FindernRam Posted October 13, 2018 Share Posted October 13, 2018 The relentless propaganda on Smart meters says if I have one I can power Pride Park for a match (probably).This and all the other claims strike me a total nonsense. I had an early constant read out on my electric a few years back. The gimmick worked for about a week. It was nice to see that the kettle was on for a cuppa, without me yelling downstairs, after that I forgot about the thing and the batteries all died! Now have any of you tech loving guys got one of these, have you changed your habits, have you saved anything, if so how many years to recoup the cost of designing, making and fitting the thing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TigerTedd Posted October 13, 2018 Share Posted October 13, 2018 46 minutes ago, FindernRam said: The relentless propaganda on Smart meters says if I have one I can power Pride Park for a match (probably).This and all the other claims strike me a total nonsense. I had an early constant read out on my electric a few years back. The gimmick worked for about a week. It was nice to see that the kettle was on for a cuppa, without me yelling downstairs, after that I forgot about the thing and the batteries all died! Now have any of you tech loving guys got one of these, have you changed your habits, have you saved anything, if so how many years to recoup the cost of designing, making and fitting the thing? I think it’s as much about having automated accurate meter reads. Moving away from basically just guessing, or paying a man to read the meter occasionally (seriously, that’s got to be the easiest job in the world). The extra features are just a why not, might help some people but not others. The technology itself is pretty basic by today’s standards, prob my didn’t cost much at all to design and make. It’s the roll out that takes time and money. But we can’t all be sat here in 20 years time still on the old meters, so the roll out has to happen at some time. I’ve wanted a smart meter for ages, but they’re not rolling them out in my area yet, so I’ve got to sit and wait my turn. Itll be interesting to see if there’s any ambient electricity being used in my house, like some device that’s always in but doesn’t need to be. That could save a few quid. But the nicest thing is to have accurate meter reads, rather than using the electricity company as some sort of no interest saving account. My sister was about £300 in credit. More in her electricity account than in her actual bank account. She liked it, said she’d claim it back around Christmas as a nice little windfall. I tried to explain that she could just pay the direct amount, and put the surplus in an isa, and earn actual interest on her money. But she didn’t get it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McRamFan Posted October 13, 2018 Share Posted October 13, 2018 I'll wait a little longer. You don't need a meter to be smart, don't leave things onstandby etc https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/consumer-affairs/six-reasons-say-no-smart-meter/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoetheRam Posted October 13, 2018 Share Posted October 13, 2018 I wanna know how something with an LCD screen that wouldn't otherwise have been in my house can possibly save me energy and therefore money. Total con. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FindernRam Posted October 13, 2018 Author Share Posted October 13, 2018 2 hours ago, TigerTedd said: The extra features are just a why not, might help some people but not others. The technology itself is pretty basic by today’s standards, prob my didn’t cost much at all to design and make. It’s the roll out that takes time and money. But we can’t all be sat here in 20 years time still on the old meters, so the roll out has to happen at some time. The tech may be basic but from reports there are several standards, lots of issues with some meters. My sister down south is on her third one and her bill is all wrong, company blames software screwups etc. My Daughter is NOT on Smart but her supplier says she is and keeps sending ludicrous bills and won't accept she has normal meters! The Gov quoted £200mill for roll out which means at least twice that! My meters are 40 years old, working fine why fix what isn't broken! I'll be convinced when a genuine customer says I'm saving £x pounds per month! I understand this roll-out was an EU directive, so maybe come March we can stop wasting money! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Kevin Posted October 13, 2018 Share Posted October 13, 2018 Other than via a cheaper tariff I fail to see how they can save you money unless they encourage you to cut back .I'd rather smile pay up and look happy in my warm cosy house with all the lights on . Having one wouldn't change my habits ,so pointless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coneheadjohn Posted October 13, 2018 Share Posted October 13, 2018 2 hours ago, JoetheRam said: I wanna know how something with an LCD screen that wouldn't otherwise have been in my house can possibly save me energy and therefore money. Total con. Agree,complete con and a waste of time and money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TigerTedd Posted October 13, 2018 Share Posted October 13, 2018 5 hours ago, JoetheRam said: I wanna know how something with an LCD screen that wouldn't otherwise have been in my house can possibly save me energy and therefore money. Total con. The ought to be able to do it through an app on your phone. Then it’s not an extra device. Softeare issues are cos it’s an electricity company trying to make an app. It’s bojnd to have loads of issues. Similar to banking apps. A bank doesn’t have the expertise to make an app. It’s taken a while to get some decent ones. And they vary from bank to bank. As with all things, the first versions are going to be full of bugs and teething issues. But 5 years down the line, it will all sort itself out, eventually our kids kids will look at old school meters like we look at wind up charabancs. Someone has to be the generation that goes through the teething troubles. Can’t just stick your head in the sand and pretend it’ll never happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FindernRam Posted October 13, 2018 Author Share Posted October 13, 2018 10 minutes ago, TigerTedd said: The ought to be able to do it through an app on your phone. Then it’s not an extra device. Softeare issues are cos it’s an electricity company trying to make an app. It’s bojnd to have loads of issues. Similar to banking apps. A bank doesn’t have the expertise to make an app. It’s taken a while to get some decent ones. And they vary from bank to bank. As with all things, the first versions are going to be full of bugs and teething issues. But 5 years down the line, it will all sort itself out, eventually our kids kids will look at old school meters like we look at wind up charabancs. Someone has to be the generation that goes through the teething troubles. Can’t just stick your head in the sand and pretend it’ll never happen. You seem very pro for someone who hasn't got one. Your only reason seems to be more accurate meter reads -eventually when they have sorted the bugs out. Heaven help you in the meantime. I do my own readings and send them in. Not exactly difficult and I compare my usage with previous years so know if I'm trending up or down, although the weather completely overrides any small difference I make. I have loads of low energy bulbs now, but I'm totally unable to show that my electric usage is significantly lower. As I said before, will someone who has one tell me what they are saving? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rev Posted October 13, 2018 Share Posted October 13, 2018 I've had a smart meter for 2 years now. Never given it a glance beyond the 1st week. It's not an EU thing by the way, Germany looked at the tech involved and declined to implement it, saying it wasn't up to scratch. As for replacing meter readings, I guess it does but seeing as it's not connected to WiFi and has no internet connection, they must still pay someone to walk along the street with a device that can pick up the short range signal it must emit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoyMac5 Posted October 13, 2018 Share Posted October 13, 2018 These things are gonna be all about charging you different tariffs at different useage time ie at peak use times, so if you're using lots of electric at tea-time they can charge you more per unit than if you're using more electric overnight or mid-day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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