Google 4th Gen Nest Learning Thermostat and Google TV Streamer: Specs, Features, Price, Release Date

Finally, the Nest Learning Thermostat now has a new System Health Monitor that tracks the operation of your HVAC system and alerts you to potential maintenance needs, like if your air conditioner suddenly isn’t cooling rooms as efficiently as it used to. Plus, a new Smart Ventilation feature checks the outdoor air quality before letting that air into your home, which is especially helpful if the air quality in your area is poor.

The new Nest Learning Thermostat (and included sensor) is available for preorder now, priced at $280, and will be available on August 20th.

The future of Google Assistant

Google has been integrating Gemini chatbots and large-scale language models into its products and services over the past year, but what does this mean for the Google Assistant, a rival to Alexa and Siri? Year but was never mentioned Announced at Google’s Developer Conference in May, you might think this marks the end of the Google Assistant and ultimately its journey to the Google graveyard, but think again.

Katukaran says Gemini’s large-scale language model will power the Google Assistant and “redefine the next era of the smart home.” The most immediate change? Google Assistant’s voice will sound more natural and human, with improved pacing and rhythm, providing a more conversational experience and allowing you to chain multiple commands and queries together while maintaining conversational context.

This Gemini-powered experience also improves existing features. For example, motion alerts from your security cameras will be more detailed, letting you know exactly what’s going on without having to open your camera feed. You can also ask the Assistant for information from your camera feed, like if your FedEx delivery is here. Google also wants to let you ask the Assistant to set up home automations for you, without having to dig through in-app menus.

None of this helps Gemini’s branding problem. There are a ton of variants with different features, including Gemini Nano, Gemini Ultra, Gemini Flash, and most recently Gemini Live. Meanwhile, Google Assistant was one great AI umbrella that handled everything. But now that Assistant is backed by Gemini, Google isn’t ready to replace it anytime soon. That means we’ll have to live with two assistants for a while longer.

The new Google Assistant experience is available to some Nest Aware subscribers as part of a public preview and is expected to roll out in 2025.