Google has raised the ire of consumers after the company’s holding company Alphabet discontinued its Revolv smart home hubs, shutting down their servers and effectively bricking them without offering users any compensation.
The Revolv hubs were acquired by Alphabet after the company bought Nest, the manufacturer’s owners. However, Alphabet has now made the decision to stop supporting the devices, shutting them down altogether and rendering them completely useless to their owners. This is despite, as pointed out by Business Insider, customers were previously told they were entitled to a “lifetime subscription” upon purchasing their devices.
But a month ago Revolv altered this guarantee and removed all mention of the lifetime subscription, replacing it with a message that the company was shutting down as they were integrating with Works with Nest, a “more secure, more useful and just flat-out better” platform. Unfortunately, this meant that Google and Nest not only eradicated the product line, but also the software it required in order to function.
In an FAQ posted by Revolv, the company explained that “as of May 15, 2016, Revolv will no longer be available. The Revolv app won’t open and the hub won’t work.” The company also added that the “one-year warranty against defects in materials or workmanship has expired for all Revolv products,” adding: “All Revolv data will be deleted.” Customers have claimed that they were not emailed about their products being deactivated and the warranty being canceled, with them instead only finding out via the update on Revolv’s website.
This now presents a major concern for those looking at buying products from Nest in the future, with it being made abundantly clear that its parent company has no qualms with bricking its products, invalidating their prior guarantees in the process. Now those left with these defunct smart home devices will be forced to go out and buy a new hub, though it’s imaginable that Nest won’t be receiving any of their money this time around.
