Nest Protect Discontinued

[Tim-26]

After ten trouble free years my first Nest Protect has expired. I am disappointed to learn that Google has discontinued the Nest Protect product but not surprised. Google has always treated Nest as an ugly step child by underfunding it and refusing to expand the product line. They have allowed others to steal their industrial design and swamp the market with nearly identical products. It appears now that Google only wants the software, subscription end of the business and will most likely dump the manufacturing of the physical products on third party companies. The problem with that in regards to the Nest Protect is that First Alert doesn't care about design and has no interest in offering the same features and quality that we came to expect from Nest. The online reviews of the First Alert replacement are abysmal. If Google doesn't want to continue to make the Nest Connect then I and I assume many others are going to leave their ecosystem and eventually their subscription software will serve fewer and fewer people. I am not going to pay $129 for a First Alert smoke detector that doesn't work as well as the Nest Protect. I am going to buy an $50 dumb smoke and C02 detector and as my 3 other Nest Protect detectors fail I will migrate them to dumb detectors or to another company who is committed to manufacturing their own equipment to high standards and is in it for the long term. Once I have migrated my smoke detectors to that other company it will be easy to dump Google's thermostat and cameras. I have lost all faith in Google as they are only in Nest for the easy subscription money not the long term. 

[PiterFreide]

Wow, your story really shows how disappointed many people are with Google's approach to Nest. I think situations like this make us think not only about technology, but also about companies in general, because trust is built over years and lost in an instant. Personally, I am already looking for alternatives that truly value product quality and long-term commitments. By the way, during my search, I came across an interesting service  Flirtini. It's a flirty dating app, but it also has a community of people who exchange advice on gadgets, technology, and even home security. There you can find real-life reviews, which are sometimes more useful than standard reviews, and even chat with people who have already gone through similar disappointments. Maybe some of our readers will be interested in checking out not only gadgets, but also new acquaintances during technical discussions.

[Tuglaw]

I just replaced my Nest Protects with the First Alert SC5. Big disappointment. Seriously bad taste in my mouth about Google. The Nest Protects had fantastic and subtle motion activated night lights. The Nest Protects had this swirling amber signal at night to let you know that everything was OK. The Nest Protects, when activated by smoke or CO, could also be set to stop your HVAC fans via the integrated Nest Thermostats. The design quality of these First Alert products is less attractive than the elegant Nest Protects. The voice is less pleasing, more mechanical and cheap sounding, than the Nest Protects. Usually when I replace products, I am replacing with the same or better. I’m angry with you Google for making me replace a great product with an inferior one. Shame on you.

[Tim-26]

I hear you. I did some research and Google's acquisition of Nest has been a disaster from the start. Had I known that I would have chosen someone else's products. I hope that in the future that founders of great tech like Nest think twice about selling to a larger company. I rarely see it turn out well. Google also has a history of unceremoniously dumping products. They once had the best pod cast player but failed to monetize it so they dumped it and forced everyone to YouTube. YouTube is not and never will be a podcast  player. Google Duo, VPN Google One and Chromecast are some of my other favorites that have been killed. Trust me when I say I can see the writing on the wall. Google doesn't want to make hardware, it's too hard for these tech companies and they don't make the same money they make from software and subscriptions. Over time Google will dump the manufacturing of all the Nest products.