Ecobee Geofencing Available for Android
Ecobee Geofencing has been released for Android. This will require version 3.2.0 available on the Google Play Store now. Ecobee has put together a quick guide to get users started.
Geofencing uses your phone’s GPS location to control your thermostat. When your phone exits an area, it will set your Ecobee Thermostat to your Away setting, thus saving you energy. It will also set your Thermostat to Home when you enter the area.
This is especially nice for users without sensors throughout their house. During the summer months, people might spend more time in their basements to stay cool – I know in the past, my Ecobee has assumed we weren’t home because it didn’t see any motion. We then come upstairs and find out house is way too hot or cold. With Geofencing, my phone will still be in the area, so the thermostat won’t set itself to Away mode.
A very similar feature is available on the Nest Thermostat, but it is dependent on your phone being connected to the same Wi-Fi network as your thermostat. The bonus with Geofencing is that your thermostat will turn on automatically on your way home instead of when you walk in the door.
This new feature is only available for Android today. We have reached out to Ecobee to see if there are any plans to bring this feature to their iOS app.
