Ex-Apple Employees Rethink the Household Thermostat

Nest, a company of ex-Apple employees who saw their former employer redefine pointless gadgetry in the 21st century (I'm specifically referring to the iPad here), is giving a much-needed face-lift to something useful: the common household thermostat. According to their ad, Nest's thermostat is kind of like a TiVo for climate control, using a range of sensors and local weather data to predict what temperature your house needs to be. The Nest can also be controlled from your Web browser or iPhone, which sounds ridiculous, until you consider things like the remote-controlled gas fireplace in my dad's old house.