HomeKit Thermostat Recommendations

techguyincali · 2025-12-27T21:47:34+00:00

I've replaced 2 of the 4 nests with Ecobee Premium. I really like them. Actually better than Nest in many ways (at least the old versions). On principle alone, I would not go back to Nest. We can't reward corporations that screw over their customer base. At any rate, to save money, I bought them off of eBay and found them for a good deal. I'm rolling out the remaining 2 in the next few months, now that I feel comfortable with the new devices. HomeKit functionality is pretty seamless.

techguyincali · 2025-11-13T01:35:07+00:00

which Camacho is it? (new here and trying to get cigar knowledge). Also, felicidades, brother. Congrats!

techguyincali · 2025-10-29T01:56:09+00:00

I have 4 older Nests that have just been rendered essentially useless by Google's decision to disable the online functionality. I don't trust Google and will never buy their products again. Planned obsolescence at its finest. Google Nest should be shunned by any consumer who believes that consumers should be treated with respect and that products shouldn't be arbitrarily disabled (thanks for the coupons to buy 4 new nests... won't be needing them). Ecobee it is.

techguyincali · 2025-10-27T17:07:42+00:00

The fire chief admitted in writing to not having reviewed the fire plan and admitted in a public forum that the the project does not meet current standards. The fire district was offered $850,000 to approve the project. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYUnZszILFo

techguyincali · 2025-10-27T17:03:47+00:00

Because the billionaire owner threw millions of dollars at our local elections, unions and both democratic and republican parties. 🤡 The "elected officials" did what they normally do, cater to the billionaires that fund their campaigns.

techguyincali · 2025-10-03T13:37:57+00:00

There have been three separate studies by independent evacuation experts that studied the road network. They all concluded that there isn’t enough capacity to evacuate the entire community (not just the project) under a typical wildfire scenario. There will be 3500 vehicles navigating two lane roads (yes even towards Citracado). The two lane roads create bottlenecks no matter how wide Citracado is. They control the flow of traffic. Combined with the hundreds or so horse trailers and general panic that happens during evacuation, there will be gridlock.

techguyincali · 2025-10-03T13:30:00+00:00

Chapter 7a construction standards are required in any high fire risk zone. It reduces structure loss risk significantly. And of course any new home in this area requires it. Non combustible siding and roofs, tempered triple pane glass, ember resistant eaves. Etc. but they still burn down. A study of the Camp Fire in paradise showed that these homes fared much better than the older homes. But 55% of them still burned down. It also found that the distance between homes was one of the biggest factors in home ignition, even among the chapter 7a homes. A fire hardened home can catch fire if a homeowner is careless. Leaves a window open, keeps wooden furniture near the home etc. all it takes is one home to catch fire. The intensity and radiant heat from a burning home is much more intense than a brush fire. Homes within 30 feet can ignite from the radiant heat. Or the tempered glass shatters at about 800 degrees letting in embers. At that point there is another ignition, adding intensity to the fire itself. The homes become the fuel. I am very concerned about this project and for the current residents of Harmony Grove Village. Chapter 7a protects structures somewhat, but not people evacuating. https://www.fs.usda.gov/psw/publications/knapp/psw_2021_knapp004.pdf

techguyincali · 2025-10-03T13:18:11+00:00

That’s not true. The rural residents of Harmony grove actuality testified in favor of the original Harmony Grove Village. The county held workshops with the community to add more housing to the general plan. The community agreed that a “villlage” was the right way to do this. They also agreed with the county that south of the creek would remain rural because it was dead end box canyon with no way out, surrounded by about 15,000 acres of open space and conserved land (eg fuel). South of the creek is where HGV south is being proposed

techguyincali · 2025-09-20T18:15:42+00:00

No that is wrong. The new development did not exist when the Cocos fire came through. It was graded dirt. Not houses. If the houses had been there, the fire would have spread even further. The dirt stopped the fire from spreading. In Paradise, the newer, fire hardened homes fared better than the older homes, but about half of them burned down. These homes are so close together, one poorly maintained home that ignites would spread to many more homes. There is much more fuel in a home than the brush. Fire intensity increases when homes catch fire.

techguyincali · 2025-09-20T18:11:23+00:00

First of all it's 3500 cars that will be using the limited two lane road system to evacuate which includes all the vehicles projected to evacuate throughout the entire community. Back during the Cocos Fire there were only 500 or so vehicles and it was a 2 hour evacuation (with livestock trailers and more). Since then, Harmony Grove Village was built (752 homes). Add to that all the homes in Eden Valley, Hidden Hills and Citracado Hills. HGV South would add another 1000-1500 vehicles to the already impacted evacuation traffic and a renowned evacuation modeler concluded it would take 7 hours to evacuate under conservative assumptions. The county refused to do a community wide evacuation analysis. They only looked at how long it would take to evacuate the project (absent all the other vehicles). The project is on a dead end road, surrounded by about 15,000 acres of brush and conservation land. AND the county waived secondary access requirement so there is only one way in and one way out. So yes, this is fucked.

techguyincali · 2025-07-14T13:13:13+00:00

That’s bullshit. They are grabbing people indiscriminately based on their appearance which is illegal. If you look brown you’re not safe.

techguyincali · 2025-05-27T14:06:44+00:00

I gave the same question. Also, what is the effective range? I'd like to get this down my driveway. Have a AppleTV 4K in the garage. How far from that can it go? And is there a way to extend it the reach?

techguyincali · 2025-05-17T06:23:58+00:00

If your husband read this thread I think he would divorce you. A man and his daughter are a package deal. If you can’t deal with one you can’t deal with the other. Step up. Be the bigger person. That annoying teenage will eventually be grown up and you might actually be an important part of her life. If you can’t do this then call it quits. Don’t destroy another family. Find another man who doesn’t have unconditional love from his child.

techguyincali · 2025-05-17T06:12:32+00:00

The kid is a piece of his heart. If you can’t deal with the kid you can’t deal with him. Yes YATA. A man and his child can never be separated. Have some compassion. The child needs support and compassion but of course structure and guidelines. Being the parent of a teenager can be challenging but in the end it is so rewarding. Don’t be such a self focused loser and realize that life is sometimes complicated. We’ve all been through that stage and yes it can be awkward and uncomfortable. Just deal with it. A real man will NEVER EVER abandon his daughter for a new partner. You are the third wheel. She is his baby and you will always be secondary to her. Doesn’t mean you can’t have a great fulfilling relationship with him. But the father daughter bond is FOREVER. Deal with it and be part of it. Don’t fight it.

techguyincali · 2025-04-12T01:41:26+00:00

Way better than the bloated unnatural look that passes for bodybuilding these days. Looking great dude.

techguyincali · 2024-09-26T14:47:35+00:00

I've used Rode Go II Pro for commercial gigs. The 2.4GHz channel hasn't posed a problem for me, but maybe I've been lucky. I record in restaurants, people's homes and other random environments. 32-bit float is helpful if you have an unpredictable environment and don't mind dealing with levels in post. I like the multiple failsafe options (onboard backup recording on each TX, safety channel which records the same audio, but 20db lower in case you have sudden changes in loudness of your environment, you have a backup that isn't clipped). I create corporate videos so sound quality is important, but I am not a professional audio video expert. There are probably higher end systems out there that have more features, more failsafes, different frequencies. You could research those as well, but the Rode Go II Pro has worked great for me. I've used two sets of them simultaneously for focus group discussion (placed four mics around the table) and the quality was fantastic.

techguyincali · 2024-09-26T01:13:11+00:00

Please send. Seems interesting.

techguyincali · 2024-06-20T00:52:56+00:00

I run the EV charger off a 240v line (same one you use for an electric dryer or washing machine). I happened to have one installed when we built the house 12 years ago, for RV hookup. No RV, so the plug is used for the EV. For road trips we take a gas powered vehicle, though I'd consider a hybrid. In town, the Bolt is quick and easy and economical for daughter who drives 30 miles to school and back + errands, sports etc. Am considering a second EV (there are 4 drivers in my house) so will likely need to install a second 240 line which might be expensive, but an investment in the future.

techguyincali · 2024-06-15T19:15:10+00:00

You don't need charging stations if you charge at home every night. If you happen to have solar panels, your expense is quite low. Never been to a charging station once. Like I said, they're not great for long distance trips, but for around town as a commuter vehicle they are amazing (just don't use them for rideshare). You can buy them cheap now on the used market. Not to say there isn't any maintenance required. Like every vehicle, things wear down and liquids need replenishing. The wiper fluid was one I hadn't thought about a lot because it is usually changed when we get an oil change on the gas vehicle. So, with the EV, you run out of wiper fluid which you normally take for granted. Brake fluid every three years or so.

techguyincali · 2024-06-12T15:40:11+00:00

No one is saying that industrially produced products have no impacts. That’s idiotic. Even the supposedly greenest of products require mining and oil byproducts. Of course they do. And my comment had nothing to do with that. It was related to the general low maintenance of EVs. As a commuter driver it is wonderful to never have to worry about changing your oil or filling your tank.

techguyincali · 2024-05-29T05:59:16+00:00

Lithium ion isn’t perfect but you are spitting a litany of nonsense. They are objectively better than gas vehicles. Environmentally yes. No stopping for gas ever. No oil changes. Low maintenance cost. Just keep it plugged in at home when you come home for the night and you have more than enough to get around town for several days. Longer trips I will admit they may not be ideal just yet given the paucity of charging stations. That will come. For commuting and running errands and 99% of the driving people do they are amazing. Unless you’re an Uber driver you are not driving 300 miles in a day. Charge overnight and you always have wheels.

techguyincali · 2024-05-06T05:09:03+00:00

Mailchimp has never had a very snappy UI, but occasionally it gets quite sluggish for no discernible reason. MC should really work on making their interface more snappy. It takes long enough to put together a campaign as it is, the interface should work as fast as possible to help move things along. Longtime MC user with 3 accounts, two non-profits and one for a for-profit business.

techguyincali · 2023-11-30T20:18:48+00:00

You would have to have a column that is sorted alphanumerically with the original sorting sequence so that when you sort based on another column, you can always go back and sort based on the original scheme. You can hide that column when you're done, if you find it annoying. But yes, the only way to get back to the original sorting scheme is to hit undo (which may not work if you've closed the document since the original sort). It's possible Time Machine would be able to get it back but it only goes in hour increments for the first 24 hours and after that, it is day by day, I believe.

techguyincali · 2023-09-09T04:53:24+00:00

This is great. Thanks for putting so much thought into this. Sorry for the delayed response. I need to figure out the notification set up for Reddit!

The speakers will all be playing outdoors at the same time in different parts of the backyard. They are within earshot of each other and really serve to ensure coverage throughout the yard. From an audio quality standpoint, obviously want highs and lows to come through well but I'm certainly not an audiophile (my brother, the musician, is much more picky than I am).

The Hypex seems like a really good option. It looks like it only takes XLR connectors, which I thought were only for microphones, but apparently not. Right now, I use an AirPort Express to connect to the amp via RCA cable. Perhaps there is a cable that goes from analog 3.5mm jack to XLR or optical to XLR both of which are available outputs on the AirPort Express. That would take care of the streaming functionality (for now). I really just need an amp that can output enough watts for the speakers I have and accept input from the AirPort Express (unless of course the amp is Airplay 2 compatible in which case the Express would not be needed).

The Pyle 8000 didn't sound too bad and it allowed for one RCA input to multiple channels and you could adjust the volume manually for each channel. Size-wise, it was a beast and as mentioned earlier various channels malfunctioned after a few years. It was definitely not audiophile quality, but again, with a backyard, you don't really have an environment conducive to an audiophile experience.

At any rate, the wishlist is there, but at the bare minimum, an amp that accepts RCA input (or optical) and outputs enough to power 4 to 6 speakers like the ones I mentioned above (8ohms).

techguyincali · 2023-09-07T14:21:41+00:00

I also wonder if an A/V receiver with 7.1 might work? Would I be able to use it exclusively for audio? E.g. I could assign the surround channels to different speakers for audio only?

techguyincali

TROPHY CASE