nest backplate
The new backplate
Thermostat startup Nest is introducing a couple of new software features to make homes more efficient.

Nest is the thermostat that was designed by the man behind the iPod, Tony Fadell. It basically looks like a thermostat if Apple made thermostats.

The Nest went on sale at the end of last year, but the company wouldn't reveal any sales figures. The closest it came was saying, that it surveyed 10,000 Nest owners, and that was just a "small portion" of the ownership.

Anyway, on to the new features! They're not huge, but Nest is adding more and more stuff to help save on your energy bill.

Nest introduced a better backplate. Most Nest owners are installing the thermostat on their own. To make it easier, Nest made the backplate easier to connect all the wires.

It improved its smartphone app. Now you can see you energy history going back ten days. From there you can see when your heating and cooling is turning on and off. You can get a better sense of how much energy you're wasting.


It's introducing something it calls "Airwave" which is says can save users 30% on their energy bills. When your air conditioner shuts down, it stays cool for a few minutes. Nest's Airwave software will take advantage of the cold air conditioner and use a fan to blow the cool air out. It's a more energy efficient way to keep your home cool.

All of these updates are being pushed automatically to current Nest owners, just like Apple pushes software updates to iPhones.