Sensi Smart Thermostat, Wi-Fi, UP500W Review

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The Sensi Smart Thermostat is a product of Emerson, a well-established name in thermostats with more than 75 years’ experience in the business.  The company can back its claim that its products work with a wide range of heating and cooling systems, as well as for its products’ reliability and durability.

Many of the Emerson smart thermostats are also designed with most, if not all, of the desirable features in Wi-Fi enabled thermostats, such as easy scheduling and remote control, but at half the price of its competitors.

This is the case with the Sensi Smart Thermostat with Wi-Fi capacity that we will review in the following section. With its connectivity to Amazon Echo, users can give commands to adjust the settings on the thermostat, such as “Alexa, set the living room temperature to 64 degrees” and it gets done, albeit within range of the unit.

Features of the Sensi Smart Thermostat, Wi-Fi, UP500W

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This Sensi thermostat has several sensible and useful features that attract homeowners and business owners to it. Indeed, you can use it for residential and commercial purposes, although there will likely be differences in your settings, such as temperature and time.

Simple, user-friendly design

With many smart thermostats boasting of sophisticated designs, the simplicity of the Sensi’s design makes it a stand out, in a good way. When mounted on the wall, it looks so slim with the box protruding just a little more than an inch. The white plastic body looks and feels durable, as well as easy to clean when the inevitable finger smudges are seen.

Relatively easy installation

Be sure to register your Sensi thermostat using the app when setting it up in your home. You will be asked for the access code, which is found on the thermostat’s back and on the sheet of paper included in the box.  You should see your thermostat displayed on the app when you have completed the registration process.

With the setup complete, the app will display the current temperature and mode.  You can then make the necessary adjustments on the hamburger menu located in the upper left corner of the app. You will likely find that the app is as easy and straightforward as they come, although the options are limited, such as weekly schedule to accommodate your family’s comings and goings in your home.

Aside from the illustrated step-by-step instructions, you can also rely on the dedicated support team for advice on setup, installation and troubleshooting.

Compatible with heating and cooling systems without a C-wire

While C-wires are considered essential by many thermostat users, these can also complicate the installation process. This Sensi thermostat, fortunately, doesn’t need C-wires, so it’s easier and faster to install. Without a C-wire, energy experts also assert that the thermostat provides lower power consumption over the long-term period.

We suggest checking the manual to ensure that it works well (i.e., compatible) with your existing heating and cooling systems although it works in most combined systems without a C-wire. In general, it will work with existing gas, oil, radiant heat, and heat pump systems of up to 2 stages of cooling and 4 stages of heating, as well as systems equipped with remote sensors.

There will be cases when C-wires are a must, but you should consult with the dedicated support team and with a certified electrician for their installation. Your safety, especially where electrical connections are concerned, should always be a primary concern.

Easy flexible scheduling

The beauty of this thermostat lies in its scheduling possibilities, a convenient feature when you want to arrive at a cool house in summer and a warm house in winter. First, you can program your desired temperatures and times, if you have a predictable schedule of your comings and goings. Second, you can also override the previous programming, in case your schedule becomes more varied and less predictable.

From the app, you can control the settings, such as changing the temperature at any time of the day, setting different schedules for each day, and overriding previous settings. Unlike the Nest Learning Thermostat, the Senis thermostat doesn’t attempt to “learn” your preferences and schedule, but this isn’t such a bad thing.

The thermostat also has a geofencing feature, which means it uses your smartphone’s location for determining whether you’re at home or away. This is a feature that contributes to better energy savings.

Plenty of integration possibilities

The Sensi smart thermostat has Amazon Echo integration and Wink Home Hub integration, both of which makes it easier and faster to adjust the settings with voice and touch commands.

All of these features are obviously designed to save you more money on your energy bills while also providing comfortable temperatures in your home.

Pros

  • Easy to install without a C-wire in most cases
  • User-friendly interface and design
  • Integration for centralized control of smart appliances
  • Check and adjust settings from app
  • Dedicated support team
  • Management of multiple Sensi thermostats using a single app
  • Recovery feature means programs can be remembered, even with power loss

Cons

  • No energy usage “learning”

Final Verdict

This is a no-nonsense thermostat that fits in well in most modern homes, even for homeowners who have little patience or inclination for smart appliances.  We suggest buying Sensi Smart Thermostat if you’re looking for a practical smart thermostat with a more affordable price than its competitors.

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