The Verge has an interesting article up on Google's acquisition of Nest.

Sad Nest via http://www.wiredprairie.us/ — Sad Nest via http://www.wiredprairie.us/

"But outside of the players directly involved in the deal, there was a second, more visceral reaction: disappointment. Nest was the first in a new wave of hardware startups built by engineers and executives eager to apply their experience building smartphones to new markets — a mission captured perfectly by Fadell's irrepressible upstart spirit in interviews and appearances. But by selling Nest seems to have undercut the optimism those companies represented, and perhaps not coincidentally, underlined a growing distrust of Google itself — a distrust shared by regular consumers, tech investors, and privacy advocates alike."

We tend to root for the underdog. It's in our DNA that we, as humans, prefer to see David defeat Goliath. There's something about the 'against all possible odds' style story that resonates with us, makes us feel engaged, and gives us hope. Perhaps because we tend to feel powerless so often when it comes to our daily lives we appreciate it when someone or some group prevails against the big guy.

Google's purchase of Nest for 3.2 billion turns that on its head. The big guy wins. Again. It's a story that almost nobody likes, unless they're the big guy (and in this case, the small guy). From the outside looking in, fans of Nest feel like they've been cheated out of seeing what this little startup can do, and that's going to sting.

It probably also doesn't help that there's a valid reason to distrust a company that sells consumer data having access to data about your home.