Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsSeamless Connectivity with Echo (5- Stars)
Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2016
This is a review of a free product received by TP-LINK as part of the review program.
When I first received this smart plug, it hadn't yet been fully integrated with Amazon Echo, and it was a bit clumsy to use with it because I had to call up the Kasa app first. Within days, however, Amazon announced TP-LINK's smart home connectivity, and a step has been taken out of the process, making everything run extremely smoothly. All I have to do is say, "Alexa, turn on the bedside lamp" within earshot, and it's done. Of course, I don't need an Echo or its companion the Echo Dot to work this plug. All I need is a smart phone with the TP-LINK Kasa app downloaded. Integration with Alexa, however, makes control voice-operated within the home.
Before you begin, you must download the TP-LINK Kasa app to your smart phone since there's no other way to configure it. As with most smart plugs, set-up requires you to leave your WiFi network to connect to the one broadcast from the plug in order to configure it and to get it on your home network. You can re-name your plug, assign it an icon, set a schedule, put it in away mode, and set a timer for it to go off/on after a programmable period of time -- all from your phone. If you want to use it with Echo, you also need to connect your Echo to Kasa via the Alexa app, again from your smart phone. You only need to do this once. From then on, any newly configured devices can be found by the Echo and added to your list. I have an Echo on one floor and an Echo Dot on another. It doesn't matter which of these I use to request control over the plugs -- both will do the correct action, no matter where the plugs are located in my house. Once you connect the plug to your home wireless network, you can configure additional aspects of the plug without having to go to the plug's WiFi signal -- unless, of coures, you switch routers.
The app makes programming easy. You do need to set your time zone properly for scheduling, so don't forget to do that. I'm a little surprised that the plug can't scrape the local time data from the internet, but then again, I haven't found a smart plug yet that could do that. (I had two plugs that reverted after two months to Greenwich Mean Time and couldn't be reset -- ugh.) Still, considering that other small devices like my FitBit can adapt to local time by using my cell phone, I expect that particular functionality to be present in future generations if not in future firmware updates. You can also monitor energy usage for each plug with the app. Although energy usage can be instructive, most people won't feel the need to check that information.
The plug isn't perfect, just a lot better than other brands that I've tried. One drawback is the large size of the plug. Right now, I have two HS110s, and both need to be plugged into three-prong power strips because they take up valuable outlet space otherwise. It would be fantastic if future versions would be smaller so as not to block outlets from other plugs. Note that it comes in three-prongs only for powering, although a two-prong can be plugged into its three-prong opening; this could cause a problem in older homes or with two-prong extension cords.
Because I am thrilled by how well the HS110 works with the Echo, I hope TP-LINK comes out with wall switches and other Internet of Things devices.
UPDATE: I now have the light switch version of the plug, and it's wonderful to use as a timer or to activate via Alexa as long as it's on a single switch. You cannot use it on the three-way one.
-- Debbie Lee Wesselmann
