Honeywell Lyric thermostat • Hacker News Board

Re: Honeywell Lyric thermostat

#21

Post by objclxt » Tue, Jun 10, 2014, 4:00 PM UTC

sutterbomb wrote: post #11

outside1234 wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

90% of thermostats are installed that way. Its really an enterprise business.

Assuming that figure is accurate, it's still missing context. 90% are installed that way right now . They do seem to be betting the vendor install channel will continue to be the dominant channel in the future, and that bet will likely play a large role in the success of the product.

> They do seem to be betting the vendor install channel will continue to be the dominant channel in the future

In many places it will be. Want to buy a Nest in the UK? Guess what, you can't install it yourself: Nest will send a contractor along to install it for you. Many countries highly regulate heating system installation, for good reasons. Even if you're in a jurisdiction where this isn't a problem, the majority of thermostats get replaced along with other HVAC work (new boiler, new pipework, etc), which is going to be done by a qualified contractor.

Re: Honeywell Lyric thermostat

#22

Post by danudey » Tue, Jun 10, 2014, 4:02 PM UTC

bratsche wrote: post #16

joekrill wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apparently they will be $279: http://time.com/2852103/honeywell-nest-thermostats/

But the front page says average yearly savings of $7. Yikes.

Mine says $214/yr in Vancouver, BC.

Re: Honeywell Lyric thermostat

#23

Post by danudey » Tue, Jun 10, 2014, 4:05 PM UTC

Bud wrote: post #17

What, did Honeywell hire the vaunted Hardware Copying division of Samsung to make this? Couldn't look more like a Nest rip-off if you set out from the start trying to make a Nest rip-off. (Which they likely did.)

In fairness, both the Nest and the Lyric look (and work!) like a digital version of Honeywell's 1950's-era thermostat: http://lyric.honeywell.com/Images/thermostats_slides/1950_th...

Re: Honeywell Lyric thermostat

#24

Post by untothebreach » Tue, Jun 10, 2014, 4:07 PM UTC

dmethvin wrote: post #13

untothebreach wrote: post #2

One reason I haven't started adding 'Smart Devices' to my home is that I am not confident that traditional device manufacturers are thinking about security like they should. Case in point, the Belkin WeMo vulnerability[1]. Does the convenience of adding these devices to your home make up for the fact that every one you add is a potential attack vector? 1: http://hackaday.com/2013/01/31/turning-the-belkin-wemo-into-..…

I agree on security, but as a more practical point the market disrupters like Nest aren't thinking about reliability or the risks of DIY installation. I have to think Honeywell weighs that differently since they're not targeting the DIY crowd, at least initially. For example, there were many incidents in January [1] where houses with Nest thermostats malfunctioned in the middle of a serious cold snap. One reason was…

Yea, I live in Michigan so I am definitely glad I did not have to deal with a faulty thermostat on top of everything else the winter threw at us :).

Re: Honeywell Lyric thermostat

#25

Post by kstrauser » Tue, Jun 10, 2014, 4:07 PM UTC

They sued Nest for allegedly violating patents that Honeywell wasn't using (because they could've owned the Nest market if they'd moved first): http://honeywell.com/News/Pages/Honeywell-Files-Lawsuit-Alle...

No thanks. I don't want to reward that behavior.

Re: Honeywell Lyric thermostat

#26

Post by danudey » Tue, Jun 10, 2014, 4:08 PM UTC

chaostheory wrote: post #14

untothebreach wrote: post #2

One reason I haven't started adding 'Smart Devices' to my home is that I am not confident that traditional device manufacturers are thinking about security like they should. Case in point, the Belkin WeMo vulnerability[1]. Does the convenience of adding these devices to your home make up for the fact that every one you add is a potential attack vector? 1: http://hackaday.com/2013/01/31/turning-the-belkin-wemo-into-..…

On an interesting note, during the last CES Belkin announced that Wemo is going to integrate with appliances such as slow cookers and humidifiers. This is a disaster waiting to happen.

Welcome to Watch Dogs, where everything is online, even your grenades, whether it makes sense or not.

Re: Honeywell Lyric thermostat

#27

Post by untothebreach » Tue, Jun 10, 2014, 4:08 PM UTC

chaostheory wrote: post #14

untothebreach wrote: post #2

One reason I haven't started adding 'Smart Devices' to my home is that I am not confident that traditional device manufacturers are thinking about security like they should. Case in point, the Belkin WeMo vulnerability[1]. Does the convenience of adding these devices to your home make up for the fact that every one you add is a potential attack vector? 1: http://hackaday.com/2013/01/31/turning-the-belkin-wemo-into-..…

On an interesting note, during the last CES Belkin announced that Wemo is going to integrate with appliances such as slow cookers and humidifiers. This is a disaster waiting to happen.

In all fairness to Belkin, they did correct their mistake.

But still, Belkin is a company that has sold technology products for a while now, and even they couldn't get it right.

Re: Honeywell Lyric thermostat

#28

Post by sscalia » Tue, Jun 10, 2014, 4:12 PM UTC

I won't buy a NEST after the Google acquisition; nice to see other players entering this space.

Laughable how long it took them -- Honeywell should have completely owned this market.

Next up for disruption is home security.

Re: Honeywell Lyric thermostat

#29

Post by hnnewguy » Tue, Jun 10, 2014, 4:19 PM UTC

sscalia wrote: post #28

I won't buy a NEST after the Google acquisition; nice to see other players entering this space. Laughable how long it took them -- Honeywell should have completely owned this market. Next up for disruption is home security.

>Honeywell should have completely owned this market.

True, with respect to "smart" thermostats. But Honeywell already owns the thermostat market, and it's much larger than the "smart" thermostat market.

Re: Honeywell Lyric thermostat

#30

Post by mmccaff » Tue, Jun 10, 2014, 4:30 PM UTC

brucehart wrote: post #9

It looks like a poor man's version of a Nest except it costs $50 more and has to be purchased through a contractor. The distinguishing feature that they are touting (the geo-fencing capability) is not something I would even want. I don't want an app on my phone sending constant updates to Honeywell on exactly where I am located. This seems like an established company trying to play catch-up to an unanticipated change…

Regarding that last sentence, yes. It's a pretty stark contrast, even, to look at the design of Lyric's website in comparison to the rest of Honeywell's site. I guess there is no harm in trying to disrupt the disrupter, but I don't think that this is going to work for them.

Maybe they could have some success against Nest by playing off of some people's privacy concerns around Google.