Tado

Eight 'Tado' stories November 2013 - September 2015

Tado, Europe’s Nest competitor, adds multi-room temperature control and IFTTT support

Ben Lovejoy Sep 3 2015 - 6:38 am PT

Tado, Europe’s main Nest competitor in the smart thermostat field, has announced two new enhancements to its system. First, multi-room temperature control, allowing different temperatures to be set in different rooms. Second, support for IFTTT recipes to automatically trigger other actions based on Tado detecting people arriving or leaving the home.

For homes that already have different heating devices in different rooms, such as underfloor heating, adding a second thermostat is all you need for the multi-room control. Most of us, though, will need a new smart radiator valve that won’t be available until next fall.

IFTTT support – first promised back in March – has been added from today. This can do things like automatically switch on your alarm when the last person leaves your home, and turn on lights when someone returns. The company has also confirmed that it plans to add HomeKit support further down the line, enabling Siri control and more.

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If you’re considering Tado, you may want to check out my review.

Tado smart thermostat app gets smarter with multiple temperatures in the day

Ben Lovejoy Apr 9 2015 - 5:36 am PT

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The app for the Tado smart thermostat, which I reviewed back in 2013, just got a little smarter.

You like to have it cozy and warm when you enjoy your evening on the sofa but a cooler temperature is preferable during the day? No problem, with the new multi-temperature feature tado° now lets you create different temperatures for different times of the day. Just select the times and the temperatures and label them accordingly.

Perfect for me, as my home office is upstairs and 2C warmer than the living-room downstairs, so now I can set it for 19C during working hours (which means 21C in the office), and 21C in the evenings. It still automatically turns down the temperature when everyone is out, of course.

Tado smart thermostat gets IFTTT channel and API, can now control other devices

Ben Lovejoy Mar 16 2015 - 7:30 am PT

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Tado, the smart thermostat system I reviewed back in 2013, now has an IFTTT channel and an API, allowing it to control other home automation devices.

Tado° users will soon be able to connect their tado° Smart Thermostat to other appliances via IFTTT. This will enable the use of the tado° geolocation feature for purposes other than smart heating or cooling. In the very near future, when a tado° user leaves the house, not only will the heating automatically go to savings mode, but simultaneously the lights switch off, the alarm system activates, the garage door locks and landline calls reroute to their mobile.

The company says that the API will allow developers to integrate Tado into other home automation apps. The company is also working on HomeKit support.

IFTTT introduced three simplified apps last month to make the service more accessible to non-technical users, while rebranding its full-fat app as IF.

Holiday gift guide: Smart home products – get a jump on HomeKit for 2015

Ben Lovejoy Nov 26 2014 - 4:00 pm PT

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holiday gift guide smart home products 2014

I wondered earlier this year whether Apple’s HomeKit system would bring home automation to the masses. The good news is that you don’t need to wait for HomeKit to start bringing smart home technology to your family and friends – and we’ve put together a gift guide covering some of the main products that might bring a smile to their faces during the holidays.

With the right gadgets, they will be able to control lighting, heating, cooking, sound systems … even have their kettle switch on when they walk up to their front door, which will automatically unlock as they approach. Best of all, you can get them in on the smart home action from just $30 …

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Expect first HomeKit-compatible devices soon as certified chips ship to manufacturers

Ben Lovejoy Nov 4 2014 - 4:07 am PT

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The first HomeKit-compatible devices are likely now in production as two chipmakers confirmed to Forbes that they have begun shipping Apple-certified Bluetooth and Wifi chips to device manufacturers.

One part of the certification process for device makers is that they have to buy their Bluetooth and Wifi chips from Apple-approved chipmakers–Texas Instruments, Marvell and Broadcom.

These chipmakers have begun shipping their chips loaded with HomeKit firmware to device manufacturers, Broadcom and Texas Instruments have confirmed.

Apple first announced HomeKit at its developer conference back in June. The idea behind it is to integrate control of a whole range of smart home devices into iOS, rather than requiring a bunch of different manufacturer apps to be used …
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Tado confirms smart air-conditioning controller funded, aiming now for Apple HomeKit support

Ben Lovejoy Jun 5 2014 - 4:27 am PT

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Tado, the location-aware alternative to the Nest smart thermostat, has confirmed that it has achieved its Kickstarter goal to launch a device to control existing air-conditioners, turning them into smart cooling systems.

We talked about the GE-backed Quirky Aros in March which can now be purchased at Amazon.

Tado is now aiming to raise an additional $50k to allow Tado Cooling to integrate with Apple’s HomeKit, enabling Siri control.

If HomeKit is integrated, our customers will be able to use the tado° app together with some key iOS features such as Siri or TouchID.

Imagine setting your tado° to sleep mode or adjusting the desired temperature with a simple voice command.

Imagine giving your AC a little boost just by placing your finger on the home button.

Imagine combined scenarios with other connected devices …

Tado says that its system will be compatible with 82 percent of existing air-conditioning units, with a control unit working in the same way as its smart thermostat: using an app to track the location of those in the household, automatically turning off air-conditioners when the last person leaves the home and pre-cooling the home when it detects that someone is on their way back.

Low-energy Bluetooth is also used to track the position of people within the home, automatically adjusting air-conditioners within different rooms.

Tado Cooling will retail for $149, but Kickstarter backers can pre-order for $99, with units expected to ship in August. The existing product is fully funded, but currently needs an additional $47,000 in the next six days to add HomeKit support.

Other iOS controlled home cooling systems on the market and in the news include Big Ass Fans.

Opinion: Will Apple’s Smart Home concept bring home automation to the masses?

Ben Lovejoy May 27 2014 - 7:36 am PT

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It’s the 21st Century: weren’t we all supposed to be living in automated homes by now? Where we walk in the door after a long day to have our home playing some soothing music, informing us that it’s run us a bath and that dinner will be ready in 45 minutes? Where a robot has done the cleaning, changed the flowers, accepted a parcel that arrived while we were at work and fed the cat?

That dream seems to be a long time coming. I’m a reasonably techy guy who loves the idea of home automation, yet even I only have three examples in my home (which I’ll mention along the way). Most mass-market consumers haven’t even noticed that the products exist, and the few who have tend to view it all as too complicated or fiddly.

If anyone can change that perception, it’s Apple. Which is why the Financial Times report yesterday that Apple is working on a new approach to home automation that may be unveiled at WWDC next week caught my attention …
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Review: Europe’s answer to Nest, Tado the iPhone-controlled intelligent thermostat

Ben Lovejoy Nov 25 2013 - 5:18 am PT

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This review has been updated a year in, with an improved thermostat with built-in display and touch-sensitive controls, and new fuel-saving figures.

Affordable home automation has been a long time coming. Frankly, I’m a bit disappointed that it’s the 21st Century and homes still don’t have Star Trek style swishy doors as standard.

But iPhone-controlled heating and lighting is here today. Nest hasn’t yet made it to the UK, so I decided to try out competitor system Tado, which is available in Europe now.

In the UK, it costs £199 if your system already has a wired thermostat, or £278 if it doesn’t. Alternatively, you can rent Tado for either £4.99 or £7.98/month. Looking at my own energy usage before and after, the payback time is a little under three years.

The concept

The idea behind Tado is three-fold. First, automation. As well as the programmable timer you have in any heating system, it also monitors the locations of everyone in the household via their iPhones (or Android phones). If everyone is out, it turns down the heating even if the timer says it should be on.

How much it turns it down depends on how far away you are, because it aims to have it back up to temperature by the time you return. Nip out to the local grocery store, and it won’t adjust it much, drive an hour to work and it’ll turn it down a lot …
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