Nest Thermostat

[Malcolm2]

This can be done with most smart thermostats these days. Nest is ok but there are better devices out there.
On a recent month long trip we enjoyed being able to breeze out the door knowing the hvac would go into vacation mode and return back to normal a few hours before we returned. Also nice to see usage stats and current house temp from my iPhone, as well as any alert I specify.

Cannot imagine going back to a 'dumb' controller.

 

[PatSea]

I don't have a NEST, but I have a similar wi-fi enabled thermostat from Filtrete. I bought it from Home Depot for $99 about 18 months ago, just before the NEST was released on the market. I think the main difference between my stat and the NEST is that mine does not have the learning feature.
I see at least four advantages to these devices:
1. Energy Savings
Hard to quantify, but being retired we travel a lot and we set back the stat more frequently now because it is so easy to control from my smartphone.
2. Peace of mind
My wife and I spend much of the winter in Florida. I set the stat on our house in Ohio at 55 dgerees while we are gone. Each morning I check the house temperature on my smartphone. There is a real peace of mind knowing that the furnace has not failed in the middle of winter! Takes about 30 seconds to do this. Also, it will send a text message to me if the inside temperature falls outside the parameters I give it. I also set my stat about 5 degrees lower while we are gone because I don't need as much safety factor because of the alerts it sends me. More energy savings.
3. Comfort
When we are returning home after being gone I go on my phone and adjust the temperature back to the normal setting so the house is comfortable when we arrive. Prior to having this stat the house would be at 55 degrees in the winter and would take several hours to reach a comfortable temperature.
4. Features
I have compatable software that collects real time data from my stat every minute, and puts it on a spreadsheet. Maybe more interesting (to an engineer) than beneficial.

 

[Alan]

Old thread I know, but DD bought me a Nest thermostat for Christmas. (Nice surprise as it was not on my radar).

I installed it this morning and already love it. Very easy to install, connect to the wifi, and use via a browser on my laptop or with the app on my iPad. As we travel for many weeks of the year it is going to be nice to be able to monitor it and adjust if needed. This time of year we are switching between a/c and heater quite often so it is nice to be able to set up the ranges for heating and cooling and then set Nest to auto switch between heating and cooling as needed.

It replaces a set-back thermostat and timer we've had for over 10 years so I doubt it can save much money but it is a cool toy to play with. (Annual utility bill is around $1,000 / year.)