Nest

For bringing iPod style and smarts to the home thermostat. Created by one-time iPod champion Tony Fadell, Nest offers Apple-like simplicity, controls, and intelligence to one of the most overlooked pieces of electronics equipment in the home. Its under-the-cover software helps manage your home’s climate by learning your preferred settings so your programmable thermostat effectively programs itself. Nest struck a chord with consumers, selling out its first run almost immediately. It has also attracted unwelcome attention from the thermostat busines’s dominant player Honeywell, which is suing Nest for patent infringement.