NoLongerEvil-Thermostat
Thermostat firmware in Networking & smart home
Free firmware giving discontinued Nest thermostats new life; critics say it is untested and still relies on a proprietary server.
Free firmware giving discontinued Nest thermostats new life; critics say it is untested and still relies on a proprietary server.
20 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 12
- criticize it
- 8
- approval share
- 60%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 12 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 1.5 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Gives discontinued Nest thermostats new life
“they're offering you the ability to turn what's effectively e-waste into an operable device”
Comment from 5 Nov 2025 in “NoLongerEvil-Thermostat – Nest Generation 1 and 2 Firmware” “Giving old hardware new life through open source innovation.”
Comment from 14 Jan 2026 in “EOL hardware should mean open-source software” Promising replacement firmware for Nest
“I'm reasonably excited about the prospect of this authorship of replacement firmware”
Comment from 5 Nov 2025 in “NoLongerEvil-Thermostat – Nest Generation 1 and 2 Firmware” “Seems a good step towards a whole replacement firmware.”
Comment from 4 Nov 2025 in “NoLongerEvil-Thermostat – Nest Generation 1 and 2 Firmware” “I see it as a great starting point.”
Comment from 4 Nov 2025 in “NoLongerEvil-Thermostat – Nest Generation 1 and 2 Firmware”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Still relies on proprietary server
“It's pretty neat but, at this point, it's just a hacked firmware that talks to a different proprietary server.”
Comment from 4 Nov 2025 in “NoLongerEvil-Thermostat – Nest Generation 1 and 2 Firmware” “Right now it's just a blob that you flash to your device to make it talk to a proprietary service.”
Comment from 4 Nov 2025 in “NoLongerEvil-Thermostat – Nest Generation 1 and 2 Firmware” “This isn't a firmware, it just redirects the traffic from your nest.”
Comment from 7 Nov 2025 in “NoLongerEvil-Thermostat – Nest Generation 1 and 2 Firmware” Unknown maintainer, trust concerns
“So, trade the "evil" Google for the totally not evil trust-me-bro "nolongervil Corp"?”
Comment from 4 Nov 2025 in “NoLongerEvil-Thermostat – Nest Generation 1 and 2 Firmware” “Why should I trust them? I don't know them at all.”
Comment from 4 Nov 2025 in “NoLongerEvil-Thermostat – Nest Generation 1 and 2 Firmware” Not truly open source or free
“without a dashboard it's still not really Free”
Comment from 4 Nov 2025 in “NoLongerEvil-Thermostat – Nest Generation 1 and 2 Firmware” “it's not actually open source either”
Comment from 4 Nov 2025 in “NoLongerEvil-Thermostat – Nest Generation 1 and 2 Firmware” Untested firmware risks heating system
“Running open-source firmware someone's hacking on (which gets little to no testing) on a gas appliance that can burn your house down”
Comment from 4 Nov 2025 in “NoLongerEvil-Thermostat – Nest Generation 1 and 2 Firmware” “Do NOT use this firmware on any thermostat that is critical for your heating or cooling needs.”
Comment from 5 Nov 2025 in “NoLongerEvil-Thermostat – Nest Generation 1 and 2 Firmware”
What people said
21 of the 22 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“there was an escape hatch that allowed projects like No Longer Evil”
“Giving old hardware new life through open source innovation.”
“This isn't a firmware, it just redirects the traffic from your nest.”
“I'm reasonably excited about the prospect of this authorship of replacement firmware”
“Do NOT use this firmware on any thermostat that is critical for your heating or cooling needs.”
“they're offering you the ability to turn what's effectively e-waste into an operable device”
“Seems a good step towards a whole replacement firmware.”
“it's not actually open source either”
“Running open-source firmware someone's hacking on (which gets little to no testing) on a gas appliance that can burn your house down”
“If something goes wrong, the user can sue you, and likely win.”
“they'd open source their backend server, and make it possible and easy to self-host it”
“Why should I trust them? I don't know them at all.”
“It's pretty neat but, at this point, it's just a hacked firmware that talks to a different proprietary server.”
“without actually proving that”
“That's super cool and the fact that an open source project doesn't have a privacy policy yet doesn't really matter at this point”
“Right now it's just a blob that you flash to your device to make it talk to a proprietary service.”
“So, trade the "evil" Google for the totally not evil trust-me-bro "nolongervil Corp"?”
“I think this might be an even better approach.”
“I see it as a great starting point.”
“without a dashboard it's still not really Free”
“Have this be an add-on supported by HomeAssistant and I'm in”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.