Thermostats have gotten seriously smart in the last decade. In addition to their traditional role of sensing temperature and powering the HVAC system on or off, units from Nest, ecobee, Honeywell, and others allow for more convenient scheduling and programming as well. While a smart thermostat supports these functions with remote web and mobile-based access and control, the new generation of “learning” thermostats can also remember the pattern of changes users make to the settings and then adjust the unit to automate and mimic those changes.
While they’re a great improvement over traditional thermostats, smart thermostats still cannot affect air distribution across a building to adjust for hot or cold spots, leaving a lot to be desired in terms of making the home a comfortable place.