I seem to remember that the Honeywell T6 Pro Z-Wave comes up a lot when this question is asked. I'm not running Z-wave yet, though, so I can't comment.
this post was submitted on 15 Jun 2023
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Thanks! Per my other comment, I guess I've gotta look at Z-Wave if there are no wifi-only options available. Checking out the T6 Pro now
Another +1 for the t6. It's been running great for 6+ months
I have been extremely satisfied with my Honeywell T6 Z-wave thermostat.
Completely local. No vendor phone apps. No accounts.
https://static.xtremeownage.com/blog/2021/full-local-z-wave-hvac-control/
I believe there are a few Honeywell models that are Z-Wave, so that'd be fully local. I'm using EcoBee, which does have cloud control, but I've added it to Home Assistant via HomeKit, and that is local control. It's a little annoying because EcoBee doesn't expose it's fan setting via HomeKit, so I can't have HA kick on the fan when the AC isn't running, for example.
Thanks - I'll take a closer look at Z-Wave again. I'm only running wifi based devices so far but if this is the only way to get better thermostat control I might have to compromise.
I have two Centralite HA 3156105 ZigBee ones I use for two zones. They work pretty well. They are the older Centralite units with xfinity markings on them, can be found on eBay for about $15 - $20. Both Z2M and ZHA support it.
I really like my zigbee thermostats and would recommend them not cloud at all. I have not found a tasmota or esphome compatible thermostat. You could make your our with relative ease use a simple relay board. But I don't think that it would look great
Radio Thermostat's CT50 is supposed to be able to function without being Internet connected and owners say it works well. It has quirks though. It is kind of a strange design with empty slots for radio modules that are visible from the sides when not populated. People suggest putting white electrical tape over unused slots, but that kind of kludge on something that costs $100 isn't something that inspires confidence. Neither does the fact that although both Z-Wave and Wifi modules are supported, the company's website doesn't have the modules listed for sale at the moment.
Right now the Honeywell T6 (Z-Wave) seems to be the best choice. It gets really good reviews on Amazon. Z-Wave USB adapters are relatively inexpensive if you don't have one and in my experience not hard to set up.
It's more of DIY solution, but works fine, did you check with https://esphome.io/ if your heat pump system couldnt be connected ?
Most of them have a way to communicate as they already have an offline thermostat
Unfortunately my current thermostats are very simple / just basic Honeywell heat pump controllers