Nest is working on at least 3 new smart-home gadgets right now — here's what we know (GOOGL, GOOG)

pulse

March 8, 2017 7:42 PM

Nest reportedly has several new devices in the works that could fill some major gaps in the connected smart home.

The Nest smart thermostat.

It has been a long time coming.

Nest, the struggling connected-smart-home company bought by Google's parent company, Alphabet, in 2014, will expand its range of smart-home products with new and updated devices you can control from apps on your mobile devices, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

Those new products include a home-security alarm system with window and door sensors, a key fob for arming and disarming your alarm, and a smart doorbell with a camera.

The news comes after a tumultuous period at Nest, during which the cofounder and CEO, Tony Fadell, resigned amid criticism of his management style and a lack of new products.

The new products would give Nest a more complete presence in the smart-home ecosystem, instead of forcing users to mix devices from a variety of companies.

As of Wednesday, Nest offers only a smart thermostat, outdoor and indoor monitor cameras, and a smoke alarm — a comparatively limited range of devices. The three potential new products would offer a more thorough smart-home solution, especially in safety and security.

Still, Nest's smart doorbell sounds similar to the Ring video-doorbell product, which has been on the market for several years.

Gurman also said that Nest would release updated models of some of its current devices, including a cheaper version of its thermostat, next year. The updated thermostat could potentially change your home's temperature according to your usage patterns. According to Gurman, it would also be cheaper than the current thermostat, which costs $249 — the new model would sell for under $200.

Nest is also planning to release a range of sensors that would work with Nest's thermostat to control the temperature of individual rooms rather than an entire home, according to Gurman. Today, you'd have to get Nest thermostats for each room in which you wanted to control the climate.

Nest is also working on an updated model of its Indoor Cam monitoring camera that notifies you when it senses a person has entered a room, the report said. Gurman, citing a person familiar with the matter, said Nest would release the updated cameras this fall.

One of the new features apparently being discussed is the ability to identify specific people. Currently, Nest's Indoor Cam can only tell when a person, in general, enters a room.

As accurate and well-connected as Gurman is in the industry, these details are nothing more than rumors at this point. Only Alphabet and Google could confirm any new products and features by announcing them.

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