Nest Secure

Nest was one of the first companies to create a smart home security system. One of its most successful products is the Nest Cam, which can be placed outdoors and indoors for maximum peace of mind. Recently, the company revealed a new family of products called Nest Secure.

The Nest Secure system is modular and designed to make home security simpler for the whole family.

Ease of Use

The main part of the Nest Secure system is the Nest Guard, which is a small, round device with a keypad on top. It has a motion detector and acts as the hub of the system. The Guard device also connects to your phone through Wi-Fi to update the Nest mobile app. It sits inside your home, facing your front door and communicates with a series of smaller devices, called Nest Detects.

Nest Detects are placed throughout your home, so if someone enters the home and doesn’t disarm the system, an alarm triggers and a loud siren is played.

Nest Tags act like authentication tokens using NFC technology. Tap one on the Guard when you get home to disable the Nest Secure system. Nest designed these for children, family members, and for temporary access holders like babysitters and dog walkers. You can also set up a temporary access time limit on the tag by time of day and day of week.

If you don’t have a Nest Tag on you, the keypad on the Guard device will take your passcode and disarm the system. To arm the system, tell your Nest app that you’re leaving. The app will start counting down before the system rearms so you can leave the house comfortably. If you want to arm your house remotely, that can be done through the Nest app.

Design

These products fit in with the rest of Nest’s products, design-wise. There are other competitors with sleeker devices, but this new Nest Secure system will definitely expand the company’s line-up.

Versatility

This system is fully compatible with Nest’s other products, and everything ties together in the Nest app. With the Nest Secure system, the company is fully fleshing out its entire product selection.

Technology

If you have a larger house to protect that has spotty Wi-Fi connection in some areas of the home, Nest offers the Nest Connect. It strengthens the mesh networking technology that helps the Detect devices communicate with the Guard.

The company also integrated their Nest + Yale lock into the Nest Secure system. Nest partnered with lock-maker Yale to create a join smart lock. When you unlock the front door, the system is disarmed automatically.

Scatter Nest Detect devices throughout your home – on windows, side doors, and other openings. They don’t need to be plugged in or connected to Wi-Fi. The Detect devices run on batteries and communicate with the Guard using Nest’s mesh networking technology, called Weave. It is a two-piece device that communicates with itself using a magnetic field. The magnetic field is disrupted when you open the door and fixed when the door closes. With the Quiet Open feature, you can tap a button on the Detect device to disarm a single door without disarming the entire system. You can also use the device as a simple motion detector.

Cost

Nest Connect and the Nest + Yale lock don’t have a set price yet. As the Nest Secure system is on pre-order right now, we expect the company to release these two products around the November release date for the security system. The Nest Secure system costs $499. It comes with the Guard, two Detects, and two Tags. For extra Detect devices, you’ll have to pay $59/device. Tags cost an extra $25/each. And a Nest Cam Outdoor is on sale for $99 right now.

If you want more security, the company will also sell a professional home monitoring and alarm response service. A third-party provider, Moni, will be the service provider here. It will loop the Nest Secure system into local law enforcement when you want any trigger of the alarm system to go straight to the police. There are no pricing details on this add-on feature yet.

If you want cellular back-up service through T-Mobile, Nest sells that for $5/month or $50/year too. You may want this feature if your home experiences frequent power loss or spotty Wi-Fi.

Closing Thoughts

This security system is well thought-out. It offers features that most picky homeowners will love, like the Nest Connect or Detect devices. You can truly customize your home security with the Nest Secure system.

Source: The Verge, Nest, New Atlas