Those of you who own a Nest smart device can control it with your voice throughGoogle Assistant- unsurprisingly given Nest is owned by Google - but also viaAmazon’s Alexa.
That’s right. The Google Nest skill allows Nest devices to work with Alexa’s voice controls. For instance, you can ask Alexa to change the temperature of your home if you have the Nest Learning Thermostat, or ask her to show video from your Nest Hello doorbell if you have an Echo Show.
Here’s how to connect your Nest devices and control them with Alexa.
What do you need?
You, of course, need a Nest device that supports Alexa, as well as theAmazon Alexa appand a mobile device to run the Amazon Alexa app.
You also need an Alexa-enabled device, such as anAmazon Echo speakerorthird-party Alexa speakerfor processing your voice commands.
you may also use theAmazon shopping apporAmazon Alexa appto process voice commands, as both have built-in Alexa and can work over LTE and not just Wi-Fi.
Which Nest devices work with Alexa?
The followingNest devicessupport Alexa’s voice controls:
How to connect your Next devices to Alexa
To get you properly started, we recommend reading our “How to set-up an Alexa smart home” guide. It has everything you need to know about Amazon’s Alexa platform and how it is able to control smart home devices, including Nest’s devices. However, to keep things simple, we’ll summarise all the specifics you need to know about Nest devices and how to connect them and control them with Alexa.
So, because of Google Nest’s Alexa skill and integration, there’s no need to go to your Nest thermostat or find your phone to control a Nest device. All you have to do is speak a supported command, which we’ve listed below, and tell Alexa what you want your Nest device to do.
First though, you need to connect your Nest devices to the Amazon Alexa app. You can do this by enabling the Google Nest skill.
Enable the Google Nest Alexa skill
Note: You need to be the owner of the Nest device (which youdesignate in your Nest account) to set up the Alexa-Nest connection. Those who have shared access, viaNest Family Accounts, cannot set up Alexa-enabled products to work with Nest.
Check your Nest device’s name
There’s a catch to the whole Alexa-Nest voice command thing to be aware of. Wherever you see “[thermostat name]” or “[camera name]” in the voice command examples below, you need to say the location assigned to your Nest device in the Nest app. If the location is “kitchen”, for instance, you need to say that.
To check which location you assigned to your device, open the Nest app or Google Home app on your mobile device. Look for your Nest device in the list and check which room it has been assigned to. The room will appear above the section in which your Nest device is in.
Note: You choose a name for a Nest device when you first get the device and set it up with the Nest app or Google Home app. If you need to know more about how to change the name of your Nest device after the fact,see this Nest guide.
How to control your Nest devices using Alexa
With Google Nest’s support for Alexa, you may control your Nest devices while you’re out or at home. Again, there’s no need to go to your Nest device or find your phone.
You just need to ensure your Nest device is powered on and connected to Alexa, and that you are within hearing range of an Alexa-enabled device.
If so, just speak one of these commands:
Nest thermostat commands
Note: If you ask Alexa to change the temperature without saying by how much, it will change by 2F degrees (1C degree).
Nest camera commands
Note: You need an Alexa-enabled device with a screen, such as the Echo Show, to view your Nest camera’s feed.
Want to know more?
We have moredetailed instructions in our guide, but you can also go to the Amazonhelp hubfor more information. Lastly, if you want to know more about the Amazon Alexa app itself, including what all the different screens mean and all their buried features,go here.
