Lightsabers and flying cars might not exist yet, but you have to admit, science fiction gets it right sometimes. Just look at the smart home. Today, building a hi-tech smart home is no longer just a far-fetched, futuristic imagining of a visionary storyteller. And Google and Nest are spearheading the drive to make every home at least a little smarter.

Nest thermostats, for example, have opened up new possibilities for how smart home tech can be integrated together. And, since Google acquired Nest in 2014, Google’s products work seamlessly within the Nest framework for a perfectly coordinated symphony of home convenience, security, and energy efficiency.

Read on to learn how smartening up your living space can enrich you and your family’s life, and then enter this contest for a chance at winning the grand prize, which includes enough goodies to build your own domestic ecosystem. There are also second and third place prizes to be won!

A snapshot of smarter living with Nest and Google

If you’re a long time reader of the Best Buy Canada Blog, I’m sure you’ve read a lot about smart home technology by now in articles such as Leonard Bond’s comprehensive breakdown of Works with Nest, or Elliot Chun’s smart home series. But, if you’re still wondering what exactly a smart home is and how it can complement your day-to-day life, allow me to paint a picture of what life can be like in an AI-enabled home. And by simply entering this contest, living in a tech-enhanced home could soon be your reality:

Nest Smart Learning Thermostat

You pull up the driveway at the same time you do every day. It’s late Fall and Jack Frost is starting to make his presence felt with cold winds that let you know that it’s the beginning of a long winter. You hurry to the front door to escape the icy chill and step into cozy comfort. Your energy-efficient Nest Thermostat has learned what time you usually come home and turned itself on a few minutes before you arrive—no more waiting for cold rooms to heat up!

Voice-controlled Google Home answers questions, plays your music, and controls other smart devices, including Nest

 

 

As soon as you’ve settled in, you go to the kitchen to get dinner ready. It’s cheat day, you’re craving carbs, and everyone in the family loves Italian food, so you ask your voice-activated Google Home to tell you about a recipe for a tasty pasta dish, request some good cooking music, and set a timer to ensure your pasta is perfectly al dente, all without lifting a finger.

Just as dinner is ready to serve, your smartphone vibrates with a notification: your Nest Cam IQ in the front yard has detected someone you know in the driveway. Seconds later, your Nest Hello video doorbell rings. It uses facial recognition to identify the person and transmits the message to Google Home to tell you that your mother is at the door.

As you take your mother’s coat, your partner arrives with your hungry toddler fresh out of daycare. The four of you sit down to dinner and you ask Google to dim the lights and play some nice background music. After dinner, you and your other half head out to the movie theatre for date night while your little one and Grandma stay in to watch a Disney classic.

Nest Cam IQ records in 1080p and boasts a wide-angle lens to capture the entire room

At the theatre, before the movie begins, that familiar feeling of separation anxiety hits you right on time, and you wonder if everything is okay at home. Plus, you’ve also got a niggling feeling that you left the cooker on. With Nest Cams in the nursery, living room, and kitchen, as well as outside in the front and back yards, you open the Nest App to view the Full HD live feed on your smartphone.

Live feed on the Nest App of your kitchen’s Nest Cam IQ

 

While baby plays happily in the living room, you can see Grandma is reading nearby with a blanket over her shoulders. You adjust the room’s temperature from your phone so they’ll be nice and cozy. Then you switch over to your kitchen Nest Cam. It has a perfect view of the entire room with its wide angle lens, and you zoom in on your range. It’s off. Priceless peace of mind! Now, you can relax.

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This scenario only scratches the surface of how a smart home ecosystem can make your life more convenient. Nest and Google have been working tirelessly to make premium smart home products accessible to everyone. Installation is a doddle, and, as you can see, every individual item works together and can be controlled with your voice or from an app on your smartphone. There’s lots of goodies to be won in this contest, and if you’re wondering what other gear you’ll need to make a smart home platform work seamlessly in your house or apartment, remember this general rule of thumb: If you have a smartphone, you can have a smart home. It’s as simple as that.

HOW TO ENTER:

You can only submit one entry for this contest. Browse Best Buy’s smart home catalog, and in a comment below this article, tell us one smart home product that you would like to add to your daily life and why.

WHAT YOU CAN WIN:

We will randomly draw three winners. One person will win the grand prize, one person will win the second prize, and one person will win the third prize. The prizes are shown here, and also in the Rules and Regulations posted below.

Grand Prize 2nd Prize
 

  • Nest Temperature Sensor
  • Nest Wi-Fi Smart Learning Thermostat 3rd Gen
  • Nest Cam IQ Wi-Fi Outdoor 1080p Security Camera
  • Nest Cam Wi-Fi Outdoor 1080p IP Camera
  • Nest Cam IQ Wi-Fi Indoor 1080p IP Camera
  • Nest Cam Wi-Fi Indoor IP Camera – Black
  • Nest Hello Wi-Fi Video Doorbell
  • 2 x Google Home Mini
  • Google Home
  • Nest Cam IQ Wi-Fi Outdoor 1080p Security Camera
  • Nest Cam IQ Wi-Fi Indoor 1080p IP Camera
  • Nest Wi-Fi Smart Learning Thermostat 3rd Gen
  • Nest Temperature Sensor
  • Nest Hello Wi-Fi Video Doorbell
  • Google Home

 

3rd Prize

  • Nest Cam Wi-Fi Outdoor 1080p IP Camera
  • Google Home Mini

This contest runs from October 15th until October 28th.

Remember, you can only enter once. However, you probably know someone who would love to add some incredible smart products to their home, so please share this contest and they too will have a chance to win one of these prizes.

Win Google and Nest Smart Home Goodies Rules and Regulations

Good Luck.  

We frequently have many contests running at Best Buy, so check out the “contests in progress” page for more great contests to enter.
Kevin McElligott
Kevin McElligott
Kevin cut his teeth as a journalist writing articles for trade publications in Dublin. He moved to Vancouver and honed his craft first as a copywriter, and now as an Editor at Best Buy. He enjoys cooking when he has the time, playing soccer, and just recently ran in his first marathon. Fitness is important to him, and he needs the exercise thanks to his fondness for donuts.
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1307 COMMENTS

  1. I have nest smoke detector, Nest smart thermostat, Google Home and I really like to add nest security cameras as my family are home alone when I travel for work. Also we as a family we travel a lot too. With a Nest Security Systems can keep an eye out on my house when we’re away.

  2. The outdoor camera. I live in a forest and a cougar is stalking my dog. So I’d like to know when it’s around.

  3. I would like the Nest Wi-Fi Video Doorbell for when I am away and my wife needs to answer the door at night

  4. The Nest Hello Wi-Fi Video Doorbell would be a great addition to our home. It would allow us to see who is at the door anytime of the day and night. Thanks for the opportunity to win these products.

  5. I think a Nest Hello Wi-Fi Video Doorbell would be useful to see who is coming up to the door, when we’re home or away.

  6. I would absolutely love the Nest Hello Wi-Fi Video Doorbell. When I’m home alone, I’m unable to physically answer the door due to my disability. With video, I can answer with the laptop attached to my wheelchair. It would be awesome!

  7. I would like the Nest Wi-Fi Video Doorbell as we still get quite a few people who go door to door in our neighbourhood and it would be nice to see who is there before answering.

  8. Any of the Nest cameras would be great to help keep an eye on the kids. Until I learn how to be in 2 places at the same time this is the next best thing!

  9. HunterDouglas Intelligent shades with the Automate Powerview motorization from Best Buy which would make life so much easier for me instead of having to climb up on a step ladder to open and close my blinds.

  10. I would like the Nest Wi-Fi Video Doorbell as we still get quite a few people who go door to door in our neighbourhood and it would be nice to see who is there before answering.

  12. The Nest Cam Wi-Fi Outdoor 1080p IP Camera would be great to know beforehand who’s outside before opening the door!

  15. Nest Hello Wi-Fi Video Doorbell would be great for our family, we don’t live in the best neighborhood so it would be great to see who’s at the door before answering.

  17. I would like to have the Nest Hello Wi-Fi Video Doorbell because it is always nice to know who is at your door before answering it.

  18. I want to add the Nest Hello Wi-Fi Video Doorbell to my home so I can see who is out there before I open my door. As a senior living alone I would love to feel safer in my home

  19. The Nest Cam IQ Wi-Fi Outdoor 1080p Security Camera would provide peace of mind when we are home or away.

  22. I would love to have the wifi indoor camera in order to watch out baby when she is in the room and come get her if I see something off

  23. I really need a smart speaker in order to turn on music at home once I enter the house and start to unwind with the soft beats or some classical music 😀

  25. I’ve been wanting the Nest Wi-Fi Smart Learning Thermostat. l would love to control the temp from my smart device whenever we want and lower our heating/ac bills.

  27. I would like the Nest Wi-Fi Smart Learning Thermostat 3rd Gen because my thermostat is really old and i could use an upgrade.

  28. I’d love to have an August smart lock. It would help make locking the door easier and I don’t need to scrounge around for keys.

  30. I would like to add the Gogogate2 Wi-Fi Garage Door Controller with Wireless Sensor to my daily life because we have to go outside to see if our garage door has been left open and we have had a bike stolen as a result of not knowing the door was left open.

  32. The NEST surveillance cameras 1080p (indoor/outdoor)! Once I leave for work, I can leave worry free; increasing security to my home, saving me time and a lot of money!

    I love Nest products. All smart products make life increasingly easier and help save great amounts of money. Nest is kind to the environment and helps saving money in the process of making life convenient – I’ll take that!

  33. An indoor camera for my kids staying alone at home would be very reassuring, and the Nest Thermostat system with google home would be very helpful for my family’s busy life especially because we hate the cold.

  34. I would like the Nest Wi-Fi Smart Learning Thermostat 3rd Gen.
    this could hepl regulate the temp in my house.

  35. Nest Wi-Fi Smart Learning Thermostat 3rd Gen would probably be my choice since winter is very near it would help make smarter temperature control decisions.

  37. I would definitely choose Google Home Mini! It gives amazing sound quality and able to play music anywhere. I would just connect it to my cellphone and play my jam

  38. Living in an appartment a google home would be perfect! My sister has one and its great for entertaining with all the music it plays. As well a helpful tool when you’re cooking and need a handfree way of looking up things while you’re doing so.

  40. I would want the Chamberlain MyQ Smart Garage Hub, so that Google Home could tell me when my garage door is up, and better yet, shut it for me. Oh an maybe a cam for in the garage to make sure everything is ok.

  41. I would use all of the security cameras: Nest Cam IQ Wi-Fi Outdoor 1080p Security Camera, Nest Cam Wi-Fi Outdoor 1080p IP Camera, Nest Cam IQ Wi-Fi Indoor 1080p IP Camera, Nest Cam Wi-Fi Indoor IP Camera – Black for security when we are not home as we live in the city.

  42. I’m all about those smart assistants and what not. I like how they can control a bunch of other stuff too.

  44. I would like a Nest – Learning Thermostat – 3rd Generation so we can control how much gas we use by avoiding having heat on when unnecessary.

  45. I would add Nest Cam Wi-Fi Indoor IP Camera so that I could keep on eyes on my dogs while I’m away! I would finally catch my dog sleeping on my couch and understand why it is always full of hair! 🙂

  48. Would love a nest theromstat to be able to control the temp better at home and save $$ on our heating and cooling bills

  49. Well, if I only had one choice….I would certainly love to use the Nest Cam Wi-Fi Outdoor 1080p IP Camera or the Security Camera……to put at my front door to not only see if anyone is coming (since it’s hard to hear the door knocks, etc.)……but also see if I can catch any of the beautiful wildlife strolling through our park, too. Deer, bears, wild turkeys, etc…..it’s a busy time of year right now 🙂

    Thanks for the chance to win, Kevin…..any of these amazing products would be wonderful! Thank you! Good luck, all!

  50. I would like to put the Nest Cam IQ Wi-Fi Outdoor 1080p Security Camera to use in my daily life so I can check on my home while I am out and about!

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