Nest Protect now $99 - thoughts on ST integration

Can anyone at ST say if they are part of the Nest Developer Program? I know that they applied for API access and there will obviously be an NDA, but I assume they could at lest say of they are part of the program and if they are prioritizing integration.

I can think of some great integrations with Protect. When smoke alarm goes off, change mode to “Emergency” after x delay and the hush button is not pressed in that time. Emergency mode might include…

  • unlock doors to allow emergency responders access to the house
  • turn on all lights
  • flash Hues to indicate areas that are clear and areas that are in the danger zone
  • cycle outside lights on and off to help emergency responders find your house quicker (zwave controlled switch, for example)
  • send texts to other people outside of your family - perhaps neighbors?
  • turn off fans, etc
  • command non-Nest thermostats to shutdown HVAC (since the Protect can only talk to Nest Thermostats)
  • return to previous Hello, Home mode if emergency situation ends

I’m sure there is even more others users can think of. There also might be two types of Emergency Modes - fire and CO. CO mode could do different things.

Of course, there’s the motion detector on the Protect that can be used by ST to trigger events as well, which would be really nice since every bedroom and major area has a smoke detector…if you are following the rules!

So, basically trying to figure out if Nest is a priority for ST to see if I want to spend the money on seven Protects for our house.

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I’ve always said the NEST Protect was way over priced, even the drop to $99 is high yet a little more tolerable. I would love for ST’s to work with NEST Protect as you illustrated above.

If the motion sensor can be accessed, than think of it as two devices in one. At $99, that is a decent price for a well connected smoke/CO detector AND a motion sensor. Who knows, you might even be able to access the speakers in them. We have wired detectors here. With constant power, imagine being able to use the speaker in the Protect for other announcements, like the weather or when people arrive? THAT would be pretty amazing.

These devices are in all major areas of a house, when installed according to code. That is a HUGE potential use…and a great selling point if they open it up.

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It also has a luminance sensor. Thus you can place one device in the middle of the room and replace a hodgepodge of others. If only we could get the API.

Damn, I forgot about that sensor! If accessible, it could be use to ramp up lights as it gets darker in a room no matter when sunset is…great for rooms on the opposite side of where sunset is taking place.

I so hope that the API has opened this up. I just emailed Nest asking, not that they will probably tell me. But I also wanted to make a case for the API to include these options (if possible). I think it would deb a huge competitive advantage for them, it would detract away from the removal of Wave, and they could also turn up the marketing of them to the HA community. With Apple’s HomeKit coming in to play as well, HA is going to be much more mainstream.

Here I was looking at crazy roundabout ways of making my existing smoke detectors smarter. All I need is 1 nest per floor that are the wired version and the interconnect will take care of all that. Hmm, maybe time to repurpose my MIMOlite

I don’t think the Protect wired version uses the standard interconnect protocol (which, if I recall, is really basic). I think they are just using the electricity.

You are correct :frowning:
The manual at first appeared to have the 3rd interconnect wire included, but in detailed reading it says to use the 3rd wire nut to cap it off. so so lame.

We applied the day it was announced, but haven’t heard anything back. It was before the Google acquisition so who knows if its even still available.

That stinks. I’ll push from my side, as a consumer who wants to buy a Protect and have ST integration. (not that it will probably do anything) I already have a support ticket in with them.

Yeah we are hoping they release an API but the timelines seems to have pushed from “early 2014”.

On a related note, Revolv has offered up some good insights into the Protect.

I heard back from Nest and they said that the Protect is not included in the API yet.

Thanks for the link. $33 back for my protect might possibly buy me a cheap sensor or switch.

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I’m confused by the excitement on this. I believe I can do all that with SmartThings and my Smoke/CO detectors, Motion Detectors, Locks and Light Switches. What am I missing?

Not missing anything. This is just another device with some neat functionality that can be integrated.

Missing, not much right now. However, I feel there is potential since you can have one device with multiple sensors. Everyone must have a smoke detector on each floor so why not leverage it to provide other functions. I have use for motion and luminance sensors and don’t want to clutter my ceiling with other devices. And if we can use the speaker as well or the rumored temperature sensor, it would be that much better, let alone the smoke/CO sensor.

One less device to change batteries or better if AC wiring. What better way to get people into home automation without them even knowing it.

Looks like they released the API today: https://developer.nest.com/documentation/api-reference The smoke detector is included, but it looks to me like there isn’t anything in there for motion/speaker/etc. Shame as Brianlees’ ideas were superb.

"smoke_co_alarms": {
"RTMTKxsQTCxzVcsySOHPxKoF4OyCifrs": {
"device_id": "RTMTKxsQTCxzVcsySOHPxKoF4OyCifrs" ,
"locale": "en-US" ,
"software_version": "1.01" ,
"structure_id": "VqFabWH21nwVyd4RWgJgNb292wa7hG_dUwo2i2SG7j3-BOLY0BA4sw" ,
"name": "Hallway (upstairs)" ,
"name_long": "Hallway Protect (upstairs)" ,
"last_connection": "2014-03-02T23:20:19+00:00" ,
"is_online": true ,
"battery_health": "ok" ,
"co_alarm_state": "ok" ,
"smoke_alarm_state": "ok" ,
"ui_color_state": "gray"
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Crap… I can understand why they might not have included them. They probably would work better with the hardwired version. Including them but limiting them to one version is confusing to buyers. However, I still think they could have done it by clarifying what the hardwired version gets you - consider it an “upgrade”. Maybe v2 of the APIs?

At least they added the motion on the thermostat as an option, from what I have read. I have two (master bedroom and dining room). So, that might be helpful. I’m just really looking forward to good integration with ST - hopefully with both triggers and actions. For example, how about a audio file played when you increase the heat or lower the temp when cooling? I can think of fun things like that or things that would catch who is doing it! :smile:

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I just looked at the API reference link @engelwood posted. There is no motion for the thermostat listed. Damn, that stinks even more. It is looking like this is a pretty basic API with limited access to the devices. Hell, it doesn’t even show humidity, which the thermostats can detect.

@brianlees in a couple months they’ll open the flood gates! Fingers crossed LOL