May 182013
Trane TZTSK400AB32MANX N N SL Home Energy Kit with Nexia Home Intelligence, White (Z-Wave)
- Actively manage heating and cooling energy use within your home and reduce energy consumption up to 10-15-Percent
- Receive text or email alerts when temperatures at your home go out of range
- Reduce energy use and save money by turning lights and small appliances off
- Enhance your system by adding other Nexia accessories like a thermostat
- This Z-Wave enabled product communicates wirelessly to other Z-Wave products
Schlage LiNK is now Nexia Home Intelligence, a smart, Internet based system that allows you to control your home from anywhere with most web-connected computers, tablets or smart phones. Wirelessly connect many compatible Z-Wave products through the Bridge to create a Nexia system that fits your life and family. We make it simple to get started managing your home’s comfort and efficiency from anywhere with the Trane Home Energy Kit and Nexia Home Intelligence. Easily adjust your home temperature
List Price: $ 458.00
Price: $ 229.00
Comparing Nexia with Vera (Lite), Nest and Lowes Iris,
This Trane / Schalge Nexia home energy kit contains what any household needs for remote access of their home climate control. In addition to this, it also opens things up for more advanced home control options, including security, locks and even lighting and appliances.
Many other reviewers have covered the basics here – but I’ll sum up my own personal experience;
Installation of the gateway (the Nexia unit that bridges the Internet to your Z-Wave enabled devices) was easy – the Trane TZTSK400AB32MANX Thermostat was a little trickier as it requires a 24V wire, which is not present in many home setups. You may need an expert to pull the wire, or even an external power supply to provide power.
The rest of the system is childsplay – The Nexia system is in my mind like Apple – it isn’t the cheapest, but it JUST WORKS. But like with Apple, there are limitations to what you can do with the system, and that is where we’ll discuss some of the competition:
Nexia VS Vera Lite.
The Vera system from MiCasaVerde is designed for people who like to tinker – not the kind of person who invests in Nexia expecting a fully operational system that doesn’t require too much hassle. Very is a pain in the backside to master. Even basic things like adding a handheld remote can take days to master. Then again, with Vera, you at least have the option to add things like that – Nexia limits the products you can add to it, and only lets you use approved Nexia add-ons. Even though the whole system is based off the open Z-Wave system.
Nexia vs Nest
Nest is pretty much the current market leader in home climate control with remote access – a slick looking unit, nice remote access with mobile apps and smart climate and energy saving options – the Nest is popular for a reason – but the price is quite crazy. You can get an entire Nexia setup with some remote sensors or switches for less than a Nest. That said, Nest doesn’t require the 24V wire, and it doesn’t have a subscription.
Nexia vs Lowes Iris
Even though both systems are quite similar, Nexia wins again – Iris is a hybrid of Zigbee and Z-Wave, and like Nexia, it doesn’t allow for adding non-Iris accessories. One of the biggest drawbacks is the lack of a handheld remote (Nexia is the same). If you add a lamp to Iris, there is no way to easily turn it on or off without grabbing your phone and logging in. Iris add-on items are cheaper, but the quality is much, much lower. For example; the Iris motion detector is horrid – very narrow sensor and poor mounting options. The Schalge Nexia motion sensor is exceptionally good.
Conclusion:
Nexia and this Trane thermostat are excellent if you just want good remote management AND the option to add locks and other modules. Nest is pricey and thermostat only, lowes Iris is too low quality.
The Schlage Nexia enabled locks are amazing – high quality keypad locks WITH remote management and Z-Wave built in. Just keep in mind that once you start with a system like this, before you know it you’ll be adding more and more parts!
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|Honey, where’s the remote?,
Z-Wave-compatible thermostats have really come down in price over the past year or so, and because I have a bunch of Z-Wave stuff, it was natural to want to add a thermostat. I own a Mi Casa Verde VeraLite Z-Wave controller, but I thought that perhaps the Nexia controller might work a little better. It *does* work better, but I’m not sure the difference in performance is worth the monthly subscription charge.
However, I couldn’t evaluate the thermostat itself, because, as others have mentioned, it requires a common 24V wire. The house I rent has a couple of extra wires behind the thermostat panel, but I could not track them reliably to the furnace. I found the same-color wires there, but there were attached to the blower, so I wasn’t certain that I’d found the correct wires. Of course, if I were the owner of this fine house (/humor), I’d simply run another wire, but that’s not an option. The current automated thermostat has a battery backup, as do some of the other Z-Wave-compatible thermostats. I can’t ding the product for its use of the 24V wire, and I can’t criticize its performance, but I can grouse about its lack of a battery backup.
But I decided that I wanted to see how well the Nexia controller works. The Nexia system is very similar to Mi Casa Verde’s, in that the controller connects to your router, and you access an external website to help you set up the system (behind your firewall), and you can access your system later by visiting this external site. The module setup is very similar to that of the Mi Casa Verde VeraLite; if you install a 9-volt battery into it (note the irony here), you can carry it around to wherever you’ve installed Z-Wave modules, and with a double-click of a module’s button, it gets added to your Z-Wave network. Both systems will send you e-mails and/or text messages to alert you to activity.
The Nexia web interface is more attractive than Mi Casa Verde’s, imo, but it still has quirks: You set up scenes in one tab and schedules in another, so you have to flip back and forth. I found the interface to be a little sluggish, too, compared to the Mi Casa Verde’s. Furthermore, I like the fact that you can add third-party applications to Mi Casa Verde’s system–for example, I added a free Wake on LAN app to mine, and now, not only are all the lights on when I arrive home, my computer’s been fired up, too. On the other hand, the Nexia system just seems more reliable to me. I can’t really back that up well; it’s just that my Mi Casa Verde system has had occasional issues, especially when trying to add new modules or remote controls, and the Nexia just seem to cause less fuss. I had to write down my own involved process for setting up the system and adding components, because I knew I’d forget it the next time I’d have to do it. But at least you *can* add remote controls; as another reviewer noted, you can’t get a Nexia-approved remote. Head scratcher there.
The light module that came with this kit is a little different than your typical Z-Wave module, too. It has two plugs–one that works via Z-Wave, and another that’s just a plain. The module is large, and horizontally oriented; if you plug it into the bottom plug in a two-plug plate, you won’t be able to plug anything into the top standard plug. Solution: plug it into the top plug. The module is a little noisy, too; it makes an audible clack when turning on, and a slightly quieter clack when turning off.
About the cost: This kit costs about $50 more than the Mi Casa Verde VeraLite, and the latter lacks the thermostat and the light module. Add the cost of those two components a la carte to the VeraLite, and its price would nearly double. You could pay for the Nexia subscription for a year and a half before you break even. But then you’ll be on the hook for $99 a year, every year. Don’t get me wrong–that is a perfectly reasonable price, to me, and I’d be willing to pay it, but for the zero cost of the Mi Casa Verde device, even with its flaws.
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|Excellent for home monitoring & controlling, but at a price,
The Trane TZTSK400AB32MANX Kit is a home computer network’s component (sub-network) that comprises 3 products that can be bought separately. They are: (1) the TZEMT400BB3NX Thermostat with the Nexia Home Intelligence (“NHI”) software based home monitoring & control system connected to the Internet, (2) the Schlage NHI Bridge (sub-network gateway) connecting the home NHI devices together under NHI & out, and (3) the Schlage NHI RP100 module/repeater (range extended) dimming and turning up/off plugged in lamps and appliances up to 600 watts (W); all manufactured by Ingersoll Rand, Co.
Every bunch of lamps/appliances requires a separate module RP100 or RP200 (up to 300 W) for additional $40+ each. Remote access to NHI costs $9 a month. The NHI sub-network communicates wireless via the Z-Wave wireless technology, which allows to connect Z-Wave products of other manufacturers to NHI. The Thermostat is compatible with some and not with other heating/cooling systems to be verified, e.g. via provided phone number. It requires 24-volt (V) alternating current (AC), e.g. from HVAC/R transformer via (green) common (C) wire (search Internet for Thermostatic Wiring Principles), but the installation is straight forward and typical.
The setup of NHI is easy and quick: installing the thermostat & module (other products), creating an account online, selecting devices (products) online to be set up, enrolling them by pointing the bridge (9-V battery required), confirming them online, downloading an appropriate mobile application (app). Then it works like a charm, though at a price.
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