Skip to main content

Nest officially confirms smart smoke + carbon monoxide detector called ‘Protect’

The Nest Protect has a nice glow :-)

The Nest Protect has a nice glow :-)

We originally reported last month that Nest Labs, the company founded by famed iPod creator Tony Fadell, was readying its next product for launch soon: the smart fire detector. Nest Labs officially announced today that the ‘Nest Protect’ will be joining the lineup with the smart thermostat.

The Nest Protect detects smoke and carbon monoxide and addressses some of the flaws of modern smoke detectors and of course connects it to your iPhone in the process:

Nest believes that safety shouldn’t be annoying, so they started from scratch and built a new smoke + CO detector, the way it should be done, with advanced features under a sleek interface:

· Heads-Up: Instead of just beeping at you, Nest Protect gives you helpful vocal warnings before conditions get dangerous. And if you have more than one Nest Protect in the home, you can connect them so you’ll know where the danger is, no matter which room you’re in.

· Nest Wave: No more climbing on chairs to reach your detector. You can silence Nest Protect by simply waving at it.

· Mobile app: Get low-battery alerts and Emergency Alarm notifications on your smartphone or tablet.

· Pathlight: Nest Protect glows white as you pass under it at night, lighting your way in the dark.

The smoke + carbon monoxide detector itself has a design similar to our Apple products as it resembles Apple’s previous generation Airport Extreme base station. I really like the idea of silencing an alarm with just a wave. Wrestling with a tiny disengage button in a commotion is the last thing anyone wants. Check out availability information and the official promotional video below: 

The Nest Protect is currently available for pre-order at $129 in both white and black and ships in battery models or wired-in models. It says availability will begin in November across various retailers including Amazon, Apple, Best Buy, and Home Depot, as well as the online Nest Store. Nest promises its battery model doesn’t require annual battery replacements like traditional models. Of course, Nest promises an easy installation as with the Nest Thermostat, which also has an iPhone and iPad app and is readily available for purchase.

Certainly sounds like a great way to protect your nest.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXp-LYBXwfo

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

You’re reading 9to5Mac — experts who break news about Apple and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Mac on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Don’t know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel

Comments

  1. zexpe (@zexpe) - 10 years ago

    Great for when you are away from home too…

  2. Sounds nice, but will it use your IPhone to call the fire department?

  3. James Fabin - 10 years ago

    I can’t wait to replace all of my old fashioned detectors with these! Looks like a great design and I love how they talk to each other to let you know where the detected issue is at.

  4. oscarherreramx - 10 years ago

    Hola que tal, excelente nota muy bien así se reducirá los incendios en los hogares , estaría bien que implementaran uno para los incendios forestales

  5. Looks fantastic!! I was already considering getting the thermostat and this will go on my list too.

  6. H.Murchison (@hmurchison) - 10 years ago

    LOL. If you’re on here excited about the option of replacing your $20 Smoke Detector with these units i’ve got a bridge to sell you. Nest’s second product was of upmost importance. Many people could see how saving energy with a functional Thermostat would eventually pay off. A $130 Smoke Detector doesn’t ever pay off any more than a $20 does. With most homes having 5 or more Smoke Detectors Nest is asking you to lay out almost $700 for little increase in functionality. Nest has pretty much just divulged their roadmap is weak and they’ve got no more great ideas.

    • PMZanetti - 10 years ago

      I wouldn’t call any of what is described as little increase in functionality.

    • Tell me more about this bridge for sale :)

    • Robert Rooney - 10 years ago

      4/10 on that troll. These smoke detectors allow you to remotely monitor your home, give off pre-warnings which traditional detectors do not do, have included CO detectors which are additional costs you didn’t account for either. Aside from the night light function, and the safety of not having to get on a ladder (especially in stairwells). By you’re logic I shouldn’t even waste money on ANY kind of a smoke detector, and should instead capture a stray dog that I feed with food scraps that will bark if my house catches on fire. Even @ $700, that’s still cheaper than an emergency room visit for someone falling off a ladder when trying to mute a detector in a hurry. So yeah, it does save you money.

      • H.Murchison (@hmurchison) - 10 years ago

        LOL so if someone disagrees with you they are a Troll. Umkay. CO sensors are supposed to be placed at “knee height” CO is heavier than air plus you want them placed in more areas (near heat sources like Furnaces, Fireplaces, Garages etc) while placing them in Smoke Detectors is an expedient solution it’s not the best solution if you truly wish to keep your family safe.

        Remote monitoring of a Smoke Detector means nothing to me. I’ll have cameras throughout my home soon that will do the same thing and provide more utility.

        Hey spend your money how YOU wish but someone us us will pocket that $600 and use it where it makes more sense and delivers a better RoI for our family.

        And no..it doesn’t save you money. My detectors have a button that I can press to shut them up.

      • im4msu2000 - 10 years ago

        So, Murchison sees no value in spending $700 for upgrading the smoke detectors because he’s spending 4X that in cameras… umkay, that makes sense. I’ll skip the cameras and just buy the detectors.

    • Yeah, because a $130 smoke detector will obviously never pay off for itself, if for example, it prevents your house from being completely burnt down while you’re away from home or potentially saves a human life. Totally not worth it.

    • smigit - 10 years ago

      I don’t think the Nest products intention is to save you money, although it *may* be a byproduct of the Thermostat. Even then it was a fairly expensive outlay for something many people could probably configure and automate with an existing unit they already had.

      Really, the sell here is connectivity and interaction options if you ask me, far more so than the cost.

      That isn’t to say these are cheap or anything, however (depending on your local laws) you could put one of these in the kitchen or living areas where a burnt meal is likely to set of an alarm so you benefit from the wave functionality and motion detection lighting functionality, and have cheaper units in the bedroom where you don’t want the room to be lit and any smoke is more likely than not an actual fire.

      In my eyes the benefits offered by this differ depending on the room they are installed in so assuming regulations allow it, I’d just mix and match to get some equilibrium between cost and functionality that makes sense.

  7. Do they work on batteries or do they also have wired models?

    • Zac Hall - 10 years ago

      Either model is available for pre-order :)

    • Yes. It states that both types are available for sale in the article.

      • Thanks. Too bad they don’t ship to Europe.

      • smigit - 10 years ago

        I’m sure Amazon or other retailers will make them available. The thermostat wasn’t available in Australia, but I know that plenty of people sourced them from the US.

  8. I think they could’ve done more. Perhaps adding auto 911 dialing if it is not hushed in person/on a phone after 3 voice warnings. I don’t know – in comparison to Nest which has a large degree of functionality, this seems a little lack luster for $130.

  9. cerebralgardens - 10 years ago

    A bit pricey, but if they add WiFi access point functionality, I think it would be awesome and then easy to justify the cost of replacing all your $20-40 regular smoke detectors.

  10. Dave Macpherson - 10 years ago

    I was always under the impression that carbon monoxide was “heavier” than air, which is why most CO detectors are found at floor level, while most smoke detectors are at ceiling level. Does it make sense to have the two functions in the same unit?

    • H.Murchison (@hmurchison) - 10 years ago

      Me too but simple internet searching tells me that CO can be diffuse and that placement of the CO Detector should be away from children. Learn something new every day.

  11. Lou Borella - 10 years ago

    Correct me if I’m wrong but Carbon Monoxide detectors should never be mounted on the ceiling. If CO levels get that high then you are already dead!!!

    Does this have a way to detect CO levels at the ground level before its to late?

  12. William May - 10 years ago

    I’d be happier if they doubled as bluetooth throughout-house speakers.

  13. Brian Mullin - 10 years ago

    Carbon monoxide is not heavier than air. The diffusion of carbon monoxide in air is relatively even, meaning that a source of carbon monoxide can distribute the gas evenly throughout the room and house. When installing a carbon monoxide alarm, choose a location where the alarm will stay clean, and out of the way of children or pets

  14. Michael McLaughlin - 10 years ago

    Its a Cylon device… don’t fall for it.

  15. Dennis Grimm - 10 years ago

    what I do not like are that it relies on wifi for the interconnect, instead of using an existing hardwire for it. What happens if your router dies? (ironic if that was the device on fire) Would have loved maybe an $80 device, no more the $100, they are disposable items that need to be replaced every 7-10 years. Would have loved to also see both ionization and the photoelectric sensors. Have not read anywhere yet at what ppm the CO triggers, hopefully it is a low alarm co trigger..

Author

Avatar for Zac Hall Zac Hall

Zac covers Apple news, hosts the 9to5Mac Happy Hour podcast, and created SpaceExplored.com.