From EETimes: Let the battle begin over the so-called “conscious home” -- a long-term vision held by Nest Lab’s co-founder Tony Fadell. Now that Google is inserting itself into that "home" picture, through the acquisition of Nest, a smart thermostat and smoke alarm developer, expect the market segment to heat up.
It was at CES Unveiled -- a pre-show gadget-fest at the International CES -- in 2012, where Nest stole the show.
The pedigree of Fadell (who developed Apple’s music player iPod) as the startup’s co-founder, the sleek thermostat design, and the fact that the lowly thermostat came with an iPhone app from day one on the product rollout fascinated everyone.
Two years later, right after the 2014 CES, Google snatched up Nest Labs for $3.2 billion in cash on Monday (Jan. 13).
Google’s move suggests that the search engine giant is serious about becoming a player in the “connected” home appliance market, but more to the point, occupying the space of the much larger Internet of Things market.
Under the deal, Google will acquire both Nest’s products and a design team that includes its co-founders, Fadell and Matt Rogers.
According to Google’s announcement, Nest will “continue to operate under the leadership of Fadell and with its own distinct brand identity.”
The idea of remotely controlling home appliances via smartphones or tables is no longer foreign to many CE vendors, and perhaps, even to consumers.
But Nest’s claim to fame is its simplicity (when consumers are setting it up), the self-learning capability of the device and the company’s flawless execution in making appliances software upgradable.
How to bring connectivity, intelligence, and ease-of-use to home appliances has been the name of the game among CE vendors for years.
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