AutomatedOutlet said:
Yes, I expect to see them in about a month or so. These are being made by RCS and will hook up like the current TXB16 thermostats. Pricing will be a little higher (but not too much) due to the cost of the more expensive computer interface module - I'll keep you posted.
Actually the TXB16 is the system control unit that connects on the HVAC equipment side of the thermostat wire. The thermostats will likely be the same/similar to the TS16.
In an RCS system, the thermostat communicates to the control unit over the existing HVAC wire (which makes them excellent retrofit options). The HA controller then communicates with the control unit. The control unit is typically serial or RS-485, and communicating to that via UPB instead seems to me a dubious benefit.
Can they include support for the messaging capability of the TR40? (See the TR40 documentation on
this page). I don't think UPB has the bandwidth for that.
Given that, I would think that this is useful only if you:
- have invested in UPB but do not want to use an HA controller, or
- have your HVAC equipment in a place in which it is very difficult to run wire to your HA controller.
Otherwise you're spending more and getting less capability. Note that this is still more capability than the Z-Wave thermostat because RCS control units can handle multiple thermostats, dampers and zone control, etc. But I wasn't exactly wowed by that announcement either.
