Software bug shuts down Nest thermostats, turns off heating for unlucky customers
A buggy software update has caused many users of Nest's smart thermostat to wake up in the cold in recent days, as the devices have been found to quickly drain their batteries and shut down, leaving heating and cooling systems offline.
"We had a bug that was introduced in the software update that didn't show up for about two weeks," Nest co-founder Matt Rogers told Nick Bilton of the New York Times, who experienced the snafu firsthand. Issues began to crop up earlier this month, when customers found their HVAC systems unresponsive.
For users, fixing the problem -- Nest says 99.5 percent of its customers are back online -- means rebooting their now-dead thermostat, which is easier said than done. Nest's support site details a nine-step process that requires removing the device from the wall, connecting it to auxiliary power, and performing a series of incantations.
Alternatively, the Times notes that Nest has offered to send an electrician to help any customers who can't solve the problem on their own.
This is the latest in a string of problems for Nest in the years since Tony Fadell sold the firm to Google. The company's Protect smoke and carbon monoxide alarm, for instance, met with widespread user dissatisfaction and was eventually pulled from the market temporarily over safety concerns.
"We had a bug that was introduced in the software update that didn't show up for about two weeks," Nest co-founder Matt Rogers told Nick Bilton of the New York Times, who experienced the snafu firsthand. Issues began to crop up earlier this month, when customers found their HVAC systems unresponsive.
For users, fixing the problem -- Nest says 99.5 percent of its customers are back online -- means rebooting their now-dead thermostat, which is easier said than done. Nest's support site details a nine-step process that requires removing the device from the wall, connecting it to auxiliary power, and performing a series of incantations.
Alternatively, the Times notes that Nest has offered to send an electrician to help any customers who can't solve the problem on their own.
This is the latest in a string of problems for Nest in the years since Tony Fadell sold the firm to Google. The company's Protect smoke and carbon monoxide alarm, for instance, met with widespread user dissatisfaction and was eventually pulled from the market temporarily over safety concerns.
Comments
This is the kind of thing that prevents me from getting a smart thermostat. I know I would never buy a Nest anyway, but there are others out of there from companies that have been making thermostats for generations. Still, this is the kind of the thing that puts me off the entire concept. Very little gain + much risk.
This is a perfect example of Keep it simple.
There are things in your house you do not want too High Tech and your heating system is one of them. I can tell you if this happen at my house that thing would have been ripped off the wall faster than you could image by my wife. One time while traveling during the winter our furnace went out in the middle of night and it was 0 zero outside and the house was at 50 before you knew it. Call the repair guy and $200 later and a $10 piezoelectric igniter broke and there was no way to get the furnace running with out the dame part. Likely the repair guy had one on his truck.
The wife wanted the furnace ripped out, it was too high tech and complicated. Today I keep extra igniters and controller boards next to my furnace for the late night failures in the dead of winter which has happen a number of times over the years. This is part of the reason, I have not updated my thermostat to something like NEST because I do not believe they have done the fault tolerance testing to make sure it will always work. Plus it does not have a mechanical manual override. I have a programmable from Honeywell who has lots of experience with this kind of thing even if the programmable part dies you can always force the furnace on mechanically. I still have my old style mercury mechanical thermostat as a back up. A Piss Off wife with kids at home was not worth the verbal abuse of other companies stupid decisions.
Problems? A few. The biggest one was the furnace itself. Another time Nest determined we had a faulty unit. New one arrived the next day.
Terrible.
*adds more wood to the wood stove and watches the flames for a bit*
Yep. Terrible.
Then Google bought Nest.
Now I eye them with distrust. Like little Google eyes in my house. I'm not sure what data Google is stealing, but I'll bet they are siphoning off a great deal.
"But but but Antennagate." Boom. Google has been defended. The Nestgate has been cancelled out. /s
Do you honestly believe that, if Apple had purchased Nest, they would be in this situation?