Nest - Developer Program

[gatchel]

Talk down all you want about it, boys, but that stat has done more to bring HA to the general public than all the geeky little stat gadgets we've all played with over the years, combined. It's well designed, well made, and frankly it just works (well, I might add).

And I've seen NO data to indicate they're having any trouble selling them, or that they have anything but a very bright future. This is a good move for many of us as hobbyists, and brings HA much more mainstream than efforts by those who only try to serve the "HA community".

Right. But isn't the whole point of having a Nest is that you don't need home automation to control it?

 

[Timoh]

I think there is big difference between HA & HA community, and the Nest is a perfect example of something for HA, but not necessarily HA community.
 
The avg folks that want HA or some inteliigence will go and get the Nest... It just works,  no fuss.  Don't get me wrong I think it's a great product.
The HA community, probably 90% of the people on this board, like to tinker, "what can we do better" mentality.  Integrate motion sensors & logic into temperature control for example.  For the "community" why pay more than double to get a wifi t-stat?
 
It's very much the iphone vs android.  It all depends on how you want to use it.
 
Tim

 

[dgage]

Actually, I like the idea that I could potentially implement the Nest and utilize the built in intelligence initially and then expand the functionality with my full HA system as time permits. Also, if CQC stops responding for whatever reason, it would fall back to some intelligence on the thermostat versus a completely dumb thermostat.

 

[Dean Roddey]

JKish on our forum says he already has a working CQC driver for the Nest. It's just using the non-documented interface. It will be beneficial to have an officially documented protocol of course, since they are then under some obligation to keep it around and document it well and not break it with every firmware release.

 

[dgage]

Well I wasn't considering the Nest due to the unofficial interface but now that it will have an officially supported interface, I can consider...especially since it has CQC support. . Thanks.

 

[dgage]

I take that back on the Nest after reading some reviews on the Nest...it seems there are quite a few people having problems with the Gen. 2 model.

Here's one particular review on Amazon that received a lot of comments.
http://www.amazon.com/review/R2RPGVN5XJVFA5/ref=cm_cd_pg_prev?ie=UTF8&asin=B009GDHYPQ&cdForum=Fx3BHKL0Z1X48MN&cdPage=1&cdThread=Tx3KZIYO5Z44E7C&store=hi#wasThisHelpful

And that led me to look up the warranty, which apparently was reduced from 5 years on the Gen. 1 to 2 years on current Gen. 2.
https://community.nest.com/thread/1153

Will take more pondering.

 

[az1324]

But I think we're going to see more and more of these cloud-based services as we go forward. It's the difference between managing your own server vs. using a cloud-based service to share files and access them remotely. Managing your own has many benefits, but also many costs and requirements. And as we see with everything from Dropbox to Pandora, there is a very big market for the ease of use these services offer. The security is admittedly lower, and the quality may be compromised. But it works, it's easy, and it doesn't require a person to become a hobbyist / professional to use it. So "good enough" works for most people, even if it doesn't cut it for many of us.

My whole point is that we discount these features because they aren't so important to US. But we're not the norm! We - and many of the manufacturers we support - could learn much from the folks at companies like Nest. Design, convenience, and ease of use really do matter.

 
Well yes if we allow it to happen that way.  But really it's a bit ridiculous the amount of bandwidth and energy wasted on cloud services when hard drives are $35/TB microSD cards are $2/GB and quad core ARMs are under $20.  Of course the drive for BIG DATA is behind it (and rightsholders).  But look at how many millions of people install custom ROMs on their Android phones.  Really you should be able to install a custom ROM on anything you own if you want to.  Even your pacemaker.   :blink:  I applaud the good design and UX of Nest, happy to pay for that, but not to be locked out, not to be unable to lock them out.

 

[Madcodger]

I take that back on the Nest after reading some reviews on the Nest...it seems there are quite a few people having problems with the Gen. 2 model.
Here's one particular review on Amazon that received a lot of comments.
http://www.amazon.com/review/R2RPGVN5XJVFA5/ref=cm_cd_pg_prev?ie=UTF8&asin=B009GDHYPQ&cdForum=Fx3BHKL0Z1X48MN&cdPage=1&cdThread=Tx3KZIYO5Z44E7C&store=hi#wasThisHelpful

Well, that's certainly an unhappy group of folks... I can't say they don't know what they're doing on their installs to contribute to their problems (or if they are), but the level of experience seems to be much lower than found here, at least. All I can say is that we're moving toward our second winter with ours, and so far it's been rock solid.

I do suspect that average homeowners would have a problem with any tstat install when dealing with multi-stage or heat pump systems, and that's probably a big problem for Nest as a company. The review there kept referencing "electrical noise" and "spikes" being the problem. Most of us have had problems with a noisy appliance causing signaling problems with HA systems, but I am suspicious of that being the problem for these folks. I have to wonder if incorrect wiring or a faulty transformer is the culprit for at least some of them?

At any rate, ours works well and my overall point remains: Good design and better UI (with an ability but not a requirement to "tinker") would do worlds of good for the manufacturers many of us support. And having a way for developers to interface with Nest is a welcome step in a direction that helps the HA community.