Why You Can Trust CNET At CES 2017, Carrier Cor 5C wants to be the next Nest thermostat
Carrier's smart thermostat could give Nest some much-needed competition.
Carrier makes everything from home HVAC systems to humidifiers, but the company is perhaps best known for its line of thermostats. And today, Carrier is adding to its lineup with two new smart thermostats, the Cor 5C and 7C.
Like competitors from Honeywell, Ecobee and Nest, the Cor 5C and 7C have advanced controls that make them a bit smarter than your average heat and A/C controller. Here's a rundown of what Cor's new thermostats are supposed to do:
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- Read a home's specific "thermal characteristics" to create ideal temperature settings
- Integration with Amazon Echo and Apple HomeKit
While Carrier hasn't shared specific pricing or availability information for its Cor 5C and 7C thermostat just yet, the team said it's striving to reach a broader audience with these products. Hopefully, that means lower prices.
We've seen this trend lately with Carrier's competitors. Both Ecobee and Honeywell have introduced lower-priced, sub-$200 smart thermostats within the last year in the Ecobee3 Lite and the Honeywell Lyric T5 (video below). Carrier's new thermostats actually look a lot like Lyric T5. Nest, on the other hand, still sells a single thermostat model for the same price as always -- $249 (£249, not yet available in Australia).
Maybe Cor's pricing will help it appeal on the same level as Ecobee and Honeywell's latest models. We'll just have to wait and see.
Click here to find out what else is happening at CES 2017.