Google’s latest generation of Nest cameras now works with Alexa
Amazon and Google are often framed as opposing camps in the giant war that is the consumer tech market. The reality, however, for many shoppers who are building their smart homes up is that they’re likely mixing and matching their Ring doorbells with their Nest Thermostats or putting an Echo in one room and a Google Assistant speaker in the other. This opens up a gulf in domestic automation and there has been little effort to stitch it up, save until now as Google is introducing an Alexa skill for its Nest products.
Googleis primarily pushing its2021 model Nest productsas having the best compatibility with Alexa for live view streaming, but users can also pair up their older Nest cameras as well as their thermostats for voice control as well.
Here’s what you may do with each Nest camera:
Live view from Echo Show
Live view from Fire TV
Live view from Fire tablet
Motion announcements
Nest Cam outdoor
Nest Cam indoor (battery)
Nest Cam indoor (wired)
Nest Cam with floodlight
Nest Doorbell (battery)
Nest Cam Indoor (1st-gen)
Nest Cam Outdoor (1st-gen)
Nest Cam IQ Indoor
Nest Cam IQ Outdoor
Nest Doorbell (wired)
There are seemingly no restrictions as to which Nest Thermostat models can be integrated with the Alexa skill. Only theNest Doorbell (battery)will support doorbell press announcements — sorry, wired users.
We’ve reached out to Google on whether the older devices will receive eventually receive support for the features they don’t have.
Nest device owners who want to use Alexa can install the skill for free fromAmazon, then head to the Google Home app settings on a managing device and hit Partner Connections, then Amazon Alexa. Further instructions will be given on how to permit the integration for each device. Users can manage partner connections from adedicated webpage.
UPDATE: 2022/05/04 17:03 EST BY JULES WANG
Correction
We should clarify that prior to this announcement, Google had maintained two Alexa skills for Nest products — one for cameras, one for thermostats (viaInternet Archive) — that came out of its 2019 decision tomigrate third-party integrations awayfrom the Works with Nest API to the Works with Google Assistant API. It seems the company consolidated the abilities of the two skills into one, then added support for the new devices.
Android Police regrets the error.
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