Budget thermostat from Momentum goes for style over smarts
There’s (another) new smart thermostat on the block, but this time it’s under $100. California-based Momentum, manufacturers of inexpensive smart home cameras, has added the Meri Wi-Fi Thermostat to its product line-up – available now at Walmart for $99.
Unsurprisingly at this price point, the Meri lacks any serious smarts – no learning, geofencing, or deep smart home integrations here. But thanks to built-in Wi-Fi you can program your schedule through an app or use the on-device touchscreen controls. Eco and Away modes, vacation scheduling, and a keypad lock are all useful features (standard on most Wi-Fi thermostats) to help manage your energy use.
Read this: How to build a cheap smart home
Notable features include a built-in humidity sensor, which the company says helps inform a room temperature history accessible in the app, plus an ability to set a schedule according to your utility company’s peak pricing.
Round with a white plastic exterior and a color touchscreen LCD display (320×480 resolution), at first look it has a more stylish design than most Wi-Fi thermostats near this price range (think Emerson’s Sensi or Honeywell’s Wi-Fi range).
It clearly takes inspiration from the granddaddy in this category – the Nest – although the screen is far more cluttered, showing set and current temp, time, humidity and five other icons – but it is about an inch and a half larger than Nest.
Compatible with most heating, cooling and heat pump systems, Meri does need a C-wire and only works on 2.4GHz networks. If you’re looking for a simple, Wi-Fi-controlled thermostat with a bit more design chops than the standard white rectangle, this might be worth a look. It’s available now at Walmart.
