NEST thermostats

If you're looking for best bang for buck then that's probably going to be individual programmable TRVs used in conjunction with your existing wireless thermostat.

Beyond that the Conrad system is also good value and adds more features.

Nest looks good but functionally I don't see the benefit over alternatives.

Evohome, while expensive on the face of it, appears to be the most complete and feature-packed system. I've been looking into DIY Z-Wave alternatives and there's not a huge price difference tbh. I'd say its price is reasonable for a premium offering in this niche.
 
If you're lucky enough not to have signal issues.

They are a bit cheaper but that's likely because most LightwaveRF devices only contain receivers and not transceivers. They can't acknowledge commands back to the controller or send data back such as temperature reporting. The controller usually sends the same command multiple times in the hope one gets through.

There's no meshing either so every device would have to be within range of the central controller.

The Evohome uses two-way communication, has a much nicer interface and the devices themselves are far more functional. It also has advanced features like having the room already heated to the temperature you set it to at the time you set it to, rather than waiting for hours to reach that temperature. It does this by learning how long rooms take to heat up.

If you just want room-by-room programmable temperatures then cheap individually programmable TRVs do that. You don't need anything on the scale of LightwaveRF/NEST/Evohome but if you do want something special, then you're going to be spending a lot anyway so spend a bit more and get the best - the Evohome*.



* It may turn out to be a PoS.
 
Hi there, not great so far if I'm honest..

I went down the self install route and connected the wires accordingly but the unit seems to lose power.
I was a bit miffed at technical support suggesting I plugged the unit into the mains permanently.

I'm dealing with a senior advisor now in their technical department and hoping to get this all resolved asap!
 
If that's the unit which connects to your boiler you're talking about then I thought it was fairly normal for them to run off mains power?
 
The Tado box replaces your controller/thermostat. I've been doing loads of reading on this and other products, seems some people do have problems installing them.

James, did you by-pass the thermostat connection?

I also read that the algorithum that tado uses to 'learn' your system can take some bedding in and patientce on the users part. Incidently I also had an email from Tado with a 10% discount code attached if anyone is interested.

I still think its the way forward for my particular heating system. I just need to convince the g/f.
 
Imy said:
If that's the unit which connects to your boiler you're talking about then I thought it was fairly normal for them to run off mains power?
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Hi there,

It is designed to replace the old RF wireless thermostat I previously had wired in.

Kagemusha said:
The Tado box replaces your controller/thermostat. I've been doing loads of reading on this and other products, seems some people do have problems installing them.

James, did you by-pass the thermostat connection?

I also read that the algorithum that tado uses to 'learn' your system can take some bedding in and patientce on the users part. Incidently I also had an email from Tado with a 10% discount code attached if anyone is interested.

I still think its the way forward for my particular heating system. I just need to convince the g/f.
Click to expand...

As Kagemusha says, I used the discount code UKFACEBOOKFAN10 which is valid for 10% off both rental and outright purchase.
 
Got myself a Tado in the end. It was installed today by someone and they were here for no more than 15 minutes, i live in a self build so everything should be straight forward, my old thermostat was actually running off batteries we discovered! Lucky enough they still run power for it so installers were a bit confused to why they didn't opt for a powered thermostat but never mind.

Everything is 1st gen at the moment, I'm sure in 3 years it will all change and integration will be there for many smart home products. Nest offer the thermostat and smoke alarm that work together which is nice and what i would ideally like but there is nothing here right now.
 
PCAdvisor said:
Google Nest Learning Thermostat UK release date

The UK release date for the Nest thermostat control is April 2, 2014. The UK price, including professional installation, is £299.
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Hopefully, they'll not be forcing the "professional" installation on the UK market and offer it at a substantially lower price without it, and make it comparable with the US$249 pricetag.

I'm sure they'll not want the UK market messing around with their 230v heating systems, but as a qualified sparky, I think I'll be fine thanks.
 
The heat link is a bit of a bodge but would suit me very well actually as I was wanting to move my thermostat to the living room.



Is there a time limit of when to have it installed? Can I order now and delay the install by a few months?
 
Trifid said:
The heat link is a bit of a bodge but would suit me very well actually as I was wanting to move my thermostat to the living room.



Is there a time limit of when to have it installed? Can I order now and delay the install by a few months?
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Absolutely no idea, trying to decide if it's worth getting on installed in a rented flat (and removing it when I move out) and if my landlord would allow it.
 
Is it just me that's kinda gone off this?

When it was launched two years ago I thought it sounded great. Motion detection to know if you've left the house but forgotten to turn the thermostat down, knows the local weather for temperature compensation, learns your routine, etc.

But now it's here I'm not so keen. Back then it would have been great, but now there's the Honeywell Evohome that can control the temperature in each room separately.
 
Not sure on this full auto stuff, though am thinking of getting Hive, which allows me control from my phone. I can get it for £100 fitted off a BG employee.
 
It's just a thermostat minus the 7-day programmer but with added mobile phone control as far as I can tell.

It does look pretty but I can see it being more of a faff than a regular thermostat and not saving you any money on heating.

The Evohome and others like it are in a different league when it comes to heating control.

I suppose you could use the NEST alongside individually programmable TRVs but then you may as well get the Evohome for full interoperability.
 
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I've ummed and arrred over a Nest, but come to the conclusion that while it is an excellently made product, that does it's job very well, it's ultimately a tad pointless, same as the Protect monitor. All the reviews seem to say the same thing, universally praised as a product, but the end "gain" is questionable unless you are completely reckless with your heating.

I keep a close eye on mine as it is, and it's rarely on when it doesn't need to be, so any cost savings, if there are any, would take a long time to repay themselves. To be honest the only reason I would get one is to increase the saleability of my own house if I was looking to move. I'm sure seeing a Nest-equipped home would look good to any buyer.

Perhaps when that happens I'll look at installing one, no doubt there will be newer revisions by then anyway.
 
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