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I run a coworking space in Reno and as soon as I saw these, I knew that I wanted to have them installed in the space so that we can make better use of heating/c

I run a coworking space in Reno and as soon as I saw these, I knew that I wanted to have them installed in the space so that we can make better use of heating/cooling with people coming/going, etc. As luck may have it, one of our members works on wireless thermostats (http://www.radiothermostat.com/ http://www.radiothermostat.com/). While they aren't as sexy looking as the Nest, they have a full REST API so you can build an app around it or just use curl. It gives us much more control but does require we roll our own app.

lutorm 15y ago
Sounds fun. I built a little Arduino box that sits on our steam boiler and uses a bunch of Dallas 1-wire probes to monitor when it's running (as well as inside and outside temps). I thought about connecting the thermostat input to it, too, but the problem is that while it's transmitting data, it's not that easy to get user input uplinked to it.
- joshu 15y ago
  did you document any of this?
  - lutorm 15y ago
    Not really (but the code is on bitbucket: https://bitbucket.org/lutorm/arduino https://bitbucket.org/lutorm/arduino). I've been meaning to post some pictures and stuff, but I haven't gotten around to it yet.
- nabilt 15y ago
  Cool. You should post your project. I also made a diy web enabled thermostat + a bunch of other home energy gadgets. http://www.nabiltewolde.com/2011/11/home-energy-prototypes.html http://www.nabiltewolde.com/2011/11/home-energy-prototypes.h... I think these types of devices need to have a more open approach to the data they collect. Another project that is trying to do this is http://openenergymonitor.org/emon/ http://openenergymonitor.org/emon/
stuff4ben 15y ago
I think the sexiness of the Nest is one aspect, but the one that you're overlooking is its learning abilities. I believe one of the founders worked with Apple on the iPhone/iPod and he seems to be bringing that design/engineering to Nest as well. The hardware is important yes, but the software is what makes it a killer product.

lutorm 15y ago

Sounds fun. I built a little Arduino box that sits on our steam boiler and uses a bunch of Dallas 1-wire probes to monitor when it's running (as well as inside and outside temps). I thought about connecting the thermostat input to it, too, but the problem is that while it's transmitting data, it's not that easy to get user input uplinked to it.

joshu 15y ago
did you document any of this?
- lutorm 15y ago
  Not really (but the code is on bitbucket: https://bitbucket.org/lutorm/arduino https://bitbucket.org/lutorm/arduino). I've been meaning to post some pictures and stuff, but I haven't gotten around to it yet.
nabilt 15y ago
Cool. You should post your project. I also made a diy web enabled thermostat + a bunch of other home energy gadgets. http://www.nabiltewolde.com/2011/11/home-energy-prototypes.html http://www.nabiltewolde.com/2011/11/home-energy-prototypes.h... I think these types of devices need to have a more open approach to the data they collect. Another project that is trying to do this is http://openenergymonitor.org/emon/ http://openenergymonitor.org/emon/

stuff4ben 15y ago

I think the sexiness of the Nest is one aspect, but the one that you're overlooking is its learning abilities. I believe one of the founders worked with Apple on the iPhone/iPod and he seems to be bringing that design/engineering to Nest as well. The hardware is important yes, but the software is what makes it a killer product.