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Nest's new outdoor camera, alarm system, and video doorbell will make your home safer
Nest is constantly trying to make improvements in both the security and connected home spaces, and that’s never been more apparent than it is today. The company has just unveiled five new connected devices that will make your home stay safe, secure, and smart.
The Nest Secure alarm system will stop intruders from entering your home, the Hello video doorbell lets you see who’s knocking, and the Nest Cam IQ Outdoor brings facial recognition and better weatherproofing to your outdoor security system.
There’s a lot to cover here, so let’s jump right in!
Nest Secure alarm system: The Nest Secure alarm system is an all-new home security system that’s designed to keep your family safe from intruders. Three connected devices make up the alarm system: Nest Guard, Nest Detect, and Nest Tag.
The centerpiece of the system is the Nest Guard, which provides the alarm, keypad, and motion sensor. It’s a little hockey puck-shaped device that’s placed next to your front door and communicates with devices called Nest Detects. Nest Detects are battery-powered sensors that detect both motion and open/close movements, which means these are best suited for windows, walls, and doors. If a Nest Detect senses anything moving, the Nest Guard will begin sounding its loud siren.
Once the alarm goes off, you have three ways to disarm it: through the Nest app, by entering a code on the Guard’s keypad, or by tapping the Nest Tag onto the Nest Guard. Nest Tags are little fobs that can attach to a keychain, allowing you to easily disarm the system without a passcode.
The coolest part of the whole setup is if someone forgets to turn on the alarm, Nest sends a Remind Me notification to arm it directly from the app.
This whole system, which comes with one Nest Guard, two Nest Detects, and two Nest Tags, will cost you $499. If you don’t want the starter pack, or if you need more devices, you can purchase any of these devices separately. Additional Nest Detects cost $59 each, while Nest Tags cost $25.
Nest Hello video doorbell: Next up is the Nest Hello video doorbell, which, as you may have guessed, combines the security benefits of a Nest Cam with a smart doorbell. Once Nest Hello detects a person, it’ll send an alert and a snapshot to your smartphone, even if that person doesn’t ring the doorbell. Once you receive the alert on your phone, you can then chat with the guest and let them know you’re coming to the door.
If you’re a Nest Aware member, you’ll also get alerts when other things are detected, whether that be strangers, dogs barking, or people chatting down the sidewalk.
There’s no pricing or availability information for the Nest Hello yet, though you can sign up for updates at Nest’s website.
Nest Cam IQ Outdoor: One of the more exciting announcements today is the Nest Cam IQ Outdoor, which brings an all-new design, facial recognition, and all the smarts that the Nest Cam IQ Indoor introduced earlier this year.
Under the hood, the outdoor model features the same chipset and same improved Wi-Fi capabilities that the indoor camera has. The new outdoor model is built to handle extreme temperatures, sports a speaker that’s 15 times more powerful, and is the “most weatherproof camera” the company has built thanks to its IP66 rating. It also has a tamper-resistant mount. The cable now threads from the back of the camera through the mount and directly into your home. This means the cable will no longer be exposed to the outdoors.
The Nest Cam IQ Outdoor uses technology from FaceNet, which is Google’s AI system for recognizing people in images. This means the outdoor camera will be able to recognize familiar faces and and send those alerts to the Nest mobile app.
It’s going to cost a pretty penny, though. The Nest Cam IQ Outdoor is $349, while a two-pack will cost $598. That’s not including the $10/month cost of Nest Aware to get 10 days of video storage and facial recognition, however. You can, of course, opt out of paying the $10/month fee, which will still get you access to the live feed from your Nest Cam and activity alerts. The camera ships in November, and you can pre-order it right now at Nest.com.
Nest Cam IQ Indoor, now with Google Assistant: Nest didn’t forget about its wonderful indoor camera, either. This winter, the company is bringing Google Assistant to the Nest Cam IQ Indoor. With the Assistant built in, the indoor camera will be able to answer questions, control connected home devices, and manage tasks.
What are your thoughts about Nest’s new devices? Be sure to let us know in the comments!