[aoporto]

Great example of taking on an existing market that needs an injection of innovation. Programmable thermostats are easy to install (I installed mine years ago) and can save you lots of money if used properly, but their UIs are terrible. Lots of buttons and inherently unintuitive. I'm surprised I remember how to reset the filter replacement alert.

There is a market need certainly, but is their target market big enough to support the business? I think if you can encourage users to adopt these based on the cost savings then the odds will be better. Lots of home owners will be interested in saving money on their utility bills. Just make sure the UI and features enable users to make efficient use of their HVAC systems. There will definitely have to be a campaign to educate consumers as to why they need this product.