For example, Google - owned company Nest claims that homeowners who install the Nest Protect — a Wi - Fi - enabled
smart smoke alarm — may receive discounts of about 5 % off their insurance premiums.
We think the second - generation Nest Protect smoke and carbon monoxide alarm is the best
smart smoke alarm because it reliably and calmly alerts you to potential danger before the actually loud and grating alarm kicks in.
A smart smoke alarm should alert you on your smartphone when it senses smoke, as well as tell you which room is in danger; it should also include intelligent low - battery alerts and remain easy to silence safely from the app.
So, on top of retrofitting old alarms, you can buy a Roost
Smart Smoke Alarm that can detect CO, all types of smoke (Roost uses a modified ionization sensor, called IoPhic, made by Universal Security Instruments), and natural gas, or you can get a cheaper smoke - only alarm.
Among all the smart - home devices available today,
a smart smoke alarm is probably the most important and the one that even smart - home skeptics should consider.
The Protect is also nicely styled, and it's the only
smart smoke alarm we tested that comes in both black and white, for easier coordination with a variety of decor.
The other two currently available
smart smoke alarms, the First Alert Z - Wave Smoke / CO Alarm and the Kidde Wireless Interconnected Combination Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm, are «smart» only when you use them with a smart - home hub such as Wink or SmartThings.
This addition to Roost's offerings gives you two more budget - friendly options for outfitting your home with
smart smoke alarms.
Another benefit of
smart smoke alarms over standard ones is that you can more easily tell when they're not working.
CNET's Megan Wollerton agrees that Nest's Protect is the best
smart smoke alarm available, writing, «No other smoke and carbon monoxide detectors available today can match [it] in terms of looks and options.»
However, we'll be sure to keep an eye on the interplay between
smart smoke alarms and heat alarms, as we know this is an area of interest for many people, the smart solutions just aren't there yet.
However, two
smart smoke alarms coming soon promise to offer true dual - sensing smoke detection, with both photoelectric and ionization sensors.
(Tip: For
any smart smoke alarm or alerter, turn on the Alert setting for the app in your phone so that any notification requires a dismissal from you, making sure that you see it.)
Using Nest Protect smoke alarms (or IFTTT integrations with other
smart smoke alarms), you can trigger your HVAC system to shut down if a smoke or fire emergency is detected, potentially helping stop the spread of the fire.
From a safety angle, the ability to tie in
your smart smoke alarms with your Nest is a great benefit.
Joining this list of sensors and home smarts is
the Smart Smoke Alarm, which does exactly what it says on the tin.The Netatmo Smart Smoke... Read more
Its forthcoming offering, the Onelink Safe and Sound, is
a smart smoke alarm and carbon monoxide detector that does more than just beep when things go awry in your home.
And on the way is
its Smart Smoke Alarm.
Smart smoke alarms allow you to learn (should the worst happen) that your house is on fire from your phone, and when paired with HomeKit can allow for potentially life - saving features such as having all your lights turn on to allow you to more easily escape your house.
The Netatmo
Smart Smoke Alarm will be available in the second half of 2017.
You'll be able to install as many
Smart Smoke Alarms as you want in your home, meaning you can receive notifications telling you that smoke has been detected in your basement, loft room, scullery or on the back stairs.
The Smart Smoke Alarm goes up against the sort of connected features we've previously seen from Nest Protect, Google's own take on the connected smoke alarm.
The Netatmo
Smart Smoke Alarm is a battery powered device that will connect to your home network, offering not only a local 85dB alarm, but also sending notifications to your smartphone.
Being a connected device from a company that's intent on connecting and monitoring everything in your home environment,
the Smart Smoke Alarm is also compatible with IFTTT and Apple's HomeKit, meaning you'll be able to setup actions and recipes, for example turning on the lights if smoke is detected - perhaps even closing your Velux windows.
You can put a Roost Smart Battery in just about any smoke detector and get nearly all of the benefits that the Roost
Smart Smoke Alarm delivers: Alerts on your phone when the detector goes off, the phone number for your local first responders right alongside the alert, alerts sent to monitors you choose who might be able to take action if you're not around, and no more 3AM chirps from a dying smoke - detector battery (you'll get an alert on your phone long before then).
For the most part,
smart smoke alarms tend to work almost identically.
As I mentioned up top, Roost partnered with Universal Security Instruments to build the Roost
Smart Smoke Alarm.
The Nest Protect is one of the most mature
smart smoke alarms on the market, and it's a no - brainer of a choice if you want one of the most sophisticated and reliable smart smoke detectors out there.
But the battery provides only backup power; the Roost
Smart Smoke Alarm must be hardwired to your electrical system to operate.
The Roost
Smart Smoke Alarm RSA - 400, $ 80 (shown up top), detects the presence of natural gas — an industry first, according to Roost CEO Roel Peters — and carbon monoxide as well as the smoke from a smoldering fire or the flames from a fast - moving fire.
The Roost
Smart Smoke Alarm has LEDs to indicate the presence of smoke, carbon monoxide, and natural gas (hopefully not all at the same time).
That said, when paired with a smart thermostat,
some smart smoke alarms can trigger the thermostat to shut down your HVAC system, so that smoke isn't pulled into your ventilation system and circulated all around your home.
Most of
the smart smoke alarms we evaluated are available in either format and cost the same.
The Smart Smoke Alarm also sends you a notification for when the battery needs to be replaced, but since it includes a 10 - year battery, that's not likely to happen very often in your lifetime.
The Netatmo
Smart Smoke Alarm will soon be a HomeKit - equipped utility.
It isn't the only Nest product, either: there's
the smart smoke alarm, and now that Google's acquired security camera firm Dropcam, Nest cameras can't be far off.
Nest, the Google owned
smart smoke alarm, has announced it's buying Dropcam.
That means if you're already rocking Google's Nest Learning Thermostat, Protect
smart smoke alarm, or Nest Cam, the Linus will sync right up with them.
Not exact matches
Alphabet - owned Nest Labs is Ecobee's primary competitor in the
smart thermostat market — it started selling
smart thermostats back in 2010, and now it also offers
smoke alarms and security cameras.
For example, Google acquired the Android operating system developer in 2005, which provided entry to the growing world of mobile computing, and also recently acquired Nest Labs, which develops automated in - home devices such as thermostats and
smoke alarms that can be controlled using
smart devices.
Nest labs right now can boasts of just
smart devices in the ir product portfolio, a
smoke and carbon monoxide
alarm device and a thermostat, which makes us wonder what direction Google is believed to be charting towards to fuel their «
smart» aspirations.
You might want to try a
smoke alarm battery that you can use in your existing
smoke alarm to get a notification if the
alarm goes off or runs out of battery, or a
smart plug that saves electricity.
Qualify for this discount if you have any of the following devices in your home:
smoke detectors and fire
alarms, an interior sprinkler system, a home security system, or
smart home technology that alerts you to fires or burglars.
The latest wireless home security systems may come as part of comprehensive «
smart home» suites that in addition to cameras, door and window alerts, and other crime - fighting features, including
smoke and heat sensors, carbon monoxide
alarms, and water detectors.
Whether you're across the street or across the country, a
smart alarm will let you know (via your smartphone) when it detects
smoke in your home.
Roost's
smart functions come as a battery that you install in any
smoke alarm, or as a complete
alarm with the battery already installed.
Nest's Protect
smart smoke and CO
alarm has been getting better with age thanks to software update...
If you already need to replace your
smoke alarms anyway — fire - safety experts recommend doing so every 10 years because sensors wear out — we think the price premium for going
smart, while not insignificant, is a small one to pay for added peace of mind.
Google WiFi, the company's connectivity solution that's essentially a mesh router with added bells and whistles, and its Nest lineup of
smart home - focused products, which include doorbells, security cameras,
smoke detectors and
alarm systems, will also make an appearance in the company's Indian product catalog.
The First Alert Z - Wave
Smoke / CO
Alarm (ZCOMBO) was our favorite of the two
alarms that work with a
smart - home hub.