Google Home adds new camera features and support for Nest Cam Outdoor

By Jon Bitner Updated November 30, 2023

The interface on Google Home allowing you to capture custom clips. — Google

Google Home is one of the best smart home platforms, and it’s just gotten more exciting with the rollout of new camera features and support for the Nest Cam Outdoor. These updates are currently limited to Public Preview users, though we expect to see them launched to all users soon.

One of the biggest additions is support for the first-generation Nest Cam Outdoor. Google will be rolling out eligibility to users over the next few weeks — so if you’re a Public Preview user and don’t have access right away, you may have to wait a bit longer. Once the feature has been pushed to your camera, you can use it like you would any other device in Google Home. This includes having access to an updated camera history interface.

Aside from support for the first-generation Nest Cam Outdoor, Google is giving users the option to create and download custom clips using their video history. This will allow you to trim your alerts and save only the portions you want to keep. The useful feature will be available on the following products:

Nest Cam (indoor, wired, 2nd gen)
Nest Cam (outdoor or indoor, battery)
Nest Cam with Floodlight
Nest Doorbell (wired, 2nd gen)
Nest Doorbell (battery)
Nest Cam Indoor (1st gen)
Nest Cam Outdoor (1st gen)

The final piece of this Public Preview update is enhanced garage door detection. This allows certain Nest Cams to send you alerts if you forget to close your garage door without the need for additional sensors. The cameras will use updated AI image detection to determine if your garage door is open or closed, and then send you any necessary alerts.

Only a handful of products support the technology, including the Nest Cam (indoor, wired, and 2nd gen) and Nest Cam (battery) when wired for power.

Interested in checking out the new features? Then consider signing up for Public Preview, which should only take a few minutes.

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Jon Bitner is a writer covering consumer electronics, technology, and gaming. His work has been published on various websites…

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