2 New Items to Consider putting in the Home
A smoke detector otherwise notifies you when it senses smoke in your home which might suggest a fire outbreak. The US National Fire Protection Association estimates that over 2/3 of deaths occurring in fire outbreak occurs in homes without a working smoke detector. A fire outbreak can occur anytime, most dangerous of cases where a resident isn’t aware of an outbreak, for instance, while asleep.
Red circle in middle indicates trouble! Normal light will be blue
While Nest Labs (full review on the company here) pride themselves in being able to turn otherwise mundane household gadgets to tech-savvy next-gen, home-automated versions. The Nest Protect Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm are a modification of the standard round smoke detector. While the regular smoke detector notifies when it senses smoke, the Nest Protect does more.
Here’s a look at the specification of a unit and what’s contained in a retail box.
Specifications & Features
- Voice alarms with custom location
- Split‑Spectrum Sensor (Next gen technology to detect smoke and carbon monoxide)
- Detects carbon monoxide
- 10-year product lifetime (carbon monoxide sensor lasts up to a decade)
- Heads-Up alerts
- Sound Check (routinely checks to see if microphone and alarm is working)
- Nightly Promise (notifies you if everything is working fine when you turn off the light)
- Pathlight (motion and light sensor to light up the way at night)
- Steam Check
- Self-Test
- Wireless Interconnect
- Home Report
- Free smart phone device app to control unit(s)
Phone alerts include:
- Smoke
- Carbon monoxide
- Low-battery
- Sensor failure
- App Silence
- Safety Checkup
- Safety History
- What to Do
Smart app control shown – free on iOS and Android
What’s in the Box
Nest Protect (Battery powered)
- Six long-life batteries
- (Energizer® Ultimate Lithium “L91” AA)
- Back plate
- Four screws
- User’s Guide and Welcome Guide
Package contents shown after opening
Nest Protect (Wired)
- Nest Protect (Wired 120V)
- Three long-life backup batteries
- (Energizer® Ultimate Lithium “L91” AA)
- AC 120V Connector
- Three wire nuts
- Back plate
- Four screws
- User’s Guide and Welcome Guide
Nest before unboxing
Pros
- 8 languages preinstalled
- Available in two option battery powered/wired
- Voice alarm
- Easy to install
- Lots of functionalities
Cons
- Few users have problem with history
- Costly compared to the traditional smoke detector
- Battery needs to be replaced on time
Following the recall of the initial release of the Nest Protect on safety issues, the 2nd generation Nest Protect comes packed with new functionality that was not available in the initial release and other smoke detectors one of which is the split-spectrum sensor.
Pricing for the Nest varies starting with a single unit around $110-125. Because most homes need 2-4 to cover the required amount of rooms, there are bundle deals for getting 2 at a lower cost. If you can’t afford $200+ for multiple, begin by replacing 1 at a time and make it a long term goal to replace all. (Example: replace all current smoke detectors within the next year with a Nest).
Security companies that integrate with Nest Products
- Vivint
- Monitronics (some dealers)
- ADT Pulse (some dealers)
- Alarm dot com partners
- Smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector that speaks up in a friendly voice to give you an early warning when there's...
- Split Spectrum Sensor looks for both fast burning and smoldering, and tells you where the danger is
- Get phone alerts so you know something's wrong even when you're away from home[1]
Our Score
DESIGN: 8/10
FUNCTION:9/10
DURABILITY:8/10
EASE OF USE:7/10
Design:
Like all technology, the Nest 2.0 has shrunk in size and gotten better looks
The Nest Protect is slimmer and sleeker compared to the first generation Nest Protect. It measures:
Height: 5.3 inches (13.4 cm)
Width: 5.3 inches (13.4 cm)
Depth: 1.5 inch (3.85 cm)
Mass: 13.9 ounces (379 g)
Unlike the usually rounded shape of conventional smoke detectors. The Nest Protect takes a different path with its 4 sided designs which gives a better overall appearance than conventional smoke detectors. Available in two variants, battery powered and wired, both have the same measurement with the battery powered being slightly heavier. The Nest Protect is available in white, not much choice regarding color but it does give off a range of color of the circular LED indicator that goes around the circular Nest logo depending on the status of the set.
Functions of the Nest Protect
The Nest Protect has a lot of function which the traditional smoke detector doesn’t possess. Firstly, it integrates smoke detection and carbon monoxide detector into the same gadget saving cost, it seamlessly integrates with other Nest products like the Nest cam and the Nest thermostat. The led indicator on the device gives off ranges of colors depending on the event.
Green Glow:
Shows when you turn off the light. Means everything is working fine
Light Glow:
Via a motion detector the Nest Protect light off your path when you walk under it. Different light intensity can be selected depending on choice or you can turn off the path-light function altogether from the App.
Yellow glow:
Depending om the level of a smoke detector, the yellow glow comes on to notify you to be alert.
Red Glow:
Signifies a high level of carbon monoxide and smoke. It sounds the alarm and tells you where the fire is coming from.
The Nest Protect reports to you in 8 languages depending on location warning you on danger and low batteries or any other alert you select.
Durability:
Most smoke detectors have a shelf line of 5-7 years. The Nest Protect gives you a lifetime guarantee of 10 years, beating competition while providing you the best of smoke detection functionality.
Ease of Use:
The Nest Protect comes in two variants. While the battery-powered installation occurs in a breeze the wired might require an installer’s services. The Nest Protect works as advertised on paper in detecting smoke and carbon monoxide ignoring fake triggers while notifying via a firm voice with a location the source of the alarm before the loud Alarm goes off. You simply replace it by mounting it to ceiling as shown by image below.
Our Smokey Conclusion
Cough cough… The Nest Protect compared to the standard smoke detector are miles apart. The extra functionality the Nest Protect offers shows what a smoke detector should be. With a sleek design and later technology, the Nest Protect is a huge upgrade every smart home should have.
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William is a tech buff and former corporate security officer turned cybercrime analyst. Computers have few secrets left for him, but home security and alarm systems… Well, those have plenty of secrets for their users, which William is now uncovering and explaining. His articles on home security helped many people take the matter seriously, invest in highly performing systems, and avoid becoming victims of burglaries.
Last update on 2025-11-26 at 03:58 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Timothy M. says
This is one of those products you buy and completely forget about. I assume mine is still working but I have never heard it go off or anything. I don’t think you need to be ‘hip’ or ‘cool’ with monitoring / smart phone app connection when it’s just a sensor. Now that Nest is coming out with other products I can see myself adding the whole product line into my home and paying a fee if needed but then again it will be new and buggy so might be best to let them test it a few years.