Your house has power outlets in each room and can use some upgrades and become smart sockets. This makes your home a complete smart home considering all your devices are smart.
This is possible without having to spend a lot on hiring an electrician to replace the existing wiring system. You don’t need to change the wall outlet, instead, you stick a smart plug into the outlet and configured it using an app, then you connect it to your home wireless network and use the app to control whatever you plugin like a charger for example.
A smart plug like the Prime Indoor Wi-Fi controlled outlet is such a plug. It provides one grounded outlet for use with home electronics, lighting, and even small appliances like fans. You can use it to control multiple devices as a group or any outlet in your home using the prime app (available on both Android and iOS), Google Home, or Alexa, and all you need is Wi-Fi. It also comes with a polarized outlet and is compatible with LED, fluorescent, CFL, and incandescent bulbs. It’s great for controlling your portable lamps by adjusting the brightness, or holiday decorations, and even more. It’s white, it has one outlet, an 1875-watt and 125 volts. Its main components include a Lithium Manganese Dioxide battery and remote control. It also comes with a 1-year warranty.
Outstanding features of the Prime smart outlets
Compatibility
Not all smart plugs are compatible with most types of bulbs. This Prime Indoor Wi-Fi controlled outlet is compatible with LED, Compact Fluorescent lamps (CFL), incandescent, and fluorescent bulbs. This makes it versatile and gives you no reason to spend on replacing your existing bulbs. It’s also compatible with Google Home and Amazon Alexa that you can give voice commands when you want to control any devices plugged into the power outlet on the network.
Scheduling
You can adjust your lamp’s brightness or schedule others such as your TV at home and limit your kid’s video game/watching duration. When on vacation, you can make your house look like it has people present.
Pros
- It is cheaper
- It turns your house wall sockets into smart ones
- It saves you on time by automating tasks
- It provides you with hand-free control convenience
- Its energy efficient
Cons
- It’s huge and when plugged, it might obstruct the other wall socket
- Its reliable on the internet
- Its costly
- It may lose connection with voice assistants sometimes and require you to manually powere them on
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Conclusion
A smart plug like the Prime Smart outlet is a great device to have in your home as it helps you control your devices connected to the power outlet using an app, or voice commands via Google Home or Amazon Alexa making rendering physical contact unnecessary. You can even schedule tasks that can be undertaken when you’re away.
How do I go about setting up my smart outlet?
In case you’re not tech-savvy, relax as a smart plug is one of the simplest devices to set up. Take your smart power outlet and plug it into your existing wall power outlet and then plug in a device like your TV or portable lamp. The next thing is connecting it to an app, Alexa, or Google Home. Using a stable wireless connection, you can download the Prime app or use Google Home/Amazon Alexa apps, pair it and connect it and you now should be able to control the smart plug using your voice or the prime app.
What should I look out for when buying a smart plug for my home?
There are a few things you can look out for like the wattage rating; a 10 amp plug is enough for light control while a kitchen appliance like a heater will require 15 amps. Another factor to consider is the size of the plug; can you plug two into one outlet? Reliability is another factor to consider. This is an issue for most generic smart plugs. Some plugs turn off or are disconnected due to a change in the IP address and you may be forced to manually power it off and on again.
