Credit: Nest.com
This post originally appeared Nov. 30, 2011 and is being resurrected in honor of Apple becoming the largest U.S. company ever, surpassing Microsoft, according to this morning’s Wall Street Journal.
In my favorite ‘zine, Fast Company, in its “Next” series, and within that there’s a story about a cool, coming-soon new thermostat inspired by the iPod’s first developer Tony Fadell. Tony used to work at Apple; made 17 versions of the iPod, then departed and is now all creative with a thermostat.
This story is a great next segment in my creativity series–about how you take a product every single house has one or two of and turn it into something innovative, interesting, worthy of notice, and trendy.
Fadell’s Nest–Learning Thermostat costs $250, and it’s differentiator is that it learns your preferences as you dial your temperature up or down. After about 10 or 20 twists of the shiny, artsy dial, the thermostat regulates your home’s temperature on its own. No more adjustments or forgets; automatic temperature control.
>>Attraction #1: I’ve tried to program my thermostat for morning, day and night, but it was too complex and was never reliable. I resort to manual programming about three times daily.
In the article, these interesting tidbits corroborate what I just said:
>>10 million thermostats are sold annually; only 11% of users actively program them.
>>Thermostats are “treated like a light switch, with people manually adjusting them 1,500 times per year,” said Fadell.
Fadell has plans to add his thermostat to other devices networked throughout the home, but he learned at Apple to build slowly, let people learn about the device, get excited, and then introduce new concepts.
Attraction #2: If my thermostat could tell me the weather in the morning at school bus time, that would be incredible. If the potential is there at some point, that’s cool. With the knowledge we have about Apple products and devices speaking to each other wirelessly, it’s not too far fetched for a thermostat to be included in the mix. And, it’s not a device I ever expected to think about; at all.
Fadell designed his product with one function — a dial that turns the temperature up or down. He took this from the iPod which has a scrolling dial to allow music logs to move up and down the screen.
Attraction #3: Not too many dials, controls, instructions, or complexity. Keep it simple for the masses.
Here’s where creativity really comes into play — in the packaging. Fadell’s iPod was packaged neatly and really cool. (I still have the acrylic boxes mine all came in.) He put his thermostat within packaging that includes a custom-manufactured screwdriver and a level indicator at back so people know if it hangs level on the wall. While this isn’t cheap, Fadell says the “unboxing experience” contributes to ease of installation.
Attraction #4: When I bought my house, I installed my own digital thermostat with help from dad. I read the complicated instructions and told dad what to do with the color-coded wires. It was an ordeal and made me nervous because I’d never done that before. In fact, how many of you have? If I know Nest is plug and play for real, then I a) want one and b) become an automatic grassroots champion. (Ooh, just read that Nest offers a professional concierge service for installation!!)
Lastly, design. Like most things Apple that are techy, modern and cool, the Nest is also one neat device to look at. Silver edge, black inner circle with ocean blue inner circle and bold white, large numerals; not overly large. Fadell says he wanted a “symbol of hipness intended to be shown off like a badge and a jewel on the wall.”
Attraction #5: Take a look at your thermostat; is it a design element or eye sore in your home? When I remodeled my living room, I wished I had a more contemporary thermostat instead of the beige box I have now.
How is all this creative?
Look at all the steps Fadell and his team needed to strategize how to sell something no one replaces that often (albeit 10 million are sold annually). They really thought, creatively, about how to take a mundane product and turn it into something trendy, hip, green, and eco.
Those are a few reasons why you gotta appreciate Apple and all its offshoots who continue to bring us innovation in really creative ways.
Interesting; I remember when we were building the house we are in now and they were trying to install one of the thermostat’s that would have been seen when you walked in the front door. My wife said ‘now way, Jose’ and they had to move it.
We’ve been in the house 7 years now and I don’t think I’ve touched a thermostat yet. I guess the wife is taking care of that because I don’t recall being uncomfortable………………maybe I should show her this, huh?
It does look pretty cool and innovative.
Funny. You’ve never touched the thermostat; now how’s that for gender bias? And, hitting the website was so refreshing; very Apple-esque. It does make you want one, really. But, in Florida, how many temperatures do you need, anyway? Heh.
Jayme, since you’re thinking so much about creativity right now, you should check out https://Quirky.com if you haven’t already. They’re an organization that runs entirely on getting the common man’s inventions/ideas seen by the world online, having people vote on which of those inventions/ideas should go to protoype, and then funding the winners (Quirky gets a cut). They even host live streaming brainstorming sessions. You can follow them on Twitter, of course. Quirky is all about community.
I love creativity, especially when it solves a problem. The arts aren’t a big deal to me (shhh…don’t tell Scott I said that!), but problem-solving? That’s where I get really excited.
Fabulous suggestion, Michelle! If I got my head out of the sand, I’d know more about other sites like this. Always love your tips.
I read about this a while ago, and I’m excited to hear it’s going into production sooner than I thought. It’s funny that I do associate it with Apple so much even though it comes from a totally different company. Do you think that’s intended?
Heck yeah!! I bet if I had the privilege to work at Apple and left for a start up, I’d sing it from the roof!
Hi Jayme, have you had a chance to grab one of these babies yet? If not, put one on your wish list. It’s amazing. I even have the app on my home screen because I love checking it out.
You give great reasons for why we should suddenly crave a new thermostat. Apple designers have a way of getting us excited about products we never knew we craved!
@wonderoftech Thanks for the inspiration to resurrect this post, Carolyn! And, how perfect it tied in so nicely with the Apple news this morning. I have also followed the situation with the Apple exec now CEO of JC Penney; he’s having a very hard time getting folks to forget about coupons (I knew that would happen), yet the creativity in “his” direct mail is astonishingly Apple.
I’ll be by to echo on your post today!
When my thermostat fritzed on me, I wanted a Nest. Then I was able to jiggle a few wires and keep the old one (which I installed myself when I bought this house). Can’t wait to get a Nest; definitely on the wish list!!
So, I just read something I wrote 9 months ago and posted. It passes!! When the mojo isn’t there, resurrect an old post! Thanks to Carolyn at wonder of tech for this inspiration, as she writes about Nest today!
Jayme, you know what, a conventional programmable thermostat IS a pain in the ass to install and, ahem, program. I had one at my old place. The thing is that they work amazingly well when they are correctly set. Big difference between a PC and a MAC (ha, ha) is design and innovation. Cost too! $250 for a manual dial thermostat that remembers it’s settings sounds pricey but you do pay for design and I am a huge advocate for good design.
I am not a big supporter of Apple *full disclosure* but what I do respect them for is thinking beyond the product to the customer experience which is why when they win they win big. Who wouldn’t want a t-stat that you can program from an I-phone? Why is this not commonly possible yet in the home?
Good on you for the timely re-purposing of a post. Plus all those “fans” like me get access to your full body of work (yes, I know you have archives). BTW, where is everyone?????
@rdopping Could it be everyone is on holiday? I never left! Phooey. I’m over here selling my heart out to recoup a large piece of business and barely breathing to get more other work done.
The influence of Apple never leaves these folks; that’s what’s so astonishing to watch (in my book). I have become a major Apple fan as I began to get the gear little by little. The last frontier — the iMac. Transitioning still a challenge but, oh, how beautiful.
Maybe they’re all mad at me ‘cuz I’ve not come visiting or Triberring in awhile? Also, this piece is not your customary — you know, one of those that doesn’t necessarily appeal to the social media masses.
@Soulati | B2B Social Media Marketing Well, I liked it, dammit!
@rdopping Might you, IF you have a moment, return to the Google, Frommer’s post and see what Patty Swisher commented? I’m going to repurpose her comment into a GP and thought perhaps you might add some additional intel there so I can feature you both. I like what she said; too good to keep buried in comments. Thanks for all the comments and support, Ralph!