Trane XL824 Connected Control

By John R. Delaney

The folks at Trane have been in the heating and cooling business for more than 80 years, designing and manufacturing HVAC products for both residential and business use. Their XL824 Connected Control ($333.95) joins an impressive roster of digital home thermostats that allow you to control your heating and cooling system using a smartphone or a PC. This model offers a 4.3-inch full-color touch screen, numerous scheduling options, and both wired and wireless network connectivity. It also features a built-in Nexia Home Intelligence bridge that lets you connect to scores of Z-Wave home automation devices. However, it's a bit more expensive than other smart thermostats we've seen, including the Honeywell Lyric and our Editors' Choice, the Ecobee3.

Design and Features TheXL824 has a built-in Wi-Fi b/g/n radio for wireless communication with your router. It also has an RJ-45 jack for wired Ethernet, and embedded Nexia bridge circuitry that allows the thermostat to control Z-Wave devices. The detachable wall plate contains 19 wiring terminals for heating and cooling, fans, remote sensors, and auxiliary devices such as humidifiers and dehumidifiers.

The XL824 is similar in appearance to the Honeywell Prestige that we reviewed back in 2013. It's a rectangular thermostat measuring 3.3 by 5.4 by 1.2 inches (HWD) and has two-tone silver bezels that frame the 4.3-inch color touch screen. The indoor temperature is displayed on the left side of the screen, and right below that you can see the system status (idle, heating, cooling) and which schedule is active (Home, Away, Sleep). Tapping this area opens the temperature control panel where you can adjust high and low set points and create schedules.

To the right of the temperature readout is an area that displays the current outdoor temperature and the low and high temperatures for the day. Tap this area to view your local five-day weather forecast and receive weather alerts. Below the weather is an indoor humidity reading.

A bar along the top of the screen displays the date, time, and network status (in bars), while the bar along the bottom contains Menu, System Mode, Circulate (Fan Mode), and Air Cleaner buttons. You can choose one of three air cleaner cycles (Auto, Quick, Allergy), one of three fan modes (Auto, On, Circulate), and one of five system modes (Auto, Heating, Cooling, Off, Emergency Heat). On the far right you can view and change heating and cooling set points and enable a 1-Touch Preset. The 1-Touch Preset feature allows you to create heating and cooling set points for Home, Away, and Sleep time periods when regular scheduling is disabled.

In the main Menu screen you can create schedules, view your heating system information, display your HVAC contractor information, and adjust settings. Scheduling options are plentiful; each day of the week can have up to six scheduled programs, called periods, with differing temperature targets (set points). You can create schedules for when you are home, while you are away, and when you are sleeping. To override a schedule simply press the indoor temperature area, adjust the temperature set point, and press the Hold Perm button. The XL824 also offers a Guided Schedule Tool that will help you set up a heating and cooling schedule based on your answers to a series of questions such as what time you wake up, leave the house, and return, and what temperature you would like during these times. There's also a Nexia menu for configuring the XL824 as a Nexia hub and enrolling Z-Wave devices.

The Settings menu is where you go to select a temperature scale (Celsius or Fahrenheit), set the date and time, configure network settings, and modify screen properties (brightness, background colors, screensaver, and backlight timer). Here you can also set up system maintenance and service reminders, upgrade the firmware, and initiate the User Setup wizard.

In order to control the XL824 remotely from a smartphone, tablet, or PC, you'll have to create a Nexia account, which is free and can be used to control up to four thermostats. However, if you want to use the XL824's built-in Nexia hub to control Z-Wave devices such as sensors, locks, and security cameras, you'll have to pay $9.99 per month for a subscription.

The XL824 uses the same Nexia iOS, Android, and browser apps as the Nexia Bridge. The apps offer the same basic functionality as the thermostat interface with one major omissionthey don't allow you to create and edit schedules. Additionally, the XL824 doesn't offer a heating and cooling usage report like you get with the Ecobee3. Trane will be rolling out a Diagnostic Technology offering in a couple of months that will give service contractors the ability to view system performance and run diagnostics remotely, but there's no quick and easy way for a homeowner to view usage history at this point.

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Trane XL824 Connected Control