Nest Thermostat E: Smart, Subtle, and Occasionally Frustrating

Google’s budget-friendly thermostat aims to keep things simple and save energy, but it’s far from perfect.

Why ditching manual controls makes sense

Tired of wrestling with your old thermostat just to tweak a single degree? The Nest Thermostat E moves the control to your phone, where you can manage schedules, see your energy use history, and get alerts—all in one app. It’s a solid convenience, especially if you’ve got family members with different comfort levels or guests who can’t find the thermostat hiding behind the couch.

The thermostat learns your habits without making you jump through hoops. Change the temperature here or there, and it starts suggesting a schedule. You can accept it or customize each time block—like Wake, Away, or Sleep—to match your routine. If your day isn’t predictable, it rolls with the punches without needing permission.

When you forget to adjust settings: Eco mode

The Nest E tries to save energy by detecting when you leave and switching to an Eco temperature. It uses motion sensors plus your phone’s location to know when no one’s home. When you come back, it switches right back. A little green Leaf pops up when you pick an energy-friendly temperature, but it won’t nag you—just a friendly nudge.

Heads up though: Eco mode isn’t smart enough to handle individual rooms. If your guests crash in a colder bedroom, they’ll be waking up freezing unless you override the system manually.

Design and display: Understated, but barebones

Unlike fancy thermostats with colorful, high-res screens, this one keeps it low key—a frosted white face that quietly lights up when you approach. It blends into light-colored walls fairly well but don’t expect to see the time, weather, or humidity right on the device. You’ll have to check the app or ask your voice assistant for that info.

The numbers on the display aren’t razor-sharp and get hazy if you look from the side, which can be annoying if you snap a quick glance but aren’t standing right in front of it. The included trim plate helps cover old mounting holes, but mismatched paint around the edges can be distracting if you’re picky.

When your Wi-Fi throws you a curveball

This thermostat only talks to 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi, so if your home is set up for 5 GHz or complex network names, you’re in for some setup headaches. You might need to tweak your router or create a special network just for this device. Plus, if you’re running a mesh Wi-Fi system, some nodes can cause the thermostat to lose connection randomly. When that happens, the app stops working, voice commands go dead, and energy reports freeze—even though the thermostat still follows its last downloaded schedule.

Firmware updates can drag on forever with slow connections, sometimes causing multiple retries that turn what should be a quick installation into a frustrating wait.

When low batteries strike: C-wire woes

The Nest E draws power from two AAA batteries and tries to sneak power from your HVAC wiring if possible. But if your system lacks a dedicated common wire (C-wire), the thermostat starts pulling power the hard way, which causes batteries to drain fast and triggers weird behavior—like your furnace or AC kicking on randomly just to keep this thing alive.

Fixing this means running a new C-wire, adding a special power adapter, or calling in a pro. That can turn a weekend upgrade into a bigger job than expected. When the batteries finally die, the thermostat resets to factory defaults, wiping your custom schedule. So plan on spending time reprogramming after a power hiccup.

Voice control: Alexa and Google sometimes don’t play nice

Voice control sounds great in theory—“Alexa, set the thermostat to 72,” or “Hey Google, raise the heat by 3 degrees.” But in practice, you have to nail the phrasing or it won’t work. Asking for things like “make it cozy” or “a little warmer” often gets you nowhere. Alexa requires enabling and linking the Nest skill, which can glitch and sometimes needs uninstalling and reinstalling just to fix commands.

Google Assistant handles things slightly better but still struggles with follow-ups or status checks. If you depend mainly on voice, expect some grunt work just to keep it going.

Temperature swings and missing holds

Expect about a two-degree swing around your set temperature. That might be fine for many, but if you’re a light sleeper or want steady temps, it can feel inconsistent. Also, the Nest E lacks a real “hold” feature. If you make a manual temperature change, the thermostat’ll revert to the scheduled setting at the next timed slot, so you’re stuck resetting it frequently.

This on/off cycling can drive up wear on your heating and cooling gear and may eat into any energy savings you hoped for.

What the E leaves on the cutting room floor

Google trimmed the fat to hit its price point, but that means the Nest E skips some useful features:

• No humidity sensor. If controlling humidity matters to you, you’ll need a separate gadget.
• No air quality monitoring—for carbon monoxide or airborne particulates, you’re out of luck.
• No “Farsight” display that lights up the time or weather when idle.
• Only supports one optional remote temperature sensor, so multi-room setups are limited.
• No Zigbee or Z-Wave radios means it won’t act as a smart home hub.
• Eco mode depends completely on your phone’s battery and GPS; if your phone dies or GPS falters, the thermostat might fail to enter energy-saving modes.

If these absences bug you, better look for a fancier model.

Is it worth it? The money side of things

Tests show Nest thermostats can trim 10–12% off heating bills and 15% on cooling, potentially saving over a hundred bucks annually in an average home. But that assumes moderate weather, steady Eco mode use, and a rock-solid Wi-Fi setup.

Already efficient houses or low-energy users will see less impact. Factor in the hassle of chasing dead batteries, redoing schedules, or even running new wires, and your payback time might get stretched.

Rebates can soften the upfront hit, but the forms and waiting periods aren’t exactly fun.

Who this actually works for

If you want a simple, low-profile thermostat with basic scheduling and away modes, and your Wi-Fi hums along solidly on 2.4 GHz, the Nest E fits. It’s not for you if your HVAC system lacks a C-wire and you don’t want to tangle with wiring, or if you expect tight temperature control with minimal swings and an always-on display. Also, if you need advanced features like air-quality monitoring or smart home hub functions, look elsewhere.

The Nest Thermostat E slides quietly into most homes, but don’t mistake its minimalism for no-strings convenience. It looks good and feels straightforward on the surface, but can demand more attention with tricky wiring and iffy Wi-Fi. For low-key smart control and easy scheduling, it works. For precision, reliability, and more features, your cash would be better spent on something else.