I would never have believed I would be so impressed by a Thermostat. I'm not a "techie" person so this Review is simply my experience using the Ecobee3 Lite.
The unit itself is black, sleek, and modern. It comes with an easy to install wall plate. So, if like me, the last time your wall was painted the thermostat was smaller and shaped differently. Thus leaving the ugly "unpainted" section around the thermostat. Once the plate was installed it looks very nice on the wall. Even though it's only 4 x 4 x 0.8 inches the numbers are large and easy to read. The touch screen lights up when i walk up to it, as if acknowledging my presence. The touch screen reacts quickly, screen transition is smooth and effortless. The attached pictures shows everything from what's in the box, our old wire configuration to the finished, fully installed Ecobee3 with the wall plate. **In case you need to contact technical support like I did, Make sure you TAKE A PICTURE of your original wiring BEFORE you start disconnecting wires. I emailed a picture of the original configuration and received a detailed reply from technical support. We made the changes indicated and presto-whamo it has been working perfectly since. I downloaded the application (for Android) which took mere seconds. Once our information was programmed in our local weather is right there on the wall unit as well as on my phone. I really like the 3 comfort settings *Home, *Sleep, and *Away. We always lower the settings when we leave for an overnight or extended vacation. But, now if we forget, I can change the settings from anywhere, with a few simple clicks on my phone. We also like the house a little cooler at night when we are sleeping. Now we don't have to get out of bed if we forget. The unit reacts with our local weather to maintain the settings we've selected. The manufacturer states we can expect our power bill to be lowered by approximately 23%. Free monthly reports on power consumption, savings and tips to further reduce our bill are available. We will keep an eye on the bills over the next 6-12 months to fairly evaluate any changes. (I will revisit this review and add any such information.)
Ecobee is user friendly and works with almost every type of electronic device - - Amazon Echo, Apple HomeKit, Samsung SmartThings, and IFTTT. IF you have Echo you can simply "Ask Alexa to adjust the temperature." Doesn't get an easier than voice activated! Ecobee is HomeKit-Enabled - so you can Control it by using Siri on your iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and iPod Touch.
To Sum it up -- I like the sleek, modern look. The large, white, digital temperature display is easy to read and the menu is simple and user friendly. Ecobee works with Alexa and Siri. You can do everything with the app that you can do on the main unit. Plus it eliminates trying to remember to adjust the temperature while packing for a vaca. With Ecobee you can adjust it from anywhere. No more rock, paper, scissors to see who has to get out of bed to set the thermostat. I love it and do not hesitate recommending it to others.
IMPORTANT NOTE** The outside temperature (for compressor) is set from the factory at 35*. I STRONGLY recommend you call your HVAC installer and ask if this setting can be safely adjusted. I was continually receiving notifications from Ecobee that my auxiliary heat was running too long. A quick call to the installer, resetting the temperature for my unit and area and I haven't received any more notices. You can save time and money by making that call on day one while installing your new thermostat. The attached pictures are a visual representation of the installation - from "out of the box" to "looking good."
**Remember- take a photo of original wiring and call your installer**
**I received this product in exchange for a fair evaluation and honest review. THANK YOU for taking the time to read my review. If you find it helpful and informative Please click Thumbs Up. If you click the thumbs down, please leave your comments below. I welcome all feedback. Thank you!
