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Nest is product very few people want. Period. A thermostat is not difficult to operate and why would regular people introduce complication into their lives over

Nest is product very few people want. Period. A thermostat is not difficult to operate and why would regular people introduce complication into their lives over something they think about as little as the thermostat? The IoT will only take off when someone can come up with a value proposition besides "isn't that cool?"

sp332 11y ago
The Nest requires less interaction and less thinking than a normal thermostat or even a programmable thermostat.
- ianferrel 11y ago
  But is it enough? It took me maybe 10 minutes to set up my programmable thermostat, and I probably never need to touch it again. It cost like $40. I just can't see spending $250 for something to save that 10 minutes. And that's assuming that the Nest actually takes zero setup. What if I have to dig into it because its internal logic is doing something weird?
  - ZeroGravitas 11y ago
    There was an efficiency program that gave out programmable thermostats to average householders. When they evaluated the program they found that they actually made things worse, because no one knew how to use them properly.
    - alistproducer2 11y ago
      It's not that most people couldn't figure out how to use those programmables right; it's that they didn't care enough (ie, see the benefit) to take the time necessary to learn it. For people who do see the benefit (I am one of those as I programmed mine in ~ 10 minutes as well), it's much more time and money efficient to use the programmable that came with my house than it is to buy some $250 contraption, install it, sync it, then learn how to use it. With gadgets, the world is divided into those who love them for their own sake, those who see enough utility in them to invest the added time/money (relative to lower tech alternatives) and those who do not care enough to use the alternates or the gadgets (ie, most of humanity).
    - jkestner 11y ago
      Wouldn't it be neat if someone made a programmable thermostat that was easy to use, without the complexity of an internet-connected computer?
ZeroGravitas 11y ago
The value proposition of Nest is the same as that of a basic programmable thermostat: save money on heating/cooling (enough to pay for itself several times over), make your life more comfortable (wake up in or return to a warm/cool house without wasting money), and save the planet (lower bills equals less carbon). You say thermostats are simple, yet I know lots of people that can't use them. I regularly find my own utterly basic home thermostat set at some crazy level because someone was too hot or cold at some point earlier. It was a pretty good market,Nest seemed to have early momentum and now seemed to have squandered it.

sp332 11y ago

The Nest requires less interaction and less thinking than a normal thermostat or even a programmable thermostat.

ianferrel 11y ago
But is it enough? It took me maybe 10 minutes to set up my programmable thermostat, and I probably never need to touch it again. It cost like $40. I just can't see spending $250 for something to save that 10 minutes. And that's assuming that the Nest actually takes zero setup. What if I have to dig into it because its internal logic is doing something weird?
- ZeroGravitas 11y ago
  There was an efficiency program that gave out programmable thermostats to average householders. When they evaluated the program they found that they actually made things worse, because no one knew how to use them properly.
  - alistproducer2 11y ago
    It's not that most people couldn't figure out how to use those programmables right; it's that they didn't care enough (ie, see the benefit) to take the time necessary to learn it. For people who do see the benefit (I am one of those as I programmed mine in ~ 10 minutes as well), it's much more time and money efficient to use the programmable that came with my house than it is to buy some $250 contraption, install it, sync it, then learn how to use it. With gadgets, the world is divided into those who love them for their own sake, those who see enough utility in them to invest the added time/money (relative to lower tech alternatives) and those who do not care enough to use the alternates or the gadgets (ie, most of humanity).
  - jkestner 11y ago
    Wouldn't it be neat if someone made a programmable thermostat that was easy to use, without the complexity of an internet-connected computer?

ZeroGravitas 11y ago

The value proposition of Nest is the same as that of a basic programmable thermostat: save money on heating/cooling (enough to pay for itself several times over), make your life more comfortable (wake up in or return to a warm/cool house without wasting money), and save the planet (lower bills equals less carbon). You say thermostats are simple, yet I know lots of people that can't use them. I regularly find my own utterly basic home thermostat set at some crazy level because someone was too hot or cold at some point earlier. It was a pretty good market,Nest seemed to have early momentum and now seemed to have squandered it.