With the Honeywell Lyric T6, Honeywell is launching its third smart thermostat on the market. Where the evohome has zone heating as a striking feature, Honeywell opts for geofencing as the main distinguishing feature with the Lyric T6.
Honeywell Lyric T6
Price: € 154,-Wireless: 802.11b/g/n, 868 MHz (communication between thermostat and boiler module)
Compatibility: OpenTherm, on/off control and district heating
Nutrition: 230 volts via boiler module
Dimensions: 10.3 x 10.3 x 2.8 cm
App: Android, iOS
Website: www.honeywell.com
8 Score 80
- Pros
- Geofencing
- nice app
- OpenTherm and on/off control
- Negatives
- No clock program with geofencing
- Rough design
Honeywell's Lyric T6 comes in two variants: the wired T6 and the wireless T6R. Both variants are suitable for OpenTherm, on/off control and district heating. We started working with the wired variant that you connect to the wall with a wire, just like any 'old-fashioned' thermostat. If the Lyric hangs on the wall, you can operate it thanks to a touch screen. The current temperature and time are always displayed on the screen. As soon as you touch the screen, the other data will appear on the screen. The screen itself is clear, but graphically not so special.
Installation
Installing the T6 is not very difficult and is similar to the installation procedure of other smart thermostats such as the Nest. Of course you switch off the boiler and remove the old thermostat. Presumably there is now a wire running from the boiler to the place where the thermostat is located. You have to disconnect that wire from your boiler and connect it to a small box that you get with the T6. This box transmits the heating commands to the boiler and supplies the thermostat itself with mains voltage. From this box you then connect a two-core wire to your boiler, for example you can use bell/signal wire for this. You can also leave the existing cable connected to your boiler, cut it and then connect it to the box. In addition, the box requires mains voltage. Most boilers offer power outlets that you can use, but Honeywell also supplies a power cord with plug.
You simply screw the wall plate onto the wall, after which you click the thermostat on it. The appearance of the Lyric T6 is not very exciting. The square box is dark gray on the side while the front is black. We do not find the Lyric T6 ugly, however, and the color coincidentally suits us perfectly with the kitchen. The spacious screen of the Lyric T6 is a touch screen that allows you to control the temperature and set the thermostat. You can also do the initial configuration largely via this touch screen, but in the end you still need the app and it is more convenient to set the thermostat via the app. The app is available for iOS or Android. Without configuration, the Lyric T6 offers its own WiFi network. By connecting to this you can set up the device via the app.
Geofencing or clock program
You can 'program' the Lyric in two ways. Via a traditional clock program where you can program the temperatures per day or via geofencing where the location of your smartphone determines the temperature. Via the app you can set where you live, after which you can indicate the geofencing area with a circle. As soon as you move within this area, the thermostat will switch to the heating program. This way you can always come home to a warm house without the heating being turned on unnecessarily. You can give multiple users access to geofencing. You do have to choose one of the options, so it is not possible in combination with geofencing to make a clock program with multiple temperatures for the day when you are at home. With geofencing you work with one temperature for when you are at home, with a night reduction for when your sleep is one of the possibilities.
Whichever method of programming you choose, an extra handy feature is the holiday setting with which you lock the thermostat at a certain temperature for a period of time. This option will especially come in handy when you use the clock program, but it may also be a reassuring thought for geofencers that the heating is fixed at one temperature. Even if it's just to set a different temperature than your normal absence temperature.
The Lyric T6 is compatible with Apple's HomeKit and can be controlled via Siri voice control. Furthermore, the T6 should also be suitable for Amazon's Echo. In addition, the Lyric T6 can also be linked with IFTTT. Unfortunately, Lyric itself does not offer so-called triggers and you cannot use Lyric's geofencing status for anything else, for example. You can have the temperature set in IFTTT by triggers from other devices or services.
Conclusion
With the Lyric T6, Honeywell is launching its third smart thermostat after EvoHome and Round Connected. Compared to the two previous smart thermostats, a nicer app is used. Of course you can always set the temperature yourself from anywhere with the app for your smartphone and there is the option of the traditional clock program. However, there is a strong emphasis on geofencing, which automatically sets the temperature based on your location. Handy, but it is a bit of a shame that geofence in combination with a clock program is not possible. You may want a slightly lower temperature during the day than in the evening while you are at home all day.
