TL;DR
Ecobee Thermostats
Ecobee thermostats, particularly the Ecobee 4, are frequently recommended for their seamless integration with Alexa. Users appreciate the ability to control the thermostat via the Alexa app, making it convenient to manage temperature settings alongside other smart devices like Ring [2:1]. The Ecobee 4 also features built-in Alexa voice control, which allows users to adjust settings directly through voice commands
[5:1]. While there have been reports of server downtime, many users have not experienced significant issues
[4:1],
[5:9].
Nest Thermostats
Nest thermostats are another popular option for Alexa-enabled smart home setups. They offer reliable service and can be configured to disable the learning feature if desired [5:4]. Users report minimal connectivity issues, although occasional server downtimes have been noted
[5:3],
[5:6]. Despite these minor drawbacks, Nest thermostats remain a favored choice due to their ease of use and compatibility with various smart home ecosystems.
Sensi Thermostats
Some users have opted for Sensi thermostats, which provide basic Alexa functionality but may lack advanced features like fan control [4:1],
[4:3]. While Sensi thermostats are generally reliable, they may not offer the full range of capabilities that more sophisticated models like Ecobee or Nest provide.
Tado Thermostats
Tado thermostats are mentioned as a reliable alternative, with no reported service outages over extended periods [5:2]. They offer straightforward scheduling options and can be controlled via Alexa for specific temperature adjustments.
Considerations Beyond the Discussions
When choosing a smart thermostat, consider factors such as ease of installation, compatibility with your HVAC system, and desired features like remote sensors or learning capabilities. Additionally, evaluate the reliability of the manufacturer's service and customer support, as these can impact long-term satisfaction with the device.
Hey everyone,
I've been thinking about upgrading to a smart thermostat, but with so many options on the market, I'm finding it hard to decide which one to choose. I’m looking for recommendations based on your experiences and any recent reviews or comparisons you might have come across.
Here are a few things I'm considering:
I've heard good things about the Nest Learning Thermostat and the Ecobee SmartThermostat with voice control, but I'm open to hearing about other brands and models too.
Looking forward to your insights and recommendations!
Thanks!
Smart thermostats work by integrating advanced technology to optimize and automate the control of your home's heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. Here's a breakdown of how they operate:
Overall, smart thermostats leverage modern technology to offer a more efficient, convenient, and user-friendly way to manage home climate control.
From my experience with smart thermostats, I can share that the ease of installation often varies by model, but most are designed to be user-friendly. The Nest Learning Thermostat, for instance, was pretty straightforward to install with its step-by-step instructions. When it comes to compatibility, both Nest and Ecobee work well with popular smart home systems like Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple HomeKit. In terms of features, Ecobee’s integration with voice control and its remote sensors are notable, while the Nest excels with its learning capabilities and adaptive scheduling. The user experience generally depends on the app’s design; I've found Ecobee's app to be very intuitive and responsive. As for energy savings, I've seen a noticeable reduction in my bills with both brands, thanks to their adaptive features. Reliability-wise, both have proven to be stable over time, though it's always good to check the latest user reviews for any updates or issues.
Check out here:
Smart thermostats are advanced home devices that help manage and control heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. They provide numerous benefits over traditional thermostats, leveraging technology to improve energy efficiency, convenience, and home comfort. Here's an overview of their features, benefits, and leading brands:
Choosing the best smart thermostat involves considering various factors to ensure it meets your specific needs, HVAC system compatibility, and desired features. Here's a comprehensive guide to help you make an informed decision:
Can you guys recommend a good thermostat that works with Ring and Alexa? I'm looking to replace my current non-wireless thermostat. What do I need to look for? How hard is it to replace my current one (is the connection pretty simple?)
Thanks for your help in advanced!
I’ve got the Ecobee4 and we have Alexa and Ring. The integration with Alexa was pretty easy.
Not sure what you want want to connect to the Ring for. As far as I know theres no thermostat integration with Ring. If you use Apple Homekit, you can connect your thermostat to that.
Thanks for the recommendation. I like the ring app and trying to centralize everything there. But I can deal with a separate app. Seems like Ecobee is recommended by the majority of people.
If you’re tech savvy, take a look at Home Assistant. It consolidates all of your smart devices into one place. I have my all my Ring devices (including Alarm), smart switches, etc connected and it’s great to go to one app to see everything
Ecobee 4 should work great. I have a EB3 and it works with Google Home. You may have to use the included power adapter. Check on their website for more info. Good luck. I love mine.
Thanks. I appreciate your recommendation.
Love our Ecobee.
Thanks for your recommendation!
We too use Ecobee. I even have it set up to where when I leave the house or come home, the temp is set a certain way.
The best part is that you can also control the ecobee temp from your Alexa app. I think this is convenient as you have access to your Alexa, ring, and ecobee all under the Alexa app.
Anyone using Alexa+ with the Amazon Smart Thermostat? If so, any problems?
Not any. I have a routine that sets the temperature though throughout the day. And have a routine called “let there be fire” to heat it up if need to. Haven’t noticed any weirdness so far.
What are you seeing ?
Don’t have Alexa+ yet (still waiting). But I have two of the Amazon smart thermostats. Issues with smart light bulbs would be bad, but not as bad as the thermostats.
I’m using Alexa+ with a Sensi thermostat and so far, so good.
Hi all,
I have a Sensi thermostat, and while it works, its Alexa capabilities are exceptionally limited. You can’t even turn the house fan on/off with it.
I read Nest is undergoing a major transition and might not work with Alexa soon.
I also read Ecobee has serious server uptime problems.
So I’m not sure where that leaves me. I’d love to buy a new Alexa-enabled thermostat with which I could turn the house fan on/off, and appreciate any suggestions.
TIA.
I haven't had any ecobee problems since installing in 2014. Though, mine is Alexa compatible I guess, it doesn't have Alexa built in.
For the most part it just hangs out and keeps the house comfy with no interaction.
Edit: and I suppose the Alexa->ecobee interaction certainly has a lot of fail points. Internet up for you, Amazon, and ecobee. The Alexa backend and downstream 3rd party functions up, and same with ecobee receiving and forwarding instructions on appropriately.
I have a sensi thermostat and I can turn the fan on and off. The only thing I can't do through Alexa is adjust the settings, like delay time, temp offset, and adjust scheduling.
I am using ecobee 4 smart thermostat since last 9 months and had no issues using it. It is compatible with Amazon Alexa device. For me it works like a charm.
Best thermostat for Alexa? I want one that I can set and doesn't require learning/schedules. I currently have a honeywell and it works ok but the online connectivity is crap and the latest outage is expected to last 6 weeks. Any recommendations on a WiFi thermostat that you can just set and has reliable service?
Tado and no the service has never been offline for me in 12+ mo this.
Schedule wise. Just set a 24hr schedule and then ask alexa to turn on and off as needed. Or ask her to set a specific temp.
Nest has been pretty reliable in my experience, and you can turn off the learning feature iirc if you don't want that.
I also have never had any issues with my Nest.
Has the service been offline for you at all these past few weeks?
Not that I've noticed. But then it's not like I access or change it often. It's set how we like it and the only time I change it a lot is in the spring and fall when the weather here has a lot of swings between cold and hot.
Mine has been fine. And I check a lot because my son's room gets drafty. Nest has been having connectivity issues too. My guess is that everyone is hitting the servers to see how their hvac is doing in the cold.
Ecobee. Ecobee 4 has alexa built in!
Has the service been offline for you at all these past few weeks? Read some forums that Ecobee had some connection issues recently.
There were some issues a few days ago apparently. I'm in northern VA and didn't have them, but others did. I've never had more than a momentary loss of connection. That being said, it still works, just not remotely.
I am getting some Honeywell thermostats that support the Honeywell Redlink Gateway and I'm trying to decide whether to get the gateway as well. Does anyone have experience using the Honeywell Home Total Connect Comfort Alexa skill (what a mouthful!)? I'd like to know how compatible it is with routines. I don't really need to voice-control the thermostats in my apartment, but I'd like to build temperature settings into my existing routines for bedtime, for instance.
Thanks in advance for any advice!
I've been using the Honeywell RedLINK Internet Gateway with their Prestige IAQ Thermostat for 10 years. What I've found is that setbacks and resumes can be accomplished with Routines, but there is room for improvement. I've not found any way of controlling system functions for Fan mode - On, Auto, or Circulate.
When creating a Routine, trying to add an action by Smart Home/Thermostats/(name of your thermostat) doesn't work anymore. I get a screen with the name of my thermostat, but when I select it, there is no working way to set anything. There's a check box for "Set Temperature And Mode", and when checked it shows below it "Thermostat Mode Select", but that just gives a blank screen with "Done" at the bottom. Unchecking it makes that "Thermostat Mode Select" line disappear, and the "Next" in the upper right corner doesn't do anything. All this hasn't worked for me for over a year. I've tried to report the problem, but nothing changed.
HOWEVER
When creating the Routine, if you instead go Custom and enter an Alexa voice command, like "Set (name of thermostat) to (temperature; or Off; Auto; Cool; or Heat) - those work, as they do as a plain voice command.
A newer version of the gateway has come out (THM6000R7001/U) since mine (THM6000R1002) - maybe it works better with Alexa - I haven't researched it.
The thing I wish could be done is to create a Routine that, when an alarm is dismissed, already is aware of the set alarm time and could have turned the HVAC system on for a period of time before the alarm is scheduled to go off, so when the alarm goes off, the temp has already reached the desired level. My alarm time changes on a frequent basis, so each time it changes, I have to edit the start time of my Routine that brings up the system in the morning as well as change the alarm time itself.
But anyway, I still like the Honeywell system and don't feel any need to change out my thermostat.
Hope this helps.
Thanks! I hope that the problem you have with the routines doesn't exist in the newer gateway and software, because routines can only contain one "custom" voice command. Using them can get complicated.
My thermostats will be controlling fan coil units with central water circulation, so it's pretty much on/off anyway.
Was it to Honeywell that you tried to report the issues with the Alexa skill? I know that's probably a fool's errand, but just wondering.
It's been awhile, so I don't remember the specifics, but I'm pretty sure I went into my skills in the Alexa app, found the Honeywell skill and sent feedback. Checking right now, I see that others are still reporting the same problem/solution. I wish Resideo (Honeywell's spin-off) would straighten this out, but with all the complaints and still no action, I'm not holding out much hope. Their web site doesn't seem to encourage direct contact...
I don't use it, but isn't there a way to chain voice commands by using "and"? I wonder if that might work to make Custom voice commands with more than one action.
And a random FWIW, I don't know if it would be much use to you, but I find their monthly reports on usage hours help me plan my heating oil refills and compare year-to-year usage. It shows both heating and cooling hours and supports more than one RedLINK thermostat. I used to have a second thermostat set up to control a relay outlet with an electric bathroom space heater connected.
Our home had a 1952 vintage Honeywell Chronotherm - I guess that warped me!
Once you add the device to the Alexa App, it's pretty straight forward. You can create routines for example, when my alarm is set to away mode, i bump up the baseline temp a bit ( or lower it in the winter) to reduce usage when i'm gone for long periods of time.
Thank you! That's the sort of thing I will do, so I guess that the bridge is worth getting. I appreciate the help.
I have the bridge. Pairing it can be a tad annoying. Be very careful with the white power cable it comes with. It's a very thin wire, and i've had two go bad from being shuffled around. On your gateway, you can pop off the front cover to get access to the pairing features.
I’ve been looking to upgrade my old, clunky thermostat to a smart one, but I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the options out there. My goals are saving on energy bills, remote control via my phone, and smart home integration with Google Home.
My budget is around $100–200
I consider buy one of these
What’s your experience with these? Thanks in advance!
my idea for reference
Ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium : Loaded with extras (occupancy detection, Siri/Alexa too), sleek design. Worth it if you want top-tier tech. Amazon link
Ecobee3 Lite: Budget-friendly, solid basics (remote app, voice control). Great for smaller setups.Amazon link
Emerson Sensi Touch: Super easy to install, killer touchscreen, and plays nice with SmartThings. Amazon link
Honeywell T5: Cheapest option, geofencing rocks for energy savings. Amazon link
thanks on this list appreciated
I had 2 Ecobees for 5 years in my last house with no problems. The A/C guy said it was a good choice because they were always needing to work on the other brands, particularly Nest. They didn't have issues with Ecobee.
I've had an Emerson Sensi for several years and works very good with no issues. Phone app is adequate and simple, and local control interface is good. It was one of the least expensive smart thermostats I could find at the time. Only issue I have is I would like more detailed historical data.
Have you considered using third-party smart home platforms like Google Home or Alexa to get more insights into your heating and cooling patterns?
Alexa & SmartThings - yes. Thank you for the suggestion.
I've had a Sensi Touch for a couple of years now and it works well. 100% local (no cloud) via the Homekit integration in Home Assistant. Honestly, I rarely see or even touch it as I use Home Assistant for control via multiple dashboards throughout my home and also use my phone when out and about.
Nest
Three things I am looking for:
ecobee, you can use local via homekit for no mics/alexa get the lite version
Second this, love my ecobee with local connection
Is it possible to use “presets” with HomeKit? Last I checked I couldn’t get it to work and had to use the API for presets.
Hmm, ecobee lite 3 still has a microphone. I might do some research on version 2 to see if it has a mic.
The 3 lite does not have a mic
Drayton Wiser. The hub can operate without internet access, supports multiple thermostats and controls
i use the honeywell smart thermostats. they work very well and integrate into ha perfectly.
I have 8 of these between two houses. They are cloud based, and they are the least reliable integration, with weekly timeouts.
I'd recommend something zigbee or zwave
maybe we have different models. mine are 100% reliable.
Tado works well with multiple thermostats and fills your other requirements
Absolutely rate the tado. Their subscription can be easily worked around with some sensible automations.
Do you have control over the heating?
You could get a shelly or similar product. A zigbee temperature sensor and just run this : https://www.home-assistant.io/integrations/generic_thermostat/
You can make all the automations yourself
If you have room control you could get an mmwave device and put in room detection aswell
I swear I'm running into the same issue. I have hydronic wall heating, and the old King thermostats are in each zone, run a fan, and are line voltage.
Line voltage is not compatible. The closest I've gotten is maybe a step down converter from 240V to 20V with something like a LUX. Let me know if this is similar, and how it goes!
I replaced a similar model Honeywell with an ecobee. My Honeywell had a black and red wire, that’s all. All I had to run was a c wire from my heater to give the ecobee power - relatively easy and a fantastic outcome.
I have a much newer HVAC, so I didn't need the c-wire, but I also installed an ecobee recently (the Smart Thermostat with voice control) and absolutely love it. The speaker on it is powerful making it able to play music in my living room, use Alexa to give me the weather, and the smart routines help me save money on my cooling. The self install was fairly easy - the app guides you through it all.
what's a good outdoor temperature sensor that works with Alexa available in 2022?
I'm hoping to put up this beauty "https://weatherflow.com/tempest-weather-system/". Here's the incredible integration summary "https://weatherflow.com/tempest-integrations". You can be your own Weather Underground station too. Now, to place this on my Starlink pole.
Does this work with Alexa routines, eg. can I set some automated tasks based on the current or upcoming weather?
Ambient Weather makes good consumer-grade modular weather systems and they have an Alexa skill. I have their station and a couple of displays around my house. Very good, though I’ve never actually used the Alexa weather skill (since I have the displays).
Teach me something new?
Why get an external thermometer when Alexa can already tell you the temperature?
Because the local weather stations that Alexa pulls data from may not be accurate for the exact location you live in. I want to know what the exact temperature outside my house.
Got it - Thank you
No answer but posting here because I am interested as well
I have a Netatmo weather station and with it's Alexa Skill I can ask her for the inside and outside temperature and humidity, as well as air pressure and interior CO2 level.
https://www.amazon.com/Netatmo-NWS01-Weather-Station/dp/B0095HVAKS
Best smart thermostat for Alexa
Key Considerations for Choosing a Smart Thermostat for Alexa:
Compatibility: Ensure the thermostat is compatible with Alexa for voice control. Most major brands like Ecobee, Nest, and Honeywell support Alexa integration.
Features: Look for features such as:
Installation: Consider whether you want a DIY installation or if you prefer professional installation. Some models are easier to install than others.
Price: Smart thermostats can range from budget-friendly to premium models. Determine your budget and look for the best features within that range.
User Interface: A user-friendly app and an intuitive interface on the thermostat itself can enhance your experience.
Recommendations:
Ecobee SmartThermostat with Voice Control:
Nest Learning Thermostat:
Honeywell Home T9 Smart Thermostat:
Takeaway: Choose a thermostat that fits your specific needs, whether it's advanced features, ease of use, or budget. The Ecobee and Nest models are top contenders for their robust features and seamless Alexa integration.
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