Ecobee 3 Vs. Ecobee 4 Vs. Nest : Which One Is Best?

Smart thermostats are very much in demand these days as they tend to maintain the required temperature in the rooms. The three most smart thermostat brands present in the market today- Nest, Ecobee, and Honeywell. In this post, we have jotted down a comparison between the two brands are Nest and Ecobee. Ecobee primarily had released two thermostats that were Ecobee 3 and Ecobee Lite. Recently, it has released its latest version Ecobee 4, with added benefits. Nest has released only one thermostat till now.

We tested all three top models: Ecobee 3, 4, and Nest Learning Smart Thermostat for a good one month to prepare a comparative analysis of these three products. Our post would give you a clear idea of which thermostat offers more benefits and fits your home needs.

Our Verdict

If you want to choose between Nest and Ecobee brands, we would suggest you go with Ecobee. Incompatibility, Ecobee is more flexible as it integrates with both Apple HomeKit and Google Home. The nest is not very flexible in integration with smart hubs. It only integrates with Google Home, which is a bit disappointing for Apple device users. Between Ecobee 3 and Ecobee 4, we would suggest that if you already have Ecobee 3 and planning to replace it with 4, then stop. The only advantage that Ecobee 4 has over 3 is that it has built-in Amazon Alexa. You can separately buy any Amazon voice controllers like Amazon Echo, Dot, Tap, or Echo Show and integrate it with your Ecobee 3 thermostats. It would also be a better option for you to place your voice controller anywhere you want. You would not have to shout from a distance to control your thermostat. However, if you do not have a thermostat yet, buying Ecobee 4 directly would be a better option for you as you will get built-in Amazon Alexa in your device and better control options.

Ecobee 3 Vs. Ecobee 4 Vs. Nest: Comparison Chart 

Differences

1. Hardware Color

Nest thermostats are available in several colors like stainless steel, copper, black and white. You can choose the color that would go with the design of your house. There are a lot of options in colors that would suit every home decor.

On the other hand, Ecobee comes only in black color, which is disappointing when we compare the color variety we get in Nest.

2. Sensors

Ecobee thermostats both 3 and Ecobee 4 have room sensors that even out the temperature in all the rooms. It maintains a suitable temperature for your home and makes sure that all the rooms are equally cool or warm. Ecobee thermostat can attach to 32 sensors.

The Nest thermostat does not have a room sensor feature. But you can use the Nest Protect Smoke Detector in place of that. It measures the temperature of every room. You can use it as both a smoke detector and a room sensor.

3. Compatibility

If we talk about the compatibility of both brands, Ecobee is a clear winner. It supports many smart hubs and voice control systems like Amazon Alexa, Samsung SmartThings, Wink, Apple HomeKit, Google Home, and IFTTT.

Nest does not support Apple HomeKIt, which is bad news for Apple device users. It is only compatible with Amazon Alexa, Wink, Google Home, IFTTT, and Wink.

4. Warranty

Both Ecobee 3 and 4 offer 3 years warranty period, which is quite impressive. But the Nest thermostat only offers a 2 years warranty, which is quite less as compared to Ecobee.

5. Environment Learning

One feature where Nest comes above Ecobee thermostats is its ability to learn from your habits and modify itself accordingly. Nest learning thermostat can automatically set schedules after determining your daily habits during a course of time.

After it’s aware of your habits, it works accordingly. It learns very fast from your daily activities, like what temperature you like to set in your room when you come back from the office and schedules itself accordingly.

Ecobee 3 and 4 do not have this feature. However, their room sensors help set the suitable temperature in your room and inform you about your daily energy consumption.

6. Built-In Voice Controller System

Ecobee 4 comes with a built-in voice control system that is Amazon Alexa. If you buy this device, you would not have to buy any voice controller separately and spend extra dollars. Ecobee 3 and Nest can be attached to voice controllers like Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant. Still, you will need to buy these separately.

7. Bluetooth Low Energy

Bluetooth Low Energy is a short-range wireless signal. It helps in less battery usage and provides high-speed data. Nest supports this technology, while Ecobee 3 and 4 do not support it.

8. Audio & Voice

Ecobee 4 has a built-in speaker and microphone. It is because it has built-in Amazon Alexa. Therefore, Ecobee 4 thermostat can listen and respond to your commands directly. Ecobee 3 and Nest thermostat do not have a built-in speaker and microphone.

Similarities

1. App Control

All three of them have their respective apps. You can operate Ecobee 3 and 4 through the Ecobee app available on both iOS and Android devices. You can remotely operate Nest through the Nest app, which is also available on iOS and Android devices.

2. Web Access

Both devices offer a web access facility. With web access, you can find out any information about the product.

Features And Technical Specifications Of Ecobee 3

• It has the Ecobee room sensor to detect the room temperature and then adjust the temperature of the room accordingly.
• It has a Smart Sense feature that can determine the temperature outside to adjust the temperature inside.
• It has the follow-me feature that uses sensors to detect your location and switch on the device as soon as you enter the home or before you reach home with this feature.
• It has a humidity feature that can easily find the humidity percentage inside your home and then change its temperature according to the requirement.
• It has a reminder and alert feature that you can use as per your convenience whenever you want your thermostat to remind of making any change to it or give you alerts at specific times.
• You can adjust your home’s temperature with the help of the thermostat manually or remotely via a smartphone. It can also get used to your daily habits by time and adjust its temperature automatically according to that.
• You can also control it through voice assistants like Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.
• Its weight is 1.4 pounds.
• It offers a 3 years warranty.
• Its hardware color is black.
• Ecobee 3 has a distinctive design. It looks different from the common thermostats. The shape of the Ecobee 3 thermostat is in the shape of a shell. The device covered by a black colored square shell that has rounded corners on all four sides. As we have mentioned above, it has a touch screen on its surface that is 3.5 inches with a full-color display.
• The width of the device is around one inch, and it weighs around 1.4 pounds. There are 11 terminal connections for heat pumps, cooling, heating, accessories, and air handlers on a white plate. It is also compatible with 1 or 2 stage HVAC systems.
• The dimension of the model is 4″ * 4″ * 0.9.”

If you are really interested in ecobee 3, you can cheque the direct comparison between ecobee 3 and Nest E too.

Features And Technical Specifications Of Ecobee 4

• It has built-in Amazon Alexa
• It integrates with both Apple HomeKIt and Google Home
• It has Ecobee 4 room sensors that can detect the temperature of the room with the help of sensors and then adjust the room temperature accordingly
• It can be controlled manually, remotely (through the app via your smartphone), or through the Amazon Alexa voice control system.
• It has the Geo-fencing feature that can detect your location.
• It is very energy-efficient. As compared to other smart thermostats, it can save up to 23 percent of your electricity cost per year.
• It is effortless to install
• It weighs around 1 pound
• It offers 3 years warranty
• Its hardware color is black
• Ecobee 4 has a better design than Ecobee 3. It has a lot in common with Ecobee 3 but is sleeker and more stylish to look at. There is a blue line on the top of the device that is the connection portal to Alexa. It gives the device a more stylish and classy look. It determines the weather outside with sensors’ help and not through the predictive algorithm as Nest does. Its touchscreen responds faster and has soft touch.
• It displays humidity level, mode, settings, updates, current temperature, and alerts. It also has motion/person sensors that can find out when you are around it. It can also determine cold and hot spots in the room.
• The dimensions of the model are 4″ * 1″ * 4.”

Features And Technical Specifications Of Nest

• It has the Farsight feature that uses a motion sensor to detect your presence and switch on automatically. This feature saves energy. It increases your comfort level at home.
• It has an auto-schedule feature that automatically gets used to your activities and switch on/off at different intervals depending on when you leave your home or come back. It also gets to know the temperature that you like and adjust its temperature according to your preference.
• It has a check feature that is unique only in the Nest thermostat. With this feature, you can easily keep a check on your thermostat device via your smartphone and keep track of the energy consumption.
• It has a home away/assist feature that switches off the thermostat when there is no one at home. It detects whether anyone is home or not with the help of sensors and then switches off automatically. It saves a lot of energy.
• Whenever you set a temperature that saves energy, you get a green leaf display on the screen below the temperature information. The green leaf tells that you are saving power from the usage.
• It is compatible with both iOS and Android devices.
• It weighs around 0.53 pounds.
• It offers 2 years warranty.
• Its hardware is available in various colors, such as as- stainless steel, black, white, and copper.
• Nest thermostat outsmarts both Ecobee 3 and 4 in design. It is one of the most attractive and well-built thermostats. It has excellent quality. The thermostat is cylindrical and made of aluminum with a razor-sharp color display.
• Its surface has a very smooth finish. Its aluminum chassis rotates for manual temperature adjustment and menu navigation. It uses a clicker motion to show all the above options, which makes its surface look better.
• It has a simple design with simple operations that are very easy to use. It has a ring with which you can check out the menu and the options to operate the device. It also contains an outer metallic ring, which is the main operator interface. It is to change the temperature or perform any other function on the device.
• The dimensions of the model are 1.2″ * 3.3″ * 3.3″

FAQ’s

Bottom Line

All three thermostats have their own specialties. You should do proper research before considering buying any one among these three. It is very important to make a list of the features you want in your smart thermostat for a satisfying experience. Thermostats are very important today for a lot of reasons and out of them the most crucial is energy-saving. A thermostat can save a lot of energy and cut down your electricity bills to half. We hope that we proved to be helpful to you in deciding the best thermostat out of these three for your home.