I just found out that 3M has partnered with Radio Thermostat to release a Wi-Fi programmable thermostat called the 3M-50 under the Filtrete brand (I was reading a reader's blog post on it here: Sandeen.net 3M wi-fi thermostat).

Currently, the 3M thermostat is selling at Home Depot for $99, which is way cheaper than the Ecobee unit that I have installed at my house ( the Ecobee product is selling for $469 on their website.  Read our review on the Ecobee internet programmable thermostat).

From the product website, you can find nice installation and operation instructions.  However, I don't see anything in the operation instructions on accessing the thermostat over the web?  Seeming to re-iterate this point, is one of the reviews on the Home Depot website:

This thermostat requires special HVAC wiring (needs an extra wire) It is confusing on how to get the WiFi to work. Took over an hour to install and program. There are no instructions in the package to tell you how to connect to the internet. he thermostat manuals that come with the unit do not even guide you to connecting the thermostat online. This makes no sense. When I eventually found a website that I could use, I found the instructions (why not in the package???).

And those same points were reiterated by another reviewer, although they had some good advice:

Ok, so the instructions aren't included in the package. If you're interested in the WiFi or iPhone capability of the thermostat, you're web savvy and shouldn't have any issues finding the directions or videos online, The videos are better than printed instructions because you can actually see what's going on. Take your time, review the videos if you need to, and the install isn't bad at all.

I was just informed that once you install your 3M thermostat, you can activate it at the Radio Thermostat remote web page.  I did find these PDF instructions for setting up the 3M radio thermostat over wi-fi on your home's wireless network. Here are some screen-shots I took from iTunes on the Radio Thermostat iPhone app.  I really like the fact that you can control two thermostats (upstairs and downstairs) from one app:

I'd be very interested to see more information on the web programming capabilities of this thermostat.  The Ecobee unit is fully programmable over the web and I can set the temperature with the Ecobee iPhone app.  I can also see reports on the history of the thermostat (how long the furnace was on, the temps throughout the day, the humidity levels, etc.).  The Ecobee unit also has a pretty neat display touch screen that looks a little nicer than the 3M Radio Thermostat.

But for all of the advantages that I've experienced with Ecobee, if the 3M Radio Thermostat is a little under 1/5 of the Ecobee cost, that could mean all the difference to many thermostat controllers!

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Comments

I have been using a Filtrete 3M50 WIFI thermostat for several weeks and have experienced several WIFI and cloud failures. This product is early in its life cycle and I anticipate that it should get better (reliability and features) as time goes on. The 3ry party program Radio Thermostat for windows from http://www.setyourthermostat.com fills in some of gaps for missing features.
Everyone is talking about the iphone app, does driod have an app also? will my droid be able to work this thermostat?
I just installed one of the 3M branded units last night. Piece of cake, and yes, I had to get the 26V power from the furnace, but that was simple, with a VOM in hand, and I had the extra wire to use. My wife programmed the thing, connected the WiFi and got it up. I registered it later on, when I came home - and now she's got her iTouch connected to it, and my iPhone ap is working as well. GREAT device, for 99 bucks. Solid. I'm buying a second tonight for the lakehouse, and will install that this weekend. That is a true HVAC system vs. my simple 2 wire heater down here in Santa Maria. LIfe is good. These guys get an A++++ for bringing this to us for such a low price point. Hat off to American Engineers!!!
Seems very interesting. Does anybody know where I can buy the 3M-50 with shipping to Europe? HomeDepot doesn't :-(
Yup: https://market.android.com/developer?pub=Radio+Thermostat+Company+of+America
Great thermostat and great Internet, iPad and iPhone user interfaces. The common ('C') wire is not that big of an issue and with the use of the uTube installation videos the installation was a snap. The first thermostat that I installed and configured for WiFi took a bit of time but the second thermostat was a snap. Best product on the market.
If you have a separate thermostat and humidifier control, can these units be used to replace both and control both via Wifi?
For clarification on the "C" wire... this is needed so that the radio doesn't drain the batteries in about 10 minutes (ok that is a BIT of an exaggeration). I installed one of these about 2 days ago and am working through getting direct communication to a development computer at my house on my internal network. So far I can get part of the information OUT, but haven't yet figured out how to properly get new settings IN. There is a lot of information in the Wikis and blogs of some of the early adopters/hackers. If Radio Thermostat doesn't get their API out soon, there will likely be one from the early adopters/development community within the month.
Heating history, humidity levels, outdoor temperature, even solar radiation are tracked and logged by the Radio Thermostat for windows application. The display on the ecobee is superior, but the main reason for having a wifi thermostat, in my opinion, is to avoid standing at the wall to use my programmable thermostat.
You can use eBay, I found this the only why to by from Europe. I bought it and works perfectly, but I need to by the 24 v, AC transformer for the C wire. Good luck

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