When I first heard of this thing, I couldn't believe it. Who needs a $200 thermostat? Turns out I did - I'd constantly forget to turn the heat/AC off when I left the house, and since I work a 12 hour shift, that's a lot of money down the drain. I knew you could get programmable ones for much, much cheaper than this, but the smartphone app/website to control the NEST made this more appealing. Turn the A/C on remotely so the house will be comfy by the time I get home? Turn the heat on from bed using my phone? Receive a detailed breakdown of usage stats? All this just sealed the deal. When I saw this thing on sale I couldn't resist.

PROS: First, setup is a snap. I'm terrible when it comes to assembling/installing things, but this was quick and easy. Took me less than 10 minutes, it should take most people around 5. Connecting to wifi was painless, the app for Android is clean, functional, and reliable. The NEST looks great too - people are always oohing and aahing about it when they come over.

But most importantly, this thing saves me money, period. I spent $97 on electricity last May, and $49 this May after I installed the NEST. Sure, there could have been other factors like weather involved, but over the summer, I spent $69 in June whereas last June I spent $119. And $95 in July where I spent $159 last July. Bottom line is I'll make my money back in just a few months - you can't really argue with these numbers.