Learning thermostats adapt to your preferences to keep you comfy—and trim your utility bills.
DAN AND HEIDI O’LEARY OF PALM CITY, Fla., are on their second Nest thermostat. The O’Learys installed Nest number one in their former home and were instantly hooked. After they moved last year, they took advantage of an offer from ADT to sign up for its home-security service and get a new Nest at a deep discount. Dan has used the Nest’s smartphone app to adjust the temperature in their bedroom without getting out of bed and to reset the temperature before returning from vacation. “It’s simple to install and use,” says Dan. “It just works.”
The Nest Learning Thermostat ($249) was groundbreaking when Nest Labs (an Alphabet company) introduced it five years ago. Now it has competition: the Ecobee3 ($249), Honeywell’s Lyric ($199) and versions from several smaller companies. Like programmable thermostats, learning thermostats automatically change the temperature in your house, except that they are able to program themselves after learning how cool or warm you like it. They collect information about your daily routine and temperature preferences, learn about your home (how quickly does it heat or cool?) and use algorithms to create a schedule that acknowledges your habits. They’ll likely use less energy, too.
This story is from the December 2016 edition of Kiplinger's Personal Finance.
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This story is from the December 2016 edition of Kiplinger's Personal Finance.
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