New! Honeywell Home Smart Thermostat, Conventional/Heat Pump

The Verdict

If you’ve been eyeing a smart thermostat but balked at the $250+ price tags on the big-name models, the new Honeywell Home Smart Thermostat is worth a serious look. This is the conventional/heat pump version (model B0DSGC), and it’s designed for the majority of US homes — not just the ones with fancy zoning systems. Here’s what you actually need to know before you buy.

What’s in the Box

You get the thermostat itself, a wall plate, screws and anchors, a quick-start guide, and a wire label sheet. Notably absent: a C-wire adapter. That’s the single biggest gotcha with this unit, and I’ll come back to it. The thermostat itself is compact — roughly 4.5 inches square and about an inch deep — with a 3.5-inch touchscreen display. It feels solid in the hand, not cheap plastic.

Performance and Real-World Use

The display is genuinely excellent. It’s bright, high-contrast, and readable from across the room. You can adjust the backlight or turn it off entirely for bedrooms. Physical up/down buttons flank the touchscreen, which sounds old-school but is actually a blessing — no swiping through menus to change the temperature at 2 AM.

Setup is straightforward if you have a C-wire. The app walks you through wiring identification, and the on-screen prompts are clear. If you’re replacing an older Honeywell or a basic non-programmable model, the wire colors will likely match up. I had mine running in about 20 minutes.

The scheduling is where this unit shows its limits. You can set up to four time periods per day (wake, leave, return, sleep), which covers most households. But if you want different schedules for different days of the week — say, a Wednesday off mid-week — you’re out of luck. It’s a Monday-through-Friday block and a Saturday-Sunday block. That’s fine for most people, but it’s a genuine limitation versus the competition.

What Buyers Consistently Praise

The 4.3-star rating across 215 reviews reflects a pattern: people who own this love the simplicity. One reviewer noted, “I’m not tech-savvy and I had this installed in 15 minutes. The display is big and clear, and I love that I can just push a button instead of pulling out my phone.” Another long-term owner wrote, “Had it for three months now. My energy bill dropped about 12% compared to last year. It just works.”

The dual-fuel compatibility gets frequent shoutouts. Heat pump owners especially appreciate that it handles auxiliary heat staging correctly — a common failure point on cheaper “smart” thermostats.

Where It Falls Short

The C-wire requirement is the big one. If your current thermostat uses just two wires (common in older homes), you’ll need to run a new wire or buy a 24V adapter separately. That adds cost and complexity, and Honeywell doesn’t include one in the box. That’s a genuine oversight for a product aimed at the budget-conscious.

The app, while functional, feels like it’s from 2019. It does the job — remote temperature control, scheduling, energy reports — but it’s clunky compared to the polish of Ecobee’s or Google’s apps. No geofencing, no occupancy detection, no smart home integrations beyond basic Alexa and Google Assistant voice commands.

Who Should Buy This

Buy it if: You have a conventional gas/electric or heat pump system with a C-wire, you want a reliable smart thermostat without paying Ecobee or Nest prices, and you value a big readable display and physical buttons over app polish.

Skip it if: You have a two-wire system and don’t want to deal with extra wiring work, you need per-day scheduling flexibility, or you want a thermostat that learns your habits automatically. This is a smart thermostat, not a thinking thermostat.

FAQ

Q: Will this work with my heat pump? Yes, this specific model supports heat pumps with auxiliary heat. Check the compatibility tool on Honeywell’s site to confirm your specific system, but this is one of the more broadly compatible models out there.

Q: Do I really need a C-wire? Yes. This unit requires a common wire for power. If you don’t have one, you’ll need to install the separately-sold C-wire adapter or run new wiring. Factor that into your total cost.

Q: Does it work with Alexa and Google Assistant? Yes, basic voice control works — adjusting temperature, setting modes. It doesn’t do anything fancy like voice-controlled schedules, but the basics are covered.

The Verdict

Buy it if you want a dependable, no-nonsense smart thermostat with a great display and broad system compatibility at a reasonable price. Skip it if you need advanced automation, per-day scheduling, or you’re not prepared to deal with the C-wire requirement.

Rating: 4.2/5 — A solid, honest smart thermostat that does the core job well. It’s not flashy, but it’s reliable, and for most homeowners, that’s exactly what matters.

Where to Buy

👉 Check Price on Amazon →

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Last updated: 2026-08-06. Ratings and prices current as of review date. Verify on Amazon before purchasing.