Kasa Smart HS100 WiFi Smart Plug, Classic 1-Pack, White

UPDATE 10/22/16 Recently I wanted to do more things with my Smart plugs. I wanted things like a geo-fence, so my lights and stereo would come on when I arrive home, allowing me to walk into a welcoming home. What I discovered is that without a hub or IFTTT, this is impossible right now. So I looked into hubs, only to discover that the TP-Link products do not work with ANY hub! I was shocked. For such a great product to be incompatible with any popular hub on the market is inconceivable to me. The same story with IFTTT. So as much as I enjoy my 5 TP-Link Plugs, I may have to replace them to achieve a better smart home. CAVEAT EMPTOR!. I have written the company asking for them to upgrade the firmware to be HUB compatible. ORIGINAL REVIEW: I have only had this for a few weeks, but I absolutely love it. I currently have two of these and I am looking to buy more. This is incredibly easy to set up using the Kasa app on your phone. Once youve accomplished that, the next step is connecting it to Amazon Echo, which is just as easy. Just open Echos app on your phone, tap on Smart home, then Discover, and youre off to the races! The final step is to create a group in the Amazon echo app so that you turn multiple items on or off. I only wish it could change the channel on my TV! LOL. This is a definite recommended product to anyone, and if you have Amazon echo its a no-brainer. Especially since no hub is required for it to work with Echo.

This is my second Wi-Fi plug (the other one is an Insignia) and found that this one was even easier and faster to set up. I got my husband a coffee/espresso/cappuccino machine for Christmas and decided to hook up that bad boy to this plug. The machine needs a couple minutes to switch on and heat up and now we can do it from the comfort of our own bed. Plus, we sometimes forget to turn it off and could turn it off via the app from the car. It took less than 10 minutes to set up with both Google Home and Alexa. We live in a small enough home, so one assistant would be able hear us from a nearby room but fix this problem by using both. Now, we can simply say Hey Google, turn on the coffee machine or Alexa, turn on the coffee machine depending on where we are in the house. One thing I wasnt too fond of is that its quite bulky, so make sure to plug in the top outlet so that you dont lose one. Since ours isnt covered by furniture and plugged in above our kitchen counter, its pretty much guaranteed to be seen by everyone due to its size. What I like: Set up was a breeze with both Google Home and Alexa. What I dont like: Its big and bulky.

The short version.....these work great and these should be your choice in Smart Plugs. Longer Version: When I started out with the home automation stuff, after purchasing an Echo, my first purchases were the Wemo plugs......that was a mistake. I have written a review on those and they have only gotten worse since I wrote it, due to Wemo updates which have only served to make both the plugs and App less usable. As far as the TP-Link plugs (and I have also purchased and installed TP-Link Switches), these work great and, while the App could be a little more user friendly, thus only 4 Stars, they so far out-distance the Wemo stuff that the decision on which to buy is, in my opinion, a no-brainer. The set-up process is, I guess, standard for these types of devices, but it worked flawlessly with each of the 4 plugs and 5 switches I have purchased. They are reliable and I have had absolutely no issues with them as far as function and reliability. As I said, the App is a bit clunky and could be more usable, but it is not THAT bad and, again, completely blows away Wemos in functionality. They also all work flawlessly with my Amazon Echo with minimal delay. As a matter of fact, I have made the decision to replace the 3 original Wemo plugs I bought with TP-Link plugs because the Wemos have become unusable in 80% of their function and completely unusable for a lot of uses for which I purchased them. I apologize if this seems more like a comparison report, but I figure that if you are reading the reviews, you are trying to decide which Smart Plug brand to purchase. TP-Links would be my very clear recommendation.

Got this device with an Echo Dot during Black Friday. Thought that since it was wifi-enabled, it would work via device discovery like Belkin WeMo devices however this was not the case. First I have to download an app, create an account, then provide your Amazon account credentials to TP-Link/Kasa (who Ive never heard of until now). NOPE. Ive got a Wink setup here and all I had to do was allow Amazon to talk to Wink, not the other way around. Had I known that Id be required to set up yet another account AND provide Amazon credentials to a third party Kasa, I would not have bothered installing it and getting it set up and would have gone with a Z-wave appliance controller that just requires simple pairing. Ehh, at least it was free. Ill find a use for it Id imagine or give it away to someone else. EDIT as of 6/30/19: My security concerns about TP-Links Kasa have been resolved. You authenticate via the Alexa app, not via the TP-Link app. Oauth is set up correctly so your Amazon credentials are safe with Amazon. Now that Ive setup the pairing, the device works well. I can direct Alexa to turn the device on and off by whatever name Ive given it in the Kasa app. I have the app but its only for configuration checking now as my primary use is via Alexa. Changing my review to 5 stars as the security issue has been addressed!

The Body: Its 2019 and this plug cannot be used in a wall outlet with other plugs. The bottom of the device is rounded to give a sleek, aesthetic look but prevents any use of the outlet below it. I dont understand why its 2019 and we still have cable/cord manufacturers who cannot design a product or adapter that doesnt hinder the user of adjacent plugs. This device can only be used in one orientation, meaning on a standard US plug, with two outlets, you have to use the top one and because of the extended bottom, you cannot use the second outlet. Wifi: So far, the connection seems alright but the setup in the app required the first plug to update firmware. After waiting, it failed to update. When I found the place to try it again, the device no longer needed a firmware update. I have no idea if the update passed but didnt send the right code for the app to confirm it installed, or what. I guess well never know. Kasa App: During the setup process, youre asked to create an account. It also asks for your location so it can sync the time. You can skip it at that point but you are REQUIRED to enable location services in the app to add a device, with no option to skip. I also dont trust the reason provided for needing the permission as you could allow manual timezone additions. I might return the product just for this fact as theres no reason an app on my device needs location services turned on for a smart plug that wont be moving. If you truly needed the location for time settings then you would let us manually enter the timezone. Conclusion: I have no idea why this has the star count it does. I was frustrated by the design, frustrated by the app, and frustrated by the permissions. I wish electrical cable manufacturers would care about their customers enough to design their products in a way that doesnt prevent the use of adjacent outlets. Either you dont want to or you simply dont care. Based on the design of this product, I can see no reason the bottom of the device had to be the way it is but I guess Ill break out the Dremel and shave off the bottom of the outlet (if I can) so I am not out two different outlets.

I never thought Id buy one of these. But I got one as a gift with an Amazon Echo (also not something I thought Id ever buy). It sat for months until I finally decided, what the heck, Ill set up a floor lamp using this. Set up was relatively simple. The app can be kind of glitchy though and sometimes it loses my preset schedule, but then it appears again, so Im not sure what that is. I moved in with my boyfriend so it migrated to his house. He enjoyed getting to give the lamp a ridiculous name. Its actually turned out to be very convenient because we no longer come home at night to a dark house due to the schedule the lamps are on. And when were watching tv/movies, we can turn off the lamp without getting up. It became so convenient we bought one for the lamp on the other side of the room, which my boyfriend also enjoyed giving a ridiculous name. Now I kind of want one for the floor lamp in the bedroom (its such a first world problem, but its a pain to get out of bed to turn off the lamp when you just got in it). However, wed need another Amazon smart device, and I havent decided if I want to buy one of those yet. Still a little iffy on Alexa listening to all that I do, and do I really want her in the bedroom listening?

REVIEW FOR TP-LINK SMART PLUG (HS100) A FEW FRUSTRATING MOMENTS SETTING UP, BUT WORKS GREAT ONE I FIGURED OUT THE APP. USAGE: Replacement for manual Christmas tree timer. It took me a while to set these up, more than I care to admit. However, once I understood how the android app worked, it was OK. I can’t tell you exactly when it clicked how the interface worked. Once the device is found and connected, you click on the device (nothing seems to happen), but there is a “settings icon” that appears in the upper right corner. That is where you go to rename the device, change the icon, set up the stand alone timer schedule. I assumed it was app settings, not device settings. After that realization everything was fine. PRO’s: - Affordable ~ $20 on sale. - Quick to react to commands - Easy to use after learning curve - No problems with Alexa compatibility at all. - Can set up a schedule (from the phone app) that is stored locally in the unit so it does not require a hub to manage the schedule. - No Hub Required. CON’s: - Big (covers both plugs no way around it) - Only supports 2Ghz WiFi (I had to re-enable it on my router just for these plugs) - Does not Dim, but I knew that going in. SIDE NOTE: - After a power outage it does not automatically figure out the state it is supposed to be in. It waits until the next scheduled event. So if the power was out when it was supposed to turn on the lights, and it missed that event, then they just don’t come on until next time. As Christmas wraps up, I plan to repurpose these for use on some table lamps where I just want on/off and not dimming. One thing to keep in mind is that the manual on/off is on the plug so if you put a lamp on a schedule but you want to override the schedule then you need to use an app or Alexa to turn it back on, or climb around the floor to hit the manual switch. So I won’t widely deploy these for every day usage. For my normal house lights I’ll use Lutron. Why 5 stars ? Well in general, they just seem to work as expected and for the price point they do exactly what I wanted. (A modern replacement for an ancient mechanical light timer). Anything else I can get them to do (such as Alexa integration, etc) is just a bonus in my mind. I will also use the random schedule feature when I travel from home.

I love these little plugs! I have two of them set up in my living room, one for each light. I have them tied into Alexa so I can turn on and off my lights with my voice, which I think is the coolest thing. There was only one time where Alexa could not turn on or off the light and she responded by saying TP-Link is not responding when I issued the commands to turn the lights on and off. I think this is because Alexa requires that you enable remote access to be able to use Alexa with the plug, which means any commands Alexa send to the plugs are being sent to TP-Links cloud. This is ok as long as the cloud works, which it does 99% of the time, but my one concern is that if TP-Link ever shuts down their cloud the plug will turn from being a smart device into a dumb device. As far as setup, these were super easy to set up. I added them via the TP-Link Kasa app and gave them each a name, then added them in the Alexa app. I can use the plugs either with Alexa or via the Kasa app on my phone. If you enable remote access for the plugs, you can use the app to turn the plug on or off from away from home, which is nice so that I can turn on my lights before I get home so I never have to come home to a dark house again.

At first, I had a lot of trouble getting it to work. Please note: these things do NOT work with custom firmware routers (DD-WRT, OpenWRT, etc.) I had DD-WRT on my router, and I just couldnt get it to work no matter what. It couldnt connect to the router, and I have no clue why. So I flashed my router back to stock firmware, et voila. It worked just as expected. You download the Kasa app, plug in the plug, and go through the on-screen instructions to set it up! Its very simple. It then gives you the ability to turn on and off things you plug into it remotely (I used mine for a space heater). You can also setup a schedule for it to turn on. For me, I have my heater turn on at 630am so its not cold when its time to get out of bed. This is also good for automated lights and other things. PACKAGING: the packaging it comes in is very good, and very nice looking. The instructions are semi-ambiguous, but they can be. The app walks you step by step through setup. This plug is not compatible with 5GHz WiFi networks...so you need to have a 2.4GHz WiFi network in order to use this. Honestly this part is my own mistake, but I only bought the Smart Plug, and not the model with energy monitoring...DO NOT make this mistake. Its literally 4 cents more to get the one with energy monitoring, and it would be well worth it just for some cool extra information about your plug and monitoring it. Currently, you can only see how long its been on...not that useful for much. Anyways, amazing product, very nice and convenient, and glad I purchased. Giving it 4 stars because the headache I had with DD-WRT and because a model without a feature is the same price* as the model with a feature...very unfortunate as I dont want to wait to send this back and forth.

Oh my god, it was like buttah! setting the TP-Link up with the Amazon Echo. Thank you so much TP-Link Support for responding to another persons review, because that made me more inclined to purchase this! I along with my mother - who is on the other side of Texas - have been having weird problems with the Wemo plug and Echo, where it only works when it wants to. The times you need the Wemo, it wouldnt work and I would have to go into the Alex app and have to discover the Wemo plug again - it wouldnt be discovered if I simply asked Alexa to do it. Seems that that lots of people started having this problem starting @ 4-6 weeks ago. So the TP-Link was at the top of my list, but I didnt know if it worked with the Amazon Echo. After seeing a reply from TP-Link support regarding the echo and saying it now works, I thought I would give it a try. I set up the TP-Link Kasa for iPhone on my iPad, signed up, followed instructions, and the app itself was breeze - especially compared to the Wemo app. Remeber, you have to start in the TP-Link Kasa app and be signed in. Follow instructions. When it tells you to leave the app, that means that you then go to your settings for wifi and then select the TP-Link device as your wifi. Then, go back to the TP-Link Kasa app to finish. After you are done in the Kasa app, go into the Alexa app. In the Alexa App, go to the menu and select Smart Home, then go to Device Links - find and select Link with TP-Link Kasa. This will bring up a menu where you put in your TP-Link Kasa email & password. When you are done with that, go back to Smart Home in the Alexa app, then Devices, where you will then select Discover Devices. Let Alexa discover the TP-Link and Viola, youre done!!!