Hive Mini Thermostat With Or Without Hub
More compact, no dial, and can be used / purchased without the Hub. But you will need the hub if you want to use the Hive Mini with your Smartphone. The Hive Thermostat Mini is a newer smaller, more sleek model than the previous versions. It’s available for both conventional boilers and combi boilers. If you have an older Hive thermostat installed and you have a Hive Hub already with that, you can buy the Hive Mini without the Hub, and in some cases you may be able to use the Hub you already have for the older Hive thermostat. But do note that not all older Hubs will be compatible with the Hive Mini. So do some research beforehand to avoid disappointment. However, without the Hub the Hive Mini can still be used, but there are limitations. Some of which are very important – read below. But to save the annoyance with the limitations, it would definitely be best to buy the Mini with the Hub included.
Limitations without the Hub. With the Hive Mini, when it comes to comparing it to the earlier Hive models, it’s basically just an upgrade of the thermostat controller, to what many consider a nicer more streamlined design. If you have no hub, there are some features that can not be set on the thermostat controller, such as setting schedules / programming. This can only be done on the Hive App [Needs the Hub]. This is a huge deal breaker for many people, and its not hard to see why. Hive should have, at the very least, allowed for scheduling / programming to be entered manually from the controller itself.
Reviews
Reviews are pretty close to excellent across the board for those who either had their own compatible Hub from an older version, or bought the Mini with the Hub. While its not perfect, and there should be a lot more features available to use without the Hub, many users who rate the Mini positively praise the Hive Mini as being easy to install, easy to use, with good temperature accuracy, stable connectivity for the most part, decent pairing and a well thought out and easy to use App. A Hive Mini desktop stand is not included in the package [when purchased with or without the hub] but various types are available online and are cheap to buy. There’s also the option to have the Mini installed by a professional tradesman. But that option for this particular model only includes installation of the new product and that the old programmer that was previously installed within the residence has already been removed.
Features
Some quick features of the Hive Mini include: automatic frost protection when the temperature drops, holiday mode, boost option for heating or hot water, Geolocation alerts, heating history reports, as well as insights and alerts for budgeting and energy efficiency in the home to potentially save money down the line. The Hive Mini can be controlled via voice command with Alexa, Hey Google and Apple Home. But do be aware of the privacy concerns regarding voice activation devices. And also with all devices considered “Smart”.
