So, you like the idea of zone control to maximize the comfort control and minimize the energy usage in your home... AND you like the idea of being able to control all of your zones from your smartphone, tablet or computer. This has been possible for many years now but cost prohibitive... until now. Let's face it, $250 to $300 for a thermostat is pretty steep, even if it does have WiFi. Plus, for a zoning system, you will need 2, 3, 4 or even more of these expensive thermostats. It is unfortunate that the cost has been out of reach for many home owners that have (or want) zone controls because WiFi thermostats are a perfect match to a zoned system. Instead of having to go around to each thermostat in your home, you could control all zones with a smartphone or tablet.
We are very excited about the recently (2 days ago) released Ecobee3 Lite thermostat. Why? Because it may be the best WiFi thermostat yet released for zone control applications.
First, its price tag of $169 beats most of the alternatives by $80 or more... this means for a 4 zone system you could save at least $320 over using the original Ecobee3, the Nest or Honeywell's Lyric.
Second, the ecobee app is stellar and handles multiple thermostats as well or better than the competition. This is a must for zone controls and many of the less expensive alternative thermostats just don't measure up.
Third, it looks great! They didn't try to dumb down the interface or aesthetics to create this "LITE" version. You can be proud to have it hanging on your wall... in every zone.
Check back in a couple of weeks we we have received our pre-ordered Ecobee3 Lite thermostats for use with SmartZone for an in-depth analysis.