(Credit: Eric Zeman)
Nest’s smart thermostats are known for adapting to your preferences and setting schedules automatically. An updated version boasts new AI technology that promises to bring more transparency to the process, checking with you as it learns and makes changes to your schedule instead of just doing it.
The Nest Learning Thermostat (4th gen) is available for preorder now for $279.99 and ships starting Aug. 20. That’s a small bump over the $249 price of the 9-year-old previous version. It comes in Polished Silver, Polished Obsidian, and Polished Gold color options. The included Nest Temperature Sensor (2nd gen) is all white, with a smooth, pebble-like shape.
The thermostat supports up to six Nest Temperature Sensors. Extras cost $39.99 apiece, or you can get a three-pack for $99.99. The Nest Learning Thermostat (4th gen) will be able to take the average temperature of all of your sensors when determining its temperature target.
Still Learning
The learning part of the new Nest Learning Thermostat will still track your preferred temperatures for different times of the day and when you’re home or away. This has been a staple of the device since the very first Nest Learning Thermostat back in 2012. The fourth-generation model builds on this classic feature with the ability to ask before changing a schedule based on your behavior. You can still set it to make the changes automatically if you prefer or you can see its changes as suggestions and then implement them as you see fit. The embedded AI also aims to help it better adapt to outliers in your routine, like coming home early.
In addition to learning your schedule, the fourth-generation Nest Learning Thermostat will aim to save you money by adapting to outdoor conditions to use less energy. If it’s going to be a sunny afternoon in the winter, for example, it won’t push out as much heat in the late morning, and instead let the day’s warmth heat your place naturally. A feature called Smart Ventilation will use your home’s compatible ventilation system if you have one to let in fresh air from outside when appropriate, or stick to internal sources if air quality dips.
Nest’s Adaptive Eco feature will calculate energy usage on the fly and determine the ideal away point. Normally, if you set your temperature much lower in the winter when you’re gone, your HVAC needs to then spend a lot of energy heating your place back up when you get home, undoing some of your savings. Nest’s feature will attempt to save money on energy costs by reducing the spike when you come home by adjusting the away temperature accordingly.
The fourth-generation Nest Learning Thermostat also has a feature called Nest Renew to prioritize energy use when it’s cheapest, and a System Health Monitor tool that promises to warn you of potential problems with your HVAC system. It can also send you a notification if your system is not heating or cooling as efficiently as it should so you know to check for an open window or door, according to Nest.
A New Look
Aside from the refined smarts and included remote room sensor, the fourth-generation Nest Learning Thermostat has a new look with a 60% bigger, curved LCD display made to eliminate the appearance of bezels. The domed aesthetic is similar to that of Pixel Watch 2 at a glance, also made by Nest’s parent company Google, and you can customize the home screen to create a look that fits your decor.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)An updated Soli radar sensor will adapt the information shown on the screen depending on your distance from it, with bigger fonts and less data if you’re across the room, moving to more granular details as you approach. This radar should also help its home and away sensors act with more precision.
In person, the Nest Thermostat's new design looks classy and resembles nautical instruments. A brass ring surrounds the large, domed display. It's easy to read the larger numbers from a distance, such as the current temperature or the clock, but you'll have to get closer to see the details of extended forecasts. The screen's domed shape distorts things when viewed from an angle, so looking at the Thermostat head-on is somewhat necessary. Pressing the bottom of the screen (at the 6 o'clock position) calls up the settings menu. Rotate the brass ring to move the selector around and press again to make a selection. It's fairly intuitive. Google says you can make all the same adjustments via the associated app. At first blush, it's an elegant update but we're not 100% sold on the practicality yet.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)As for controlling the thermostat, the fourth-generation Nest Learning Thermostat will roll out alongside redesigned thermostat controls on the Google Home app for smartwatches, tablets, and the new Google TV Streamer. The fourth-generation Nest Learning Thermostat will be Matter-compatible at launch so you can easily sync it with a number of smart home platforms, though it won’t act as a Thread Border Router letting you use it as a hub.
On the sustainability front, the battery in the thermostat is made from 100% recycled cobalt, and the thermostat will ship in 100% plastic-free packaging.
Tough Competition
While the original Nest Learning Thermostat helped launch the category, the fourth-generation model comes into a highly competitive field. The $249.99 Ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium includes a remote sensor and has a microphone built-in so it can double as a smart speaker. If you’re okay setting schedules yourself, the entry-level $129.99 Nest Thermostat still monitors your HVAC system and your energy usage and connects to your larger smart home ecosystem for much less.
All of our favorite thermostats bring something unique to the table, so the fourth-generation Nest Learning Thermostat has a lot to prove to stay at the forefront of the category. We’ll test it as soon as we can get our hands on it. Stay tuned for our full review.