owner, I’ve quickly learned that owners are going to be incredibly disappointed with this transition.

Following the shutdown of the “Works with Nest” program, Abode is now unveiling a new partnership between Google Nest and its home security systems that allows for using Nest products from the Abode app and integrate the products with routines.

Google is doing a round of spring cleaning for its smart home products across Works with Nest, Dropcam, and Nest Secure.

After years of waiting, ADT and Google finally announced their Nest-integrated security system, but with a hefty subscription for monitoring features. Thankfully, you’ll be able to forgo those fees if you want and use existing hardware too.