Wait, are you saying you actually tracked every single dollar of savings? I always thought people who talked about that were just estimating, but $512 is a real number. Honestly, I used to roll my eyes at the whole "cook from scratch to save money" advice, figured it was just a trendy thing people said. But seeing that kind of hard proof, especially compared to Safeway prices which are crazy high these days, really changes my mind. I guess I need to start paying closer attention to where my own money goes, don't you think?

My Ecobee did the same thing, I switched back to a dumb thermostat too.

And @tara745 I swear the "buy once cry once" thing is REAL but it feels like paying a psychic tax just to learn the lesson. Like how many stripped screws and skinned knuckles does it take before you realize that $5 "savings" was actually costing you your sanity? I had a similar moment with a cheap hand plane I bought at a garage sale. Spent more time fighting that stupid thing than actually planing wood. Finally broke down and got a decent one and it was like the tool was actually HELPING me instead of fighting me. Now I just pretend the cheap stuff is for decoration and the good tools are for actual work.

My local library has a whole shelf of books held together with packaging tape, and every single one of them is checked out more than the shiny new ones... It's like the tape becomes a badge of honor, you know? I see the same thing at the diner where I go, the menus with the most stains and tape are the ones everyone fights over. That little piece of tape is actually a signal, a kind of secret code that says "this is worth your time." It's funny how we're so focused on appearances when the real value is in what's inside, whether it's a book or anything else.

Changed my mind after reading this. You're right, the hype is way overblown.