First Alert SC5 Hardwire Smart Smoke & CO Alarm vs Google Nest Protect (Wired)

Both of these are hardwired combo alarms, so the difference comes down to sensor depth and ecosystem reach: the Google Nest Protect (Wired) pulls ahead overall with a richer sensor suite (adding occupancy, temperature, humidity and ambient-light sensing on top of smoke and CO), dual WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity, self-testing, a pathlight, and a built-in light. The First Alert SC5 Hardwire Smart Smoke & CO Alarm answers with a lower price and a considerably longer warranty (10 years versus the Nest Protect's 2), plus the same steam-check logic and combined smoke and carbon monoxide detection, running on the same mains-with-battery-backup power setup. Since both units are wired to household power with a battery backup for outages, the real trade-off here is not installation type but how much extra sensing and app polish is worth paying for. Households that already run Google Home and want the deepest feature set should get the Google Nest Protect (Wired), while budget-focused buyers who mainly want reliable hardwired smoke and CO coverage with a long warranty can save with the First Alert SC5 Hardwire Smart Smoke & CO Alarm.