Light up and secure your driveway, backyard, or porch with a floodlight security camera. Floodlight security cameras are a great way to light up your property. Shady areas around your home can make life easier for would-be burglars, and make it harder for you to plug in the car or take out the trash. Motion-triggered lighting is an essential minimum, but with a floodlight security camera, you get that a videofeed. Floodlight cameras are also far more configurable and reliable than lights; they let you check in on your property from the office or bed, and they can alert you to intruders. While this guide covers floodlight security cameras, we also have guides to the Best Outdoor Security Cameras, Best Indoor Security Cameras, and Best Video Doorbells .

Here's how I cut down my family's reliance on Alexa. Until recently, my smart home setup was in chaos. After years of testing, buying, and upgrading to the latest smart home gadgets in an attempt to make my life easier, it became a bloated mess that was actually making it more complicated. My Alexa, Google Home, and Apple Home apps were awash with dead devices, duplicates, and automations that simply didn't work. My Hue Bridge, trying desperately to tie it all together, was creaking at the seams.

The latest Nest cams jump to 2K resolution, but what really elevates them is Gemini's pricey AI subscription smarts. All products featured on WIRED are independently selected by our editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission. Gemini can answer questions and offer descriptions. Overhauled Google Home app is much improved.

When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. You can now control your Google Home-connected devices straight from a web browser, no app required. A truckload of exciting Google Home news is expected to hit next week, including new smart devices and more details about Gemini for Home. But Google still managed to sneak in a different smart home announcement week, and it's a welcome one. The news focuses on the web-based version of Google Home, which just added a major new feature: the ability to control your Google Home-connected devices directly over the web.

After years of waiting for new Nest smart gear from Google, it appears we'll actually get our wish next month. "Gemini is coming to Google Home," a post reads on Google's official X account. "Come back October 1st," the message continues above an animation of a Nest camera peeking into the frame. A link labeled "sign up for updates" sends users to the Google Store, where they can sign up for news. It's not clear what type of reveal Google is planning for October 1; it could simply be a news release, or perhaps it will be a full-on media event.

Google's smart home efforts were in a sorry state as late as May. Google touted Gemini AI assistant throughout the entire keynote of its annual I/O developers conference, demonstrating how it would come to permeate every aspect of the search giant's products--everything from phones and AR glasses to watches and TV. But Google Home wasn't mentioned at all, while Google's Nest smart speakers, displays, and cameras were all but ignored. Just as troubling, Google had been discontinuing other Nest products and even withdrawing from some smart home categories from a manufacturing standpoint, all while many Google Home owners were complaining that Google Assistant was faltering at even the most basic smart home duties. Indeed, things got so bad that Anish Kattukaran, the director of product management for Google Home and Nest, felt compelled to speak up on social media, apologizing for Google Assistant's spotty performance while promising that his team is "actively working on major improvements."

Nope, it's not just you: Reports of Google Assistant strugglng to perform even basic smart home commands have been surging in recent weeks, and now Google is admitting that something's amiss. The lead executive for Google's Home and Nest division tweeted on X that he's heard the complaints "loud and clear" and revealed that his team is "actively working on major improvements." "I want to acknowledge the recent feedback about Google Assistant reliability on our home devices," said Anish Kattukaran, the director of product management for Google Home and Nest. "I sincerely apologize for what you're experiencing and feeling!" Kattukaran's assurances come after a steep rise in complaints about Google Assistant on Google's Nest speakers and displays. Some users have been reporting that their Assistant routines have stopped working, while others say their Assistant-enabled devices have lost contact with smart lights, fail to play Spotify playlists, or can no longer control their Chromecast streaming devices with voice commands.

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During CES 2025, I had a chance to check out a demo of the way Google is integrating Gemini capabilities into its smart home platform via devices like the Nest Audio, Nest Hub and Nest Cameras. The main takeaway is that the conversations you have with the Google Assistant will feel more natural. Personally, I'd appreciate being able to ask questions as they pop in my head, without having to formulate some Assistant-friendly sentence before speaking -- what I saw makes me feel like my wish could come true. To kick things off, you'll still say "Hey Google," but for follow-up questions you can skip the prompt and the Assistant will be able to hold on to the thread of your conversation. During the demonstration, held in a simulated (and very posh) kitchen, the Google representative asked things like what to cook with ingredients he had on hand (chicken and spinach).

Some of the best smart home tech is the stuff you don't have to think about. My lamps have been connected to smart plugs for a long time now -- my living room lights turn on at dusk, go dark around 10PM (or when I tell Alexa goodnight) and complete a similar routine each morning. I haven't manually twisted a switch-knob or stumbled in the dark for over a year. And if I weren't continually thinking about smart plugs for this guide, I'd have forgotten about them completely. But not every plug offers seamless connectivity, and which plug works with which home ecosystem varies, too. Right now, the best plug for just about everyone is the Kasa Mini EP25, but there are other winners, depending on your needs. Based on our testing of around 15 options, these are the best smart plugs you can buy. All of the plugs eventually did what they said they would, but each had a quirk or two that gave me pause – except TP-Link's Kasa EP25. From installation to implementation, it was fuss-free and reliable.