Okay, so I’ve been messing around with smart thermostats lately, trying to get my home automation game on point. I’d heard a lot about the Honeywell T9 and T10, so I decided to grab both and see which one came out on top. It wasn’t exactly a scientific experiment, more like a “let’s see what happens” kind of deal.
Getting Started
First, I unboxed both of them. Pretty standard stuff – thermostat, wall plate, some screws, and instructions that I mostly ignored. I’m more of a “figure it out as I go” kind of guy. Wiring them up was next. I’ve done this a few times before, so it wasn’t too bad. I killed the power at the breaker (safety first!), pulled off my old dumb thermostat, and matched up the wires to the new Honeywell base plates. They use those little push-in connectors, which are way easier than the old screw terminals.
Setting Up the App
Once they were both powered up, I downloaded the Honeywell Home app. This is where things got a little interesting. Setting up the T9 was pretty smooth. The app walked me through the Wi-Fi connection and basic settings. The T10, though, gave me a bit of a headache. It took a couple of tries to get it to connect to my Wi-Fi. I’m not sure what the deal was, maybe my router was just being finicky that day.
Playing with Features
After I got them both connected, I started playing around with the features. Both thermostats have those nice touchscreens, which are pretty responsive. I set up some schedules, messed with the temperature settings, and checked out the geofencing feature (which basically adjusts the temperature based on whether you’re home or not).
Here are some of the things I really messed with:
- Room Sensors: Both the T9 and T10 can connect to wireless room sensors. I placed a few of these around my house to get a more accurate temperature reading in different rooms.
- Scheduling: I like to have different temperatures set for different times of the day. I set up a schedule that worked for my usual routine.
- Geofencing:I was trying to use my phone’s location. It is made to adjust the temperature automatically.
My Final Thoughts
Honestly, after using both for a while, I didn’t notice a huge difference in performance. They both did a good job of keeping my house comfortable. If I had to pick one, I’d probably go with the T9, just because the setup was a little easier. The T10 has a few extra features, but nothing that really blew me * all came down to basic function and the slightly easier setup of the T9.