The new 3rd Generation Google Nest camera landed in for review recently. I was blown away by it given how badly I needed it to supervise my elderly Mum living at home. But as the Google Home Subscription expired, I realised how quickly this because utterly useless without paying more for it.
Design
The latest Google Nest Camera is brilliantly designed. The base is easy to mount and the camera itself is flexible – oddly, not always that much of a priority for camera designers. I will say that it’s weighty enough, so don’t feel like double-sided sticky pads will hold this to the roof for long – screw it in properly.
The camera itself looks nice, but not overly intimidating if that’s the kind of security you’re looking for. In truth, Google is designing something here for people that want indoor cameras that don’t need to be hidden. They look nice, but also blend into the background to be discreet.
This is a wired camera, so no battery to worry about, and of equal importance is the cable being generous. There’s no IP rating given it’s assumed this will be only used indoors, as intended.
The smart side of this camera is where it excels.
Functionality
I have to divide this into two areas.
Good: Premium Trial Active
First of all the quality of this camera is incredible. You get 2K resolution from a relatively small device, also priced at under €100 for the device itself. It syncs with the Google Home app, which is either good or bad depending on your opinion of Google’s Home ecosystem. I’m not overly in love with it to be honest, now that I’m into Home Assistant.
My first month with the camera included a one-month subscription to Google Home Premium. This unlocked a world of AI-powered insights. The camera recognised people entering the space, and logged what they were doing. I look forward to this technology advancing to a point where you can build automations specifically on Google’s Gemini, recognising something happening in the field of view – like a specific face taking medication.
Daily summaries of what had happened get set to you too. It’s a brilliant feature and useful too. At a glance, you can see if enough water was drank or a meal was made. It’s not dependable enough just yet, but it is a glimpse at amazing functionality that Gemini AI could deliver down the line.
Which is where I’m left furious by this camera, because all free trials must come to an end.
Bad: Useless Without Subscription
Quickly, I learned why you get such a high quality camera for under €100. Google is pushing that Home Premium subscription hard. As it ended, I was suddenly limited to 10 second clips of what was happening in my Mum’s house. I’d be notified of an event that might need to be monitored, only to find most of that now behind a paywall – on my own security system.
I was irate.
Simultaneously, I paid for one more month of Google Home Premium while also shopping for a replacement camera.
I understand unique features have to be paid for, but for the camera to cut off at 10 seconds is ludicrous. Not least because I have two other camera systems doing more work without a monthly subscription at all. Google expects you to pay either €10 or €18 per month for their Home Premium subscription, with both price points unlocking extra functionality.
While I could see Google’s subscription paying off with more functionality, now it’s just a novelty. Google has gotten this one terribly wrong – I’m left feeling like the 6 hours of event previews borderline offensive.
Google Nest Camera 3rd Generation: The Verdict
If you already have a Google Home subscription, this is one of the best cameras I’ve ever used at a very attractive price. However, if you are looking to start building an ecosystem, this is not the place to start.
Google has a history of retiring products with little notice, and I really don’t like how utterly bricked one of these devices would be should Google decide they don’t want you using it any more. I’ve never, in all my years of testing, had such a massive fall off in opinion of a device after a trial period ended, either.
Simply put, if you’re already in the Google Nest ecosystem and can justify the monthly cost because of several cloud-based cameras, it’s a good camera. Or if you don’t care about camera history and just want live view, then it’s a good investment. But for most use-cases, there are better cameras and home security ecosystems to be had on the market with less subscription friction.
I’d look towards Aqara or Eufy in this space.
 delivers excellent 2K video and smart AI features, but much of its functionality is locked behind a monthly subscription.){kind=link}