The Nest Thermostat E comes with a stand. allowing you to place it anywhere.
Katie Collins/CNET
Smart home company Nest is bringing a cheaper version of its learning thermostat, the Thermostat E, to Europe — over a year after it launched a similar product in the US.
When we say similar, we mean it, because this iteration of the Thermostat E is very much a Europe-only product. It's designed specifically around the requirements of the legacy central heating systems and boilers in European homes. So what makes it different?
The all-new Thermostat E is a freestanding device that to the naked eye looks much the same at the US version, with its white rim and frosted display. Your first clue that it's different is that it comes with its very own little white tabletop perch (something you have to pay extra for in the US). This allows you the flexibility to place it anywhere in your home, rather than restricting placement according to where your current thermostat is installed.
The white metal stand is satisfyingly weighty.
Katie Collins/CNET
Features and insights are much the same as on the original Nest Thermostat, although the company has also added a little something extra. Many users choose to allow Nest's thermostats to learn their routines over time, but the Thermostat E also comes with predefined schedules that you can choose to enable from the word go. The schedules are based around average routines Nest has observed among users, and will differ depending on whether you're based in the UK or mainland Europe.
Another way in which the European Thermostat E is different is that it comes with a second bundled product. The Nest Heat Link E is a grey fabric disc that replaces your existing wall-mounted thermostat and connects wirelessly with the Nest Thermostat E, wherever you decide to place it. Like the thermostat, the Heat Link E contains a temperature sensor, which should help provide an even more accurate temperature reading throughout a home (presuming they are kept in different rooms).
The Heat Link E is designed to look cool on your wall.
Katie Collins/CNET
Nest designed the Heat Link specifically so that anyone can choose to install it. This sets the Thermostat E apart from Nest's existing thermostat, which the company recommends is installed by a professional. Nest offers a step-by-step tutorial in its app — which it calls a Wiring Wizard — to take you through installation. The intention is to help keep the cost down by installing it yourself.
The price of Nest's current thermostat including installation is £314 in the UK, but the Thermostat E will be priced at £199. You can still employ a Nest-recommended technician to install it for you if you wish, but Nest hopes most people will find it easy enough to incorporate into an hour's worth of weekend DIY.
The Nest Thermostat E will be available for preorder immediately and you should start seeing it in stores from mid-October.
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