Nest Thermostat Now Available in Apple Retail Stores

Do want, but cannot justify the price.

alm99 said:

Do want, but cannot justify the price.

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I am hearing that it is well worth the price because it pays for itself over time. When I moved into my house I bought two run of the mill thermostats for a combined total of $125. (I have two separate units) I bought something that could be programmed but it is as basic as I could get and still have programming. The damn things don't even have lights, which as I found out are quite handy.

I don't know how quickly they pay for themselves but I think the ROI happens within the first year. For something that should last for a very long time, I am not sure the price is all that high. The initial cost is a bit of a "sticker shock" I am sure.

alm99 said:

Do want, but cannot justify the price.

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Way too much when the competition is 1/5 the price.

Meh. Has no real place in an Apple store as far as I can see. I'd expect to see it in my local DIY/Home Improvement shop however.

winston1236 said:

Way too much when the competition is 1/5 the price.

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What else is out there? Serious question.

rmwebs said:

Meh. Has no real place in an Apple store as far as I can see. I'd expect to see it in my local DIY/Home Improvement shop however.

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They sell it online, why not in-store? Especially if they want to reach a wider user base? People don't automatically know to go to the Apple online store and search for thermostats.

The Nest Learning Thermostat solves this problem by programming itself, turning itself down when you're away, and keeping track of your energy use.

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How is this that much different than any other programmable thermostat that either comes with your house already or can be easily bought for less than $50? Set your thermostat once and you're pretty much done. The only time I need to go to my thermostat is when I want it a little warmer/cooler than the present temperature and I don't need an app to do that.

Lowes does carry them. I have had mine for about an year now. I have version one which is a bit thicker than the new version two unit. Both are running the same version of software as they are updated.

What is really nice is that it has a ten day rolling report of your energy usage, letting you know when you use energy. I have found it has saved money and has probably paid for itself by now.

I have a programmable thermostat which can be programmed for 4 different settings each day. I don't remember exactly what I paid for it, but I know it was less than $100 including installation by an HVAC professional...so if I could do it myself, it would have been less.

Serious question...what is the advantage of the NEST (aside from looking extremely cool ) over my thermostat?

I've got the general gist of self-adjusting for optimal energy use, but am at a loss to see how it gathers this data - especially when much of the occupant's activity is out of sight of the device (assuming it monitors infrared activity a la motion detectors), and temperature dynamics vary considerably across each floor of the house.

Simple programmability alone could convince me though. Going thru all the S/MTWTF/S morning/day/evening/night combinations for two old programmable devices is irritating; right now they're set for 72 for day & 68 for night because it's obnoxious to do it right.

Shrink said:

Serious question...what is the advantage of the NEST (aside from looking extremely cool ) over my thermostat?

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The neat has a sensor that can tell that you are not at home and will not run the heat or AC until you return ( of which it senses that you are back). It learns your schedule over time and makes up a new schedule. It adjusts to you, if it sees you are in and out frequently it adjusts how long it takes to go into Auto-Away mode. You can turn off any of the behaviors and set manual limits as needed.

A monthly report is emailed to you letting you know how much energy is used and compares it with the previous month.

burnside said:

How is this that much different than any other programmable thermostat that either comes with your house already or can be easily bought for less than $50? Set your thermostat once and you're pretty much done. The only time I need to go to my thermostat is when I want it a little warmer/cooler than the present temperature and I don't need an app to do that.

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Are there other programmable thermostats that aren't just programmable but that can also give you a history of your energy usage (which, for example, may help in striving towards even greater efficiency)? I think that's part of the appeal, plus the fact that it's probably the most attractive thermostat on the market, which some people are willing to pay more for.

I'm still stuck with a manual thermostat myself and probably won't change--I just touch it a couple times a day. Down to 55 when I'm away, up to 60 or so when I'm home and maybe a few degrees warmer if I'm extra cold. You get used to it, and with seasonally appropriate clothing you'll be saving both money and energy, though I wouldn't complain if I thermostat could do this for me when I forget.

alm99 said:

Do want, but cannot justify the price.

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I hear ya. Lowe's had a special over the Black Friday weekend for $199. It was worth a second thought at that price, but still seems incredibly pricey at that level.

Had one for a couple of months, love it! well worth the price.

SatManager said:

The neat has a sensor that can tell that you are not at home and will not run the heat or AC until you return ( of which it senses that you are back).

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My thermostat is on the 1st floor of the house. If I'm in the basement or upstairs for an extended period, how would the NEST know if I'm not home, or simply in another room?

going to use the insurance money i get from hurricane sandy to get myself one of these!

burnside said:

How is this that much different than any other programmable thermostat that either comes with your house already or can be easily bought for less than $50? Set your thermostat once and you're pretty much done. The only time I need to go to my thermostat is when I want it a little warmer/cooler than the present temperature and I don't need an app to do that.

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By and large, it's not much different than a properly programmed programmable thermostat. In practice, there are some differences.

First, this is obviously a premium product, and you are paying for that. That's ok - if you have a well decorated house and the thermostat is prominent, that matters to some.

Mostly though, this is intended to be as user-friendly as possible. This starts with the installation - which they go to great lengths to make this do it yourself for the vast majority of people. As compared to the instructions for a regular thermostat, this is a huge improvement. Second, it is not a programmable thermostat in the traditional sense (although it can be used that way) - it is a learning thermostat. After you install it, you set your temperatures as normal for a couple of days. From that it learns your basic schedule. It has a proximity sensor so it knows if you are home, and adjusts accordingly. It learns your habits, and continues to adjust over time.

It's of course wi-fi connected, which allows you to interact with it from anywhere - which also greatly aids any configuration you want to do so. You can set your thermostat back when you go away for a few days (or it will automatically), and turn it on remotely on your way home. It shows how much time you system is running every day to help you monitor energy usage.

Finally, perhaps the biggest thing is that it offers all of that complexity in a device that is in general, as simple to use as any old-style dial thermostat. Turn the dial and set the temperature and you will get most of the benefit of the thermostat without doing anything else.

That answer the question?

ctdonath said:

I've got the general gist of self-adjusting for optimal energy use, but am at a loss to see how it gathers this data - especially when much of the occupant's activity is out of sight of the device (assuming it monitors infrared activity a la motion detectors), and temperature dynamics vary considerably across each floor of the house.

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The sensor has a pretty wide view but has to see you pass by every so often. So if it is in a closet or such it won't work efficiently and you would have to run it manually. As to multiple thermostats it does have options for that.

jessica. said:

I don't know how quickly they pay for themselves but I think the ROI happens within the first year.

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Never. Unless somebody doesn't know how to work their heating.

RMo said:

Are there other programmable thermostats that aren't just programmable but that can also give you a history of your energy usage (which, for example, may help in striving towards even greater efficiency)? I think that's part of the appeal, plus the fact that it's probably the most attractive thermostat on the market, which some people are willing to pay more for.

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I just look at my bill which gives me those stats. It's not an hour by hour usage, but it's all I need. If you think about it, when you're in the house you're going to have the thermostat set at the temperature which makes you comfortable, so no energy savings there. It's when no one is in the house that you want the temperature down. So just set your thermostat to a low temp when you're out of the house and that's that.

SatManager said:

The neat has a sensor that can tell that you are not at home and will not run the heat or AC until you return ( of which it senses that you are back). It learns your schedule over time and makes up a new schedule. It adjusts to you, if it sees you are in and out frequently it adjusts how long it takes to go into Auto-Away mode. You can turn off any of the behaviors and set manual limits as needed.

A monthly report is emailed to you letting you know how much energy is used and compares it with the previous month.

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Hey, SatManager, thanks for taking the time to respond to my question.

Out of curiosity, has anyone used a Nest in a home with floor heating? I'd love to buy one of these but curious if it adapts to the 2-hour lead-time needed for the concrete slab to actually heat up.

I live in the UK, and want one of these baaaaaad.

dai.hop said:

I live in the UK, and want one of these baaaaaad.

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..and you will have one soon. All that needs to happen is for one of the staff to change the $ to and £ and you're golden. £249.99, yes that's each!

Shrink said:

I have a programmable thermostat which can be programmed for 4 different settings each day. I don't remember exactly what I paid for it, but I know it was less than $100 including installation by an HVAC professional...so if I could do it myself, it would have been less.

Serious question...what is the advantage of the NEST (aside from looking extremely cool ) over my thermostat?

Click to expand...

For me, it's the live feedback (i.e. daily energy usage), remote manageability (via smartphone apps or the web), and its ability to detect when nobody is home and changes the temperatures accordingly, in addition to any hard-set schedule that you may have.

I also like how they update the firmware with new features (as they develop them), like the new AirWave feature.

Here are some shots I was able to snag at work, of what my home system is currently doing.

But honestly, I mostly got it because when my roommate (whose bedroom is downstairs, by the thermostat) cranks down the A/C in the summer (to artic levels) right before he goes to bed, I can adjust it from my upstairs bedroom without having to get out of bed.












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burnside said:

So just set your thermostat to a low temp when you're out of the house and that's that.

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I think that's the point. IMO, most people, even with programmable thermostats, don't bother to lower the temperature when they leave the house. Or tell it to hold the current temperature. They just go about their business, giving the thermostat little thought.

Where the Nest (and other networked thermostats) offer an advantage, IMO, is by giving the owners regular feedback. Show them literally how many hours their system ran the night before. Give them leaf icons if they do a better job of managing their system.

For example, if I'm at work and get an invitation to hang out with buddies directly after work, it makes no sense for my HVAC system to follow the normal schedule and kick on at 4:30PM, warming the house up for my usual arrival home at 5:00PM. And it's not like I'm going to make a trip to swing home just to turn down the HVAC. With the Nest (and others like it), I can use the app/web to quickly put the system in "away" mode, which makes it ignore the regular schedule until I switch it back. That'll earn me a leaf. And as stupid as it sounds, it's somewhat motivating to me to pay more attention to my HVAC system.