Adding a modern thermostat is one of the best ways to upgrade your smart home. Automating climate routines saves you money on energy in the long run and makes you more comfortable every day. And when it comes to smart thermostats, you can shop around a lot. Some basic thermostats lack advanced features, some are tailored to specific smart assistants, and even some are designed for older homes with less-common HVAC systems.
One of the most famous names in the smart home space is Ecobee, and Ecobee’s most premium smart thermostat is the Premium Smart Thermostat. You’ll quickly notice that it’s the most expensive – but that’s justified.
Ecobee Premium Smart Thermostat
The Ecobee Premium Smart Thermostat is the best smart thermostat right now. An onboard microphone turns the thermostat into an Alexa accessory, while a built-in speaker expands your smart speaker network, offering instant Spotify streaming. In addition to all the expected thermostat functions like heating and cooling, the Ecobee Premium doubles as an air quality monitor, security hub, and live video feed for the Ecobee doorbell.
- Acts as a security hub for Ecobee sensors and doorbell
- Built-in smart speaker streams music easily
- There is also an air quality monitoring device.
- Stylish and modern
- Excellent thermostat and excellent price
- It doesn’t use the same construction as other Ecobee thermostats, despite being almost the exact size.
Price, availability and specifications
As far as local electronics retailers go, Ecobee’s premium thermostats are widely available. The Ecobee Premium smart thermostat retails for $250, but you may get lucky and find it on sale every now and then — Amazon is currently offering it for $20 off, for example. Ecobee’s website, Best Buy, and Home Depot are all great places to buy the Premium thermostat.
Need to expand your system beyond the premium version? Through some retailers, including Amazon, the thermostat can be purchased on its own, in bundles with home entry and temperature sensors, or in a larger security bundle with Ecobee’s Visual Doorbell.
What are the good features of the Ecobee Premium Smart Thermostat?
The primary purpose of this device is to monitor your home’s heating and cooling. Sure, you can set a routine to heat and cool your home at certain times and days of the week. You can also turn on a vacation mode. All of that stuff is pretty standard stuff for smart climate controllers at this point. But the Premium’s capabilities go beyond that; after a while of learning the habit, if the climate controller notices that your family is generally up and moving around by 7 a.m., it will know exactly when to start heating or cooling your home to your preferred daytime temperature. While I certainly can’t ignore the Ecobee Premium’s strengths as a thermostat, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. You’ll still be impressed if you buy this device solely for its climate control capabilities.
Make sure you do this. by 7am, instead of starting in The 7 a.m. timer may seem like an insignificant feature, but the smart thermostat has insights into how long it takes to adjust your home’s climate that you — unless you’re a true HVAC pro — wouldn’t know about based on a variety of factors ranging from outside temperature to humidity to the condition of your furnace filters. The Premium also uses geofencing for climate control and security; it can turn down the heat and power your home while you’re away.
This thermostat has replaced my mid-range Ecobee thermostat in my home, and the build quality is noticeably higher.
One of the big features of the Ecobee Premium is its built-in microphone and speaker. The microphone enables the Ecobee Premium’s built-in Siri and Alexa, but the speaker is more than just a feature. It’s louder than you’d expect from a speaker of this size, and with its Spotify integration, playing your favorite playlists or podcasts is as easy as a simple voice command. The Ecobee Premium’s built-in assistants (except Google Assistant, unfortunately) mean you can change the climate in your home without having to walk to the thermostat or even touch your phone. The Ecobee Premium was set up about 15 feet from my living area and still picked up my voice commands even from that distance.
This thermostat replaced my mid-range Ecobee thermostat in my home, and the build quality is noticeably upgradable. The Premium metal body is eye-catching and adds a touch of elegance compared to the Smart Thermostat Enhanced’s plastic casing.
Before I dive into the Premium’s safety features, I’ll reiterate that this thermostat excels at monitoring your home’s climate for maximum comfort and energy efficiency. The onboard air filter checks for carbon monoxide and other harmful substances in the home. Since most carbon monoxide detectors are battery-powered, I like the idea of having a constantly powered device in case of a carbon monoxide emergency. While it’s a paid feature, it’s worth noting that the Premium also listens for smoke alarms (but doesn’t detect smoke itself) and will send a signal to your phone if it detects one.
Thanks to Ecobee’s entry sensors, the Premium sends you a notification via the mobile app when a window or door is left open. And if you want, it will also temporarily turn off the HVAC system when it detects an open window or door (it has an Ecobee entry sensor).
The Ecobee Premium’s versatility beyond its primary purpose as a thermostat means it can serve as the hub for many smart homes. It’s an extension of your eyes, ears, and even your voice throughout the home. Getting the full potential of the Ecobee Premium with added devices is easy, even for beginners.
Ecobee offers enough genuine components to build an entire basic smart home system—video doorbells, smart thermostats, climate sensors, indoor cameras, and entry sensors—and the Premium smart thermostat is the thread that ties it all together. For example, if you have both an Ecobee video doorbell and a Premium, the Premium’s 3-inch square 540p display displays a live feed of your doorbell’s view when motion is detected. With Alexa built-in, you can also ask Premium questions like Who’s at the door?
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Guiding you through the Premium setup and any compatible Ecobee components is a breeze using the native app. Thermostat installation is usually intimidating—as is any endeavor that involves exposed wires sticking out of a hole in the wall—but as long as you’re comfortable enough to turn off the breaker switch responsible for your HVAC system, Ecobee’s concise, illustrated installation is a breeze.
What’s bad about the Ecobee Premium smart thermostat?
Honestly, very little. It’s one of the most expensive smart thermostats you can buy, but that’s to be expected, given its feature list. I wish the Premium had used the same mounting bracket as the Ecobee Smart Thermostat Enhanced, which dethroned it for testing, or at least the same screw configuration. The screw holes are arranged differently by very The degrees are exact, so I had to drill all new holes for the new thermostat.
You can’t really complain about this when switching between different thermostat brands, but it would be nice to have some variety between very similar sized thermostats from the same brand. Also, the Ecobee Premium requires a common (or C-wire) power cord, which can be a hassle in some homes.
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There’s one more thing: There’s a weirdness about the Ecobee Premium that I can’t explain. Every day, without fail, my thermostat sends me a “significantly reduced air quality” signal—in roughly the same one-hour window between 8 and 9 p.m. This happens regardless of whether the HVAC is on or off, whether it’s heating or cooling, whether the windows are open, and whether there are high levels of activity in the house (such as using gas stoves or dryers).
This happens if my entire family is home with the windows open or if the house is empty and locked. Whether it’s something Ecobee was trying to alert me to or some hidden glitch in the system, I still don’t know, after weeks of use.
Like any other smart home brand, Ecobee’s paid subscription plans are worth considering. Ecobee offers two paid tiers, Standard and Complete. Without a paid plan, Premium users miss out on most of the security features Ecobee has built into this thermostat, including professional monitoring, an automatic siren when motion is detected while the thermostat is on, a delayed entry and exit after activation, and even the ability to have your home powered by Premium at all. You also miss out on Ecobee’s listening feature for smoke alarms without a paid plan, but you still get freeze detection.
However, Ecobee plans are very affordable ($5 for the Standard plan, $10 for the Full plan), so even without any Ecobee devices except the Premium plan, I’d recommend at least signing up for the $5 monthly plan to get smoke alarm detection.
Should you buy it?
Having seen how well the Ecobee devices (Premium, Ecobee video doorbell, and entry and occupancy sensors) work together, I highly recommend adding at least both types of sensors to your purchase. But wait a minute — this is a review of the Premium smart thermostat, not the entire Ecobee system. Is the most expensive Ecobee thermostat worth buying without all the extras, like the doorbell, sensors, and monthly subscription?
Well, if you don’t already have a smart hub—like a Google Nest Hub, Apple HomePod, or Samsung SmartThings Hub—I highly recommend the Ecobee Premium not only for upgrading your thermostat but also for raising the intelligence of your smart home as a whole. Even when operating on its own, the Premium has a powerful thermostat and a nice speaker for ambient music. By responding autonomously to windows that are forgotten open, air filter change reminders, and learning advanced routines, the Premium’s energy awareness is amazing for busy households.
With homes that already have a smart base, this is where my enthusiastic support stops. Only because Premium is a bit overkill in this case. You can get away with a mid-range smart thermostat, including the Ecobee, especially if another smart speaker isn’t a priority for you. However, with advanced learning, eco-friendly climate control, and an optional monthly subscription at a very reasonable price, Premium shows us that overkill isn’t always a bad thing.
Ecobee Premium Smart Thermostat
The Ecobee Premium Smart Thermostat is the best smart thermostat right now. An onboard microphone turns the thermostat into an Alexa accessory, while a built-in speaker expands your smart speaker network, offering instant Spotify streaming. In addition to all the expected thermostat functions like heating and cooling, the Ecobee Premium doubles as an air quality monitor, security hub, and live video feed for the Ecobee doorbell.
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