by In line with a report from last month, iPod creator Tony Fadell’s company Nest today announced the launch of Nest Protect, a $129 connected smoke and carbon monoxide detector for the home. The detector wirelessly connects with other units and with the Nest Learning Thermostat to enhance the functionality of each product while also offering a more informative and flexible experience for users.These products should keep us safe, not annoy us. Nest Protect: Smoke + Carbon Monoxide does much more than just sound a shrill alarm when there’s danger in your home. It speaks to you, telling you where the danger is and what the problem is. And before it sounds a piercing alarm, Nest Protect gives you a friendly Heads-Up warning that you can silence with a wave of your hand – no more swinging towels or brooms to try to quiet a false alarm. It integrates with your mobile devices and even messages you if the batteries run low, avoiding that all-too-familiar midnight low-battery chirp.
Nest Protect contains six different types of sensors (photoelectric smoke sensor, CO sensor, heat sensor, light sensor, ultrasonic sensors, activity sensor) to help the device interpret its environment, and includes a green glowing light that can serve both as a quick indicator that the device is functioning properly after lights are turned off and as a nightlight, automatically lighting a person’s path when it senses their movements.
The connected nature of Protect allows multiple units to alert users to rising smoke or CO levels anywhere in the house while also specifying where in the house the issue is occurring. Integration with the Nest Learning Thermostat improves the thermostat’s Auto-Away feature, which automatically adjusts heating and cooling based on whether anyone is in the home, allowing Protect units to serve as remote sensors for detecting any occupants in the home.
Nest Protect is available for pre-order now and will launch next month. It is priced at $129 and be available in both black and white versions, with each color being available in wired and battery-powered versions. Users will be able to control Protect and receive alerts through the Nest Mobile app for iOS, which will updated with Protect support when the device launches.
