Car companies are hellbent on making their products part of the “Internet of Things”, and the latest example of that is a collaboration between Mercedes-Benz and Nest.
The Germany automaker is developing that will allow a car to communicate with a Nest smart thermostat, giving an estimated time of arrival so the thermostat has adequate time to preheat or cool the driver’s house.
The idea behind this coordination is to save energy and limit driver distraction.
In theory, a Nest system won’t waste electricity heating a house while the owner is stuck in traffic, and Mercedes hopes automating the interface will keep people from fiddling with smartphones while they’re behind the wheel.
The Nest integration works through the Mercedes Digital DriveStyle app, which requires an iPhone and a car equipped with the Drive Kit Plus package. The app controls all smartphone-car connectivity features, including social media, music, and navigation.
The collaboration with Mercedes is part of Nest’s “Works with Nest” campaign to connect its devices with other companies’ products. Mercedes is the only carmaker to sign up so far, but Nest has also started partnerships with companies like Google, Logitech, and Whirlpool.
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