Do you have Nest smart products at home? You will be sad to know that there is no native support for Apple devices or Homekit.
But don’t despair! There are many third-party solutions, like the Starling Home Hub that lets you connect your Nest devices with your Apple products and use voice control with Siri. Read on!
How to Connect Nest to Apple HomeKit and Siri
Since Nest is a Google product, if you want to use your Nest Thermostat with any Apple device, you will run into software compatibility issues. However, many third-party solutions let you connect your Nest Thermostat with Apple HomeKit, the most popular of which is the Starling Home Hub, acting as a bridge between your Apple and Nest devices.
After you get the Starling Home Hub to connect with your Internet router or switch, you move ahead and configure the hub using your iPad, iPhone, or any other Apple device. You can complete the configuration from your browser, no additional steps required.
After you get the Starling Home Hub to connect with your Internet router or switch, you move ahead and configure the hub using your iPad, iPhone, or any other Apple device. You can complete the configuration from your browser, no additional steps required.
As far as security and protection are concerned, the Starling Home Hub will not store any user data, instead it keeps everything on your local network. This software will only connect to the internet when it needs to receive firmware updates.
Furthermore, the Starling Home Hub also supports iOS/tvOS 14. This allows you to get picture-in-picture, doorbell, and camera notifications on your Apple TV.
Supported Nest Products
Since they are Google products, Nest thermostats and other Nest products won't integrate as seamlessly with the Apple environment as they would with Google Home. However, this doesn’t mean you can’t control your Nest devices using your iPhone or any other Apple device.
Starling Home Hub has support for almost every Nest product on the market. Check below to see a full list of Nest devices that you can control using your Apple phone.
- Nest Thermostat (Nest Thermostat E & Nest Learning Thermostat)
- Temperature Sensors
- Nest Alarm Systems
- Nest Protect
- Nest Hello
- Nest Protect (CO & Smoke Alarm)
- Nest Cam Indoor/ Outdoor/IQ
- Nest Secure (Guard & Detect)
- Nest Dropcam
- Nest × Yale Lock
Once you integrate your Nest product with your Apple HomeKit account, you can enjoy the same features expected from your Nest products when connected to the Google Home App.
You must distinguish between voice assistant devices such as Google Home, or Amazon Echo and Apple Home Kit. Apple HomeKit isn't hardware: rather it is a software framework. This software framework allows you to connect Apple devices with the smart home devices you are using. With the Apple HomeKit, you can control Philips Hue bulbs and, of course, any Nest Smart Device.
How to install and integrate Nest with Siri
It only takes 5 minutes to connect your Apple HomeKit with your Nest device. To make sure users can easily start using the Starling Home Hub, you have a Quick Start Guide. This manual shows every step of the entire configuration process.
First, you need to connect the Starling Home hub with your router. Starling supports almost all routers (except for Arris RAC2V1A), including HomeKit Secure Routers, such as the Eero.
Also, the Starling Hub does not support PoE (Power Over Ethernet). But you can use a PoE micro-USB power splitter if you need to make it work.
Configuration
From your browser, visit the website setup.starlinghome.io. Here, you will automatically detect any hub connected to your home network. If you do not see your Nest device on the Starling website, check if both your Nest product and the Starling Hub are connected to the same network. They must be on the same network in order to be connected on the platform.
Furthermore, if your iPhone is on a VPN or LTE, the connection will not complete. To finish the configuration, you need to sign in to your Google or Nest account and , scan the QR code to connect your Nest device with your Apple HomeKit account.
Security
Don't worry about data protection, the Starling Home Hub uses two-factor authentication to keep your data protected against theft.
Once the connection is established, you can use simple voice commands to control the Nest devices in your home. Simply say, Hey Siri, set the thermostat to 60 degrees.
The team behind Starling Home Hub regularly rolls out new software upgrades, bug fixes, and patches. You can check for new updates by simply visiting their website. If convenience is your priority, you should always install these updates as soon as they’re made available, since they make the Starling more reliable.
Benefits of the Starling Home Hub
The Starling Home Hub was developed by the same team that's behind HomeBridge Nest. This software lets you set up your server at home, which helps connect your Nest device to your Apple HomeKit account.
Once the connection is established, you can see footage from your Nest Cam directly on your Apple device. If you are using a Nest Smart Lock solution, you can lock or unlock your door from your iPhone.
If you have a Nest camera with motion detection, you can also turn off the lights as soon as you walk out of your bedroom. Furthermore, you can easily arm/disarm the Nest Security System from your iPhone.
The Starling Home Hub might ask you to tweak the software code to optimize your Apple HomeKit for your home. However, if you are not at all tech-savvy, you can opt for their $89 premium plan.
The user interface on the Starling Home Hub is quite advanced, but still easy to navigate. With just a few taps, you can adjust your Nest Thermostat, enable Eco Mode, and adjust the hot water settings.
Is there native HomeKit support?
No, there is no native support for Nest products on Apple HomeKit. But users can use and control their Nest products with their Apple products via third-party apps such as the Starling Home Hub.
Starling is able to achieve this by utilizing the Nest APIs via the “Device Access Program” that allows qualified partners to work with Nest.
The Nest / HomeKit Conclusion
Where there is a want, there is a way! Now you know how to use your Apple device and Siri to control all the Nest smart gadgets you have at your home. Do let us know if you found this helpful.
2 Comments
Marti
Can we just pause for a moment, zoom out a bit and be amazed by the fact that an expensive “smart” product like Nest needs an expensive 3rd party option like this to be controlled by Siri? To add insult to injury, Google announced that they won’t be implementing Matter to their Nest devices. Matter being the bridge between all different communication protocols out there. Reason: they want you to buy a new thermostat. My next thermostat will be an Ecobee.
Frank
You can install Homebridge on a $15 raspberry pi https://github.com/homebridge/homebridge-raspbian-image/wiki/Getting-Started. https://www.raspberrypi.com/products/raspberry-pi-zero-2-w/.