The latest Nest cams jump to 2K resolution, but what really elevates them is Gemini’s pricey AI subscription smarts.

Security cameras can be spammy, blowing up your phone with useless notifications. Manufacturers have been battling this issue with AI detection, but Google’s Gemini assistant takes things to a whole new level in its latest Nest Cams.

The Nest Cam Indoor (Wired, 3rd Gen) and Outdoor (Wired, 2nd Gen) may not look new (apart from the Berry red indoor model), but they finally make the jump to 2K resolution, empowering a new level of AI insight, more accurate detection, and better animated notifications.

I’ve been testing both side by side with the previous generation Nest cameras for the last two weeks, and they clearly represent a leap in quality. But the Google Home app overhaul and hardware improvements were long overdue, and the infusion of Gemini AI is only partially successful, with top-tier features requiring a hefty subscription.

The new Nest Cam Indoor and Nest Cam Outdoor boast the easiest setup experience I’ve encountered. Simply plug them in (the Nest Cam Indoor comes with a 10-foot USB-C cable, the Nest Cam Outdoor has an 18-foot weatherproof cable), scan the QR code sticker on the front of each camera with the Google Home app, connect to Wi-Fi, and you’re up and running in no time (both support 2.4-GHz and 5-GHz bands). The elegant magnetic mount for the Nest Cam Outdoor needs a couple of screws, while my Nest Cam Indoor is perched neatly on a shelf.

While Google has lagged behind competitors for years with its 1080p cameras, support for HDR and a high frame rate helped keep the last-gen Nest cams relevant. That said, the jump to a 2560 x 1400 resolution with a wider 152-degree diagonal field of view is a clear and immediate upgrade. This resolution bump also enables 6X digital zoom, so the Nest Cams can serve up notifications that zoom in on the subject of each animated alert. These notifications show a few frames of each event, making it far easier to decide whether you need to tap through and watch the full video. You can also zoom in on the live feed and crop the view to stay focused on a specific area, like a garden gate or path.