NEST vs HIVE - smart thermostats

[Danith]

Anyone got experience of these? Presume they're quite common and I'm just 10 years behind, ha.

I can get the Hive for £199 installed or get the NEST and install it myself for a bit more.

I can see that the NEST is a more intuitive and learns your habits etc and also that it detects when you leave the home to turn off. But in a way this kinda puts me off as it's no doubt more data farming by Google?!

What are folk's opinions on the Hive (and nest)?

ta

 

[Ol’ Tarby]

I've got Hive and it's bob on. It also does geo location so you can set it to come on and off as you leave. It's also connected to my smart speakers so I can set the temp from any where in the house if I've not got my phone on me.

Can stick the heating on when I wake up without moving from my bed until the house is warm. Love it

 

[Danith]

Smart speakers??

 

[Ol’ Tarby]

Smart speakers??

Google home, Amazon Alexa etc

 

[Danith]

Ahhhh. Yeah you get an Amazon hub thing with it too. So you just tell that to up the heating and it does it?

 

[Ol’ Tarby]

Yeah I just say "set temperature to 18 degrees" and it does it

 

[TheEvilGiraffe]

Had Hive for a few years.. was installed with new boiler.

Got a load of lamps which is brilliant as you can just put them on and off from the sofa (or anywhere on the planet if you have internet access), set times for them to come on and off, such as at sunrise/sunset.. which is infinitely better than having to adjust timers every month of the year.

Can get plugs, alarm sensors, cameras and all sorts.

I've got my garage door plugged in to a smart plug so I know I can't accidentally open it / no one can jack it.

 

[Danith]

Sold.

I'm ordering the hive. British gas customers get it for 16.50 a month (12 months) fitted and with support. Free Amazon echo dot 3 (smart speaker?) too

 

[Stay Puft]

Do they work with any boiler? Mine seems to be from the 80’s!

 

[Ben]

As above, my boiler is also pretty old too. It’s early 2000’s but still works perfectly so I don’t fancy buggering it up with some fancy tech.

 

[TheEvilGiraffe]

Do they work with any boiler? Mine seems to be from the 80’s!

Don't see why not.

All a thermostat does is tell the boiler to switch on or off depending on temperature requirements.

A timer tells the boiler if it is ok to turn on or not depending on the time of day.

A hive/nest/a.n.other is basically both combined.

 

[Ol’ Tarby]

Sold.

I'm ordering the hive. British gas customers get it for 16.50 a month (12 months) fitted and with support. Free Amazon echo dot 3 (smart speaker?) too

You got BG boiler cover? I was having mine serviced and the guy did me Hive for 99 quid

 

[Danith]

You got BG boiler cover? I was having mine serviced and the guy did me Hive for 99 quid

I've got some cover yeah. It's free with the plan or something. Where did you get the offer? Link on their site?

 

[Ol’ Tarby]

I've got some cover yeah. It's free with the plan or something. Where did you get the offer? Link on their site?

No he just offered it when he was round doing the service

 

[welshname]

Depends on the ecosystem you like. If you're into your Amazon based stuff, then stick with Hive. If you're into the google eco system then nest.

Neither is better than the other to any real degree in my opinion other than I think the nest looks nicer/more modern.

 

[Ol’ Tarby]

Depends on the ecosystem you like. If you're into your Amazon based stuff, then stick with Hive. If you're into the google eco system then nest

Why you say that mate? I'm Google and have hive

 

[welshname]

Why you say that mate? I'm Google and have hive

Integration purposes.

If you're google Nest integrates better with the whole google home ecosystem from what I understand (might be wrong and it may have changed) and the same the other way round.

 

[Ben]

Makes sense as Hive are offering a free Amazon device at the min.

 

[Danith]

yeah I'm just not too keen on the old school thermostat thing I've got in this new house. Old turn dial thingy Hive will do for me I think.

 

[Gouldy]

Are these really worth the fuss / subscription?

My timer is on constant and the thermo stat is set at 15 degrees and has been for a few years. I never touch it, no need to

 

[Ol’ Tarby]

There is no subscription. It's just getting with the times/convenience really

 

[Darren61]

We went for the 3rd Gen Nest Thermostat and it’s been great so far. Works out your routine and needs on its own pretty much, can set from wherever you are (home or away) it turns off when your devices leave the house.

Looks the part Vs Hive IMO but most likely does pretty much the same thing. We have a modern Vaillant boiler and it already had a basic wireless thermostat which we had wall mounted. So the Nest swapped over straight to that easily, but because the old thermostats just ran off AA batteries, there wasn’t any wiring on the wall to wall mount them. So we ended up buying the stand for each thermostat (2 loops, 1 upstairs and 1 downstairs) and positioned them in better places than the “hallway” where quite often the temp isn’t relative to a room you may be using, especially if it’s near the front door for example.

Downside was having to buy 2 stats, plus 2 stands and installation, easily £500..

 

[Ol’ Tarby]

them in better places than the “hallway” where quite often the temp isn’t relative to a room you may be using

Technically your thermostat is "supposed" to be in the coolest part of your house, and then room temps are controlled by TRVs.
So I was told anyway

 

[Marc.]

We have 2 Nest thermostats at home. No different to Hive (my parents run Hive) and the only downside I can see is the cost.

I never need to use it, the self-learning part is really intuitive. Mine are fixed to the wall, rather than on a stand, so didn’t have to pay for those.
Works with my car too, so I can set it to “Home” when I get in the car (if I can’t be arsed to use my phone...)

 

[SC03OTT]

Tado is another one to look at although it’s not as good as it was IMO. A lot of the features are now behind a subscription pay wall (geolocation) but I think you can get around that if you use Apple HomeKit. The radiator thermostats are also great to. Like I said, just another one to look at if you’re interested.

 

[Danith]

For 16 quid a month it's got to be better than this. 90s bling

 

[realnumber 1]

Technically your thermostat is "supposed" to be in the coolest part of your house, and then room temps are controlled by TRVs.
So I was told anyway

Plenty also advise (including the nest manual iirc) you should have it in the main living area!

 

[Flat Eric]

I've got a Worcester so opted for the Wave which is worcestors own smart thermostat. It's just as good as a nest but the nest looks and feels better.

My parents have a nest and it is really good.

The convenience of being able to turn the heating up whilst out the house so you come home to a warm house was enough to sway me to a smart thermostat.

 

[JP83]

I think our thermostat is on it's way out, but probably has been for a few years now.

We're on an old oil boiler at home - does anyone else run a smart themrostat with one?

 

[Stay Puft]

Been quoted £240+vat to supply and fit Hive with my old school boiler. Seem an ok price?

 

[Darren61]

Sounds about right ^

Could probably get a nest for similar if you shop around

 

[realnumber 1]

One thing to think about regarding these 2 is that Nest is the only one that supports opentherm. If you have or are looking to get a newer boiler it should work better.
It also makes use of a motion sensor and looks better!

 

[Flat Eric]

My vote is on nest over hive. They look the b****cks

 

[Danith]

Been quoted £240+vat to supply and fit Hive with my old school boiler. Seem an ok price?

Sounds right if you're not a British gas customer. I think fitting is a doddle though so might be worth self install to save the fee.

 

[Stay Puft]

Sounds right if you're not a British gas customer. I think fitting is a doddle though so might be worth self install to save the fee.

As my thermostat is so old I think I may need wiring to power it

 

[Danith]

As my thermostat is so old I think I may need wiring to power it

Think they use wires from boiler to attach a transmitter then put the wireless hub thermostat thing in the house anywhere you want.

 

[Stay Puft]

Think they use wires from boiler to attach a transmitter then put the wireless hub thermostat thing in the house anywhere you want.

Oh sorry, for Hive yes. I’ve moved onto Nest now!

 

[Stay Puft]

Does anyone know if I can use Nest to control hot water? I have a separate hot water tank in a different cupboard.

 

[Darren61]

Just contact Nest direct, they’ll put you in touch with a local, nest authorised installer, and the customer service (IME) is really good

 

[R3k1355]

Nest is part of Google, so if you're thinking of any other smart home stuff it will integrate with those, there's quite a few.

Google Home Hub & Hub Max
Nest Hello Doorbell (same as Ring video)
Next CCTV cameras (outdoor and indoor)
Chromecast
Even a smoke detector