Would you like to have total control over any domestic appliances in your house and also be able to control them remotely? Are you one of those who forget to turn off electrical appliances and leave them on? If so, don't even worry about that because with smart plugs all these inconveniences are over.
In this guide you will get the best selection of the best smart plugs that you can get in the market, I will give you a complete explanation about what these plugs are, how they work and what they are for, I will also tell you how to choose them and some uses you can do with them. . So stay and continue reading that you have found the best guide you will undoubtedly find on smart plugs.
What is a Smart Plug and what is it for?
Smart plugs or also known as plug wifi or in some cases as plugs wireless are devices that turn on or off any device or device connected to the, manipulating from a distance through the smartphone, tablet, or speaker smart and simple.
So well, you could be far from home and control the on and off of your appliances connected to these sockets. You can also program them to turn on at a certain time and turn off whenever you want.
It should be noted that these smart wall sockets do is cut or allow the current remotely from the appliances, and with them, you can not at least lower the temperature of the air conditioning or program the cooking time of a microwave oven. You can simply cut or allow the current to the appliance.
Some smart plugs have the electricity consumption meter function, this allows you to always know from the application how much a certain appliance consumes and thus be able to take the respective measures to save your electricity bill, giving you daily, weekly and monthly reports.
Another of its main functions is to act as an electrical programmer, with this function you can program the plugs to turn off or on at certain times.
As an example, you could program your smart plugs to turn off at midnight, in this way you would cut off the current of all the devices connected to them, preventing televisions, video game consoles, or telephones that have been left connected, from continuing to consume energy during the hours that are falling asleep. You can also program them to turn on again at 6:00 am for example.
In this way, you would be saving 6 hours of electricity consumption, and just as in your children's room, you can apply this example to your whole house and observe that the electricity savings become remarkable.
Another advantage that these smart plugs have is that they allow you to program your home appliances such as lamps, televisions, lights, among others, when you are traveling, giving the feeling that there are people inside the home. Something great to scare off thieves.
The smart plugs let you apply time delays that will help to be left on the artifacts for a given time. For example, you can turn on the coffee maker for only 20 minutes while you make your coffee and it stays hot, after that it automatically turns off.
These plugs not only serve to use them inside your house, but they can also be used outside of it and there are also smart plugs that are waterproof that withstand splashes of any liquid and withstand humidity.
How does a Smart Plug work?
As for how it works, let us tell you that it is very simple. Smart plugs use the application of their respective manufacturer to communicate with you and how they do so is through your home Wi-Fi network.
That is, you with the plug application installed on your smartphone or tablet can control them remotely, as long as the Wi-Fi network in your home is working without problems. You don't need to be on the same Wi-Fi network as the socket. You can be perfectly outside your home and with the signal from your operator's phone or another network, you can manipulate them from a distance with the plug's app.
Of course, the smart plug must have a Wi-Fi signal because otherwise, it will not be able to communicate, so you must verify that the plug is not too far from the signal emitted by the router.
The application of the plugs varies according to their manufacturer but they can all be downloaded from the Android and IOS stores, and they are completely free.
Something very important to note is that almost all smart plugs use the 2.4GHZ Wi-Fi network frequency
So if in your home or office you have the network frequency in 5 GHz, you must change it because otherwise, your plug will not be able to work.
Another way to communicate with smart plugs is through smart speakers such as Amazon Alexa, Google Home, or Apple's Siri, noting that few plugs are currently compatible with Siri.
In addition to smart speakers, most smart plugs support IFTTT technology.
How to Buy the Best Smart Plug?
With the current boom that domotics is acquiring and the increasing entry of new technologies, smart plugs are little by little opening a gap in the digital market, and it is not for less, these devices are increasingly being valued. Therefore, you must know what criteria you should consider when deciding to buy one.
Here are certain aspects that you should always keep in mind before purchasing your smart plug:
You should always check the power of the plug and the appliances you want to connect to it since some plugs do not support a large electrical load. If you plan to connect a high-demand appliance, find an outlet that can handle it.
Always choose smart plugs of a recognized brand that assure you that you are acquiring a quality electrical outlet with the support that the company can provide.
We recommend buying smart plugs that have compatibility with Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri HomeKit, and IFTTT, or at least that works with the technology of your preference, as well as that its user app is easy to use, configure, and be can use with other devices.
Very important when buying a smart plug is its size. If you want the plug you are going to buy not to cover the outlet next to it, you should buy a small plug since there are several that occupy the entire space of the outlet and do not allow you to connect others.
We highly recommend that you review the opinions, comments, and reviews that users have made about smart plugs on portals such as amazon for example, so that you can get an idea of the experiences that other customers have had with smart plugs and have more information about your purchase.
Use only for the exterior of your house and places of high humidity, the smart plugs that are made for this purpose, since they are waterproof.
If you plan to buy a smart plug to connect a conventional power strip to it, it is preferable to buy a smart power strip that gives you many more benefits.
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