Bills for households across the country are on the rise again as April brings a wave of price hikes. Council tax, broadband, mobile plans, and water are just some of the utilities going up, leaving billpayers clock-watching their usage once more.
UK energy bills have decreased for many as the price cap put in place by Ofgem (for standard household usage) falls to £3,280 or around £2,282 for direct debit users. Despite this, consumers are still feeling the pressure of payments as the Government's winter support scheme comes to an end.
This is where home devices are coming in handy to help households monitor their day-to-day spending. In the last few weeks devices like smart plugs, energy-saving light bulbs and smart home kits have become popular to keep spending low.
READ MORE: Best energy saving gadgets 2023: Ways to save money on household bills
The same can be said for the Google Nest Thermostat which can be used to keep an eye on meter readings and 'control 60% of energy bills', and it's currently reduced by £60 on Amazon, down to £158.99.
Once installed, the small product connects to home thermostats to control hot water, schedule heating times to suit individual households and can be set to adjust temperatures when you're not at home through a mobile app.
The smart thermostat device can also be synced with an Amazon Echo Dot, which would allow users to control the heating through voice activation or more specifically 'Alexa, turn down the thermostat'.
Popular for its smart speaker qualities the Amazon Echo Dot has become a staple household gadget, which can also keep costs down at home. Amazon has recently launched a 'Smart Home Starter Kit' which consists of an Echo Dot and a smart plug, which allows users to track the usage of day-to-day devices.
As the Google Nest Thermostat can be synched with an Echo Dot, using all three together would mean households could control their thermostat and get updated energy readings from 'draining' devices (microwave, kettle, air fryer etc) through voice activation.
Shoppers on Amazon are calling it 'a must in every home' as it has helped save hundreds of pounds in costs.
One shopper said: "I bought this as a gift after living with a nest learning thermostat for about 2 years. It saved me around £500 for the 2 years I had mine. Highly recommend it."
Another shopper who bought the device on Amazon said: "Fantastic little addition to our home. Letting us control via google home or the nest app turning it on, when on the way home on a cold day.
"It is expensive but I feel it's a great addition helping us lower our energy bills."
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