First time posting, please be kind.
Was searching for a slim smart plug with energy monitoring and found this.
CamelCamelCamel.
Can't really compare generic Kogan brand as better value than official TP-Link
Why? $11.50 per is a lot cheaper per unit.
Because generic crap from Kogan is a totally different product. TP-Link had the outstanding Kass app support.
In other news a Hyundai is better value than a Porsche.
@cook99: Not crap at all.I have 15 of them and work very well. I also have a couple of Meross and also TP-link ones. Each to their own.
Are there hardware differences, or is it more about the firmware?
What are the advantages of Tapo/Kass over Tuya?
Software is more refined and for my case, I'm planning to integrate it using Smartthings and Home Assistant which is supported natively rather than having to flash custom firmware on the plug like Kogan's
@winstonst08: Native Home Assistant support!? Why did no-one say? :)
I have some old Kogans with Tasmota, but did not get the energy monitor to work properly.
Newer Kogans need soldering to flash?
@bargaino: I have both and while the Kogan one's aren't actually half bad, it should be noted that the TP Link's poll for updates wayyy more frequently. My Kogan ones are configured via LocalTuya (already a bit of a headache) and update their energy consumption in Home Assistant once like every 10 mins (or maybe only within a threshold of significance) which is unusable for most automation but the Kasa's report something like every 30 seconds.
Native Home Assistant support!? Why did no-one say? :)
Probably because TP-Link recently pulled their API access
You can still get it to work, but may need to ask TP-Link to load a "beta" API onto your plugs for you.
Given TP-Link's currently spotty reputation in regards to API access, I would potentially put Kogan as the better value given you (should be able to) relatively easily convert it to Tasmota (if you're comfortable running "custom" firmware on your power point).
Fair enough, I live and learn
this one doesn't look very slim and in fact, it isn't slim at all.
It's better than the previous model.
Not quite slim. got 2x KP105 and plugged both into the double GPO. It is tight-fitting, touching each other.
Quite good product.
Yeah, this is the better deal IMO as its quite a bit smaller at $17 delivered via prime (minus energy readings tho): https://www.amazon.com.au/TP-Link-Tapo-Smart-Wi-Fi-Socket/dp…
That doesn't have energy monitoring so you are comparing apples to oranges.
Hey just wanted to point out that the energy monitoring is a bit off. I had to install a beta firmware across all my devices and I'm only going to find out if there is an improvement when I get my next bill.
How much off are they? I have the previous generation HS110 plug and it's very close to what my Power-Mate Lite energy monitoring device reads.
Well for me the readings appeared as though they were double.
My one of these reads almost exactly the same as my power testing device. Seems accurate to me.
I'm glad to hear that. But for what it's worth (in case anyone else had any of the problems I did) then I am using firmware 1.0.15 on my devices. Seems to be right for me since then.
50 cents saving on normal Amazon price is nothing amazing…
I'll just note that these smart plugs work well with Home Assistant, which is fairly rare these days.
I've tried hard to find a use for one of these but honestly can't.
Interesting story…
If you have good guys commercial you can get a single for $22
For the non energy monitoring ones its $18 for a single or a two pack for $33 which is pretty good value
If you need and echo you will get a further 20% off this and the echo.
Thanks, been looking around for a smart plug. Hows the energy monitoring?
Curious as to what people are powering with these. The only use I could find in my place was for one standing lamp. Which it's no real hassle to reach anyways. An old mechanical timer plug gets used when Christmas lights are up. That's about it really.
I plug a fan-heater, a separate fan and a Vapouriser into each of mine so i can use Google home to switch them on or off whenever I need.
The Kasa app is actually really powerful too, allows you to set schedules, timers, etc.
Use case for me is to switch on the Vapouriser when I put the little one to sleep and set a timer for it to switch off in an hour's time. And then set the schedule for it to auto turn on at 12midnight, turn off at 1am. Turn on at 3am, turn off at 4am, etc. That way, it has it keeping the room's moisture consistent so he doesn't wake with a raspy throat or end up coughing through the night.
I actually have the powerboard version of this so it's 1 powerboard with 3 individual smart switches all controlled by the single app or Google Home.
Hey prisofreedom, this is pretty random but what vaporiser do you use? I'm trying to get this setup going for our newborn but the Vicks one I got seems like absolute trash (turns off for no reason)
I have one with a powerboardoning out with most of my home office connected. When I leave the house and forget to turn it off the app is great to switch all the stuff off.
I have another into a heated towel rack…. Perfect for getting it warmed up 30 minutes before the shower routine
Just purchased another 4 :)
I LOVE the powerboard one because it's saves so much space in terms of individual plugs. Of course the use case is only appropriate if the devices you want to power are all located close together.
The heated towel rack is an amazing idea! Wish I had one now. :)
I literally have another Powerboard sitting in my amazon cart right now. Trying to justify if I need to spend another $48. :D
You are 'cooking with gas'! heh.
I'm looking at trying my first Smart plug for charging my laptop,
maybe the Smart powerboards are better value? Will have to check 'em out.
Thanks for the info.
Towel rack: very clever. Save power and live like a king/queen! heh.
with a 19$ convection heater, set it so it heats up the room 30min before i get up, awesome for that haha.
Nice! heh.
I'm looking at one for charging my laptop.
The recommended regimen for charging L-ion batteries is between 20% to 75-80%, rather than let the battery run flat or very low, and then charge to 100%.
Heat is the enemy, and long cycles.
Some laptops have a setting for this, but Chromebooks: nup.🙂
Same model is $24 at Officeworks if anyone is interested.
https://www.officeworks.com.au/shop/officeworks/p/tp-link-sl…
If you need more than one it's better value to get the 4 pack from kogan. I don't have any of these fyi.
https://www.kogan.com/au/buy/kogan-smarterhome-smart-plug-en…