Nest Learning Thermostat Review: Pretty Smart

There are only a fistful of smart location gadgets I unequivocally impulse to everyone, and a smart thermostat is 1 of them. They’re incredibly useful, combining nan 3 C’s of nan smart home: convenience, comfort, and costs savings.

The Nest Learning Thermostat, which debuted successful 2011, was 1 of nan original smart thermostats. But it hasn’t seen an update successful almost a decade. Today, location are dozens of cheaper connected thermostats, including Amazon’s fantabulous fund thermostat and Google’s ain stripped-down Nest Thermostat. So, why should you spot spending $280 connected nan caller fourth-generation Nest Learning Thermostat?

For 2 reasons. First, it’s nan smartest smart thermostat. The learning Nest is nan only thermostat pinch an algorithm that automatically adjusts your heating and cooling schedule based connected really you usage it, and nan fourth-gen is smarter than ever. Second, it looks gorgeous. If your thermostat is successful a salient spot for illustration mine, looks matter, and nary different thermostat looks this good.

I loved nan third-gen Nest, pinch its sleek style and tactile dial, and nan fourth-gen Nest takes that iconic creation to nan adjacent level. Adding a larger screen, thinner body, and overmuch integrated dial, nan fourth-gen Nest too has a smaller base, making it look for illustration it’s floating connected nan wall. The all-gold colour I tested is stunning, and nan crystal LCD aboveground reflects ray beautifully. As my workfellow Victoria Song put it, “The Nest is truthful pretty, it makes nan remainder of my location look drab successful comparison.”

The bigger aboveground makes it easier to powerfulness and navigate settings, and nan Farsight move show has caller options that return advantage of nan space. Farsight uses nan device’s Soli radar sensor to move nan Nest’s show based connected really adjacent you are to nan thermostat.

From a distance, it shows a simplified position pinch conscionable nan time, weather, aliases somesthesia settings; up close, it transitions to show overmuch elaborate information, including a caller connection of 3 customizable “complications.” These tin show various data, specified arsenic temperature, humidity, time, date, and moreover an outdoor aerial worth standard score. (There’s nary indoor aerial worth monitoring, which is point Ecobee, Nest’s main competitor astatine this worth point, does offer.)

I chose to usage nan upwind look connected my upstairs unit, which shows animations of nan upwind complete nan existent outdoor somesthesia and nan day’s forecast. I added complications for nan feels-like temp, date, and time, which personification been adjuvant erstwhile I’m dashing betwixt my kids’ bedrooms successful nan morning. For nan downstairs unit, I went pinch nan modern analog timepiece that looks ace stylish connected my entryway wall and is useful to glimpse astatine from nan surviving room. 

I americium too thrilled to yet beryllium tin to powerfulness nan Nest natively successful Apple Home — my family’s preferred method of smart location control. The fourth-gen Nest is nan first Learning exemplary from Google pinch Matter support. This intends it tin activity pinch immoderate smart location level that supports Matter. (There’s a Nest thermostat pinch Matter support, but nary learning algorithm.)

However, you can’t group it up pinch Matter initially, arsenic location is nary Matter codification connected nan thermostat itself; only erstwhile it’s group up utilizing nan Google Home app tin you make a codification and banal nan thermostat pinch different Matter platform. (Note: this exemplary doesn’t activity pinch nan Nest app astatine all.)

I connected nan thermostat to Apple Home and Amazon Alexa via Matter, and nan process was amazingly smooth. Response times personification been instantaneous connected each platforms, whether utilizing sound aliases app control; pinch Matter, nan commands are routed locally.

Sadly, Google has ditched Thread here. Thread is 1 of Matter's main wireless protocols, but it was primitively developed for nan Nest Learning Thermostat. A type of Thread has been connected each erstwhile Learning model, truthful its removal here, connected nan first Learning thermostat pinch Matter support, is baffling.

The Nest Learning Thermostat (4th-gen) is Nest’s astir powerful thermostat to date. It useful pinch much systems than nan third-gen, including up to 3 heating and 2 cooling stages. Plus, it’s compatible pinch humidifier, dehumidifier, and ventilation equipment. It too has much package features designed to trim powerfulness usage while keeping you comfortable. At $280, it will return a while to offset nan thermostat’s costs pinch powerfulness savings, but you mightiness beryllium eligible for a decent rebate from your powerfulness provider.

I’ve installed dozens of smart thermostats complete nan years, and nan Nest is still 1 of nan simplest to install, acknowledgment to clear steps, bully guidance from nan app, and click-in connectors. (Pro tip: insert nan wires earlier you screw nan backplate to nan wall.)

It’s too 1 of nan only smart thermostats that doesn’t require a C wire, but I impulse installing 1 if you tin — aliases utilizing nan Nest Power Connector. Without dedicated power, nan Nest Learning Thermostat uses a power-sharing instrumentality to trickle title its psyche battery, but that whitethorn not ever activity consistently. When my C ligament went bad connected my aged system, nan non-learning Nest Thermostat I was testing kept disconnecting from Wi-Fi and yet stopped moving erstwhile its AA batteries died.

This clip around, however, I had a caller HVAC system. My aged single-stage strategy had fixed retired aft 12 years of sweating done South Carolina summers, and we’d decided to instal a overmuch energy-efficient Trane powerfulness pump strategy pinch a multistage high-efficiency compressor and a TEM6 variable-stage aerial handler. 

Connecting nan Nest required maine to relationship Google. According to their techs, nan fourth-gen Nest is compatible pinch my strategy since it tin tally nan aerial handler successful 2 stages, allowing nan information to find what percent to usage astatine each stage. However, my HVAC installer told maine I had to usage Trane’s ain thermostats to get nan compressor’s afloat efficiency.

This isn’t unsocial to Nest; variable-speed systems astir ever activity champion pinch nan manufacturer’s thermostats. But this makes maine sad because nan Trane XL824 thermostats that came pinch my strategy look for illustration mini Windows computers connected my wall and not for illustration beautiful pieces of jewelry. They are too fiddly to program, and nan app is indecipherable. 

Even without entree to nan afloat scope of compressor settings, I was still tin to proceedings nan Nest Learning Thermostat, including its signature function: Smart Schedules. This characteristic is why I’ve ever liked and recommended Nest thermostats — it’s a overmuch overmuch hands-off acquisition than astir smart thermostats. 

Smart Schedules uses 3 modes: eco, sleep, and comfort. During setup, you return preset heating and cooling temperatures for each mode. The thermostat is programmed pinch a starter schedule that sets your location to comfortableness mode astatine 6:15AM and slumber mode astatine 10PM. From there, I conscionable needed to group nan somesthesia (in nan app, pinch sound control, aliases connected nan device) for a week aliases so, and nan thermostat automatically adapted nan schedule to my preferences. 

I’ve been testing nan Nest for 2 months now, and successful that time, it has continuously tweaked nan clip and somesthesia of nan schedule arsenic my household’s habits and nan seasons personification changed, pinch mini to nary input from me. The location has consistently felt comfortable contempt nan chaotic somesthesia swings of nan South Carolina autumn and winter. 

On earlier models of nan Nest Learning Thermostat, I’ve tally into issues pinch smart scheduling, peculiarly during seasonal changes. Thankfully, Google has mostly addressed these pinch nan fourth-gen exemplary by making nan device’s decision-making overmuch transparent. It now sends notifications successful nan app erstwhile it adjusts your schedule and tells you what it’s doing connected nan thermostat. This lets you spread immoderate erroneous changes earlier you consciousness them and is simply a invited alteration from nan sometimes inscrutable actions of nan earlier versions. (You tin show it not to make adjustments without your support if you are really concerned astir losing control.)

Along pinch Smart Schedules, you tin adhd nan thermostat to Google Home’s location and distant routines. These usage beingness sensing to cognize erstwhile nary 1 is location and put nan strategy into eco mode to thief prevention energy. You tin too necktie different smart location actions into these routines, specified arsenic having your lights move disconnected erstwhile you clip disconnected and move backmost connected erstwhile you get home. 

The distant mode was impressively meticulous successful my testing, switching connected arsenic soon arsenic I sewage successful nan car successful my driveway. This is overmuch businesslike than nan 2 hours it tin return nan Ecobee to find if nan location is empty. Google uses respective signals here, including nan Soli radar sensor successful nan thermostat, mobility sensors successful immoderate wired Nest Protect fume alarms you have, interactions pinch immoderate Nest speakers, affirmative your phone’s location, if you alteration that mounting successful nan Google Home app. While you’ll want to personification family members download nan Google Home app truthful it tin spot them, nan different signals should thief forestall anyone adjacent astatine location without a registered telephone from getting stiff out.

On nan third-gen thermostat, distant mode often fto nan somesthesia driblet excessively much, struggling to return to a comfortable level erstwhile I sewage home. A caller adaptive eco mode connected nan fourth-gen addresses this, taking into narration nan upwind and staying adjacent tin to nan comfortableness somesthesia truthful that it tin get backmost to it incorrect an hour. Last week, it was successful nan precocious 20s coming successful South Carolina, and alternatively of dropping each nan measurement down to 62 degrees Fahrenheit (my heating play successful eco mode) erstwhile I adjacent nan house, it only went down to 66F and was backmost to a comfortable 68F incorrect a less minutes of my return.

Another caller characteristic connected nan fourth-gen is earthy heating and cooling. This likewise leverages its knowledge of extracurricular temps and will region nan strategy if Mother Nature tin group powerfulness aliases cool your home. I haven’t seen this hap yet, but successful theory, if it’s a sunny, lukewarm day, nan thermostat tin region heating and usage passive powerfulness to decorativeness heating your house. There’s too an action to get an alert telling you to unfastened nan windows to thief pinch this. Google too added a smart ventilation characteristic that automatically activates your ventilation strategy to bring successful caller aerial if outdoor aerial worth is bully and temperatures are compatible. I couldn’t proceedings this because I don’t personification a ventilation system.

The Nest’s distant somesthesia sensors personification a caller creation to lucifer nan thermostat, and 1 now comes successful nan instrumentality (which helps offset nan worth bump from nan third-gen). These fto your thermostat target nan somesthesia successful nan rooms you’re really in, and not conscionable wherever nan thermostat is. With nan fourth-gen thermostat, you tin now premier aggregate sensors and intent for an mean somesthesia crossed them, which is overmuch businesslike than targeting conscionable 1 room. This is simply a characteristic competitors for illustration Ecobee and Honeywell Home personification had for years, truthful Nest is playing catch-up here, but it’s still a bully improvement. 

I personification a two-zone system, and I placed nan sensor for nan upstairs thermostat successful my agency and nan 1 for nan downstairs thermostat successful nan kitchen. I tied nan daytime comfortableness schedule to nan agency sensor to support maine cozy erstwhile I’m moving and nan evening comfortableness schedule to nan room sensor truthful I enactment comfortable erstwhile cooking. This is overmuch intuitive than nan third-gen model, which has you create abstracted fixed schedules for nan sensors.

However, Nest still hasn’t added occupancy find to nan sensors (again, point Ecobee’s and Honeywell Home’s distant sensors offer). This would fto nan thermostat group to nan room I americium really successful alternatively than wherever nan schedule says. For example, nan comfortableness schedule that assumes I’m moving successful my agency during nan clip will still tally upstairs, moreover if I find to activity connected my eating room array downstairs. I personification to manually group nan Nests if I move rooms, whereas nan Ecobee could group automatically based connected my presence. In lieu of beingness find successful nan sensors, it would beryllium bully if nan devices Google Home uses for location and distant find too worked for occupancy sensing for nan Nest’s heating and cooling modes.

Also, nan somesthesia sensors disappointingly usage Bluetooth, not Thread, and truthful don’t activity successful Matter. This intends they’re only accessible successful nan Google Home app, truthful you can’t usage them to tally temperature-based automations connected different platforms. As mentioned earlier, Google ditched Thread from nan thermostat pinch this version, and while nan thermostat itself whitethorn not personification seen a batch of usage from Thread (other than helping shape a stronger web successful my smart home), nan battery-powered room sensors would surely spot immoderate usage from nan protocol. 

If you for illustration nan thought of your heating and cooling adjusting to you arsenic you move astir nan house, past nan Ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium will beryllium a amended fit. Its newest creation will look very bully connected your wall (although it’s overmuch techy-looking than nan Nest), and astatine $250 pinch a room sensor, it’s a mini overmuch affordable. Compatibility is comparable to nan Nest, though nan Nest offers 3 stages of heating, while nan Ecobee Premium is optimized for up to two. 

I’ve utilized immoderate Ecobee and Nest thermostats for galore years, and nan simplicity of nan Nest makes it nan amended premier for me. Plus, it's easier to merge into my smart location now that nan Nest useful natively pinch Apple Home (something Ecobee has done for years). Overall, nan Ecobee is overmuch analyzable to group up and usage but has overmuch features and capabilities. This includes being a smart speaker, a video doorbell intercom, a location accusation system, and monitoring your generator. However, astir of these capabilities are proprietary, and Ecobee doesn’t support Matter (yet).

In contrast, nan Nest has conscionable 1 business and it does it well. It’s easy to group up and easy to use, and easier to understand, now that it tells you what it’s doing erstwhile its smarts footwear in. It takes astir of nan activity retired of your hands and requires small tinkering than nan Ecobee to support you comfortable. I for illustration and impulse immoderate products, but if you want point simple, stylish, and really smart, spell pinch nan Nest.

Photos by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge