Smart Power Strip with 4 AC Outlets 4 USB Ports AOFO WiFi Smart Surge Protector Multi Plug Sockets APP Remote Voice Individual Control with Alexa Google Home Assistant

Sadly this is another Tuya based product that reports all data back to servers in China and even though I thought I owned the product I bought, it will become a brick when Tuya stops trading. The device is based on an ESP8285 controller so will run the open source Tasmota firmware but the version I bought at the beginning of Dec20 is the updated stock firmware that is deliberately revised to not work with the simple 'over-the-air' Tuya-Convert mechanism.Instead I had to open the unit (fortunately secured with tri-wing screws rather than welded) to access the stamp sized TYWE2S controller card and even then I had to desolder this from the main PCB as the GPI0 'flash' pad was not practical to access. Once removed, flashing with Tasmota and reassembly was a breeze.Now I have a device that I actually own independently from Tuya; it's 100% private and works way better with HomeAssistant, latency is far lower as commands are local rather than relayed via China.I understand that a lot of people will be happy with this product out of the box but it is beggars belief why Tuya have revised the product to make it harder to not rely on their infrastructure that they have to pay to run. Why is it so important to them that every piece of data goes though their servers?

Easy to setup, works great with Alexa through the accompanying app and has so many ports to plug into. What more could you want?

Purchased so that I could control my desktop / monitor / printer power while not at home.Linked to the SmartLife App - All 4 sockets are individually controllable, with a 5th option to turn the USB ports on/off. All can be named to anything you'd like. Linked into Alexa, the Power Strip, all 4 sockets, and usb power are all controllable as you'd expect.Loses a star for App being Funky - As an example let's say all sockets are powered on and you tell Alexa to turn off 1 of the sockets. The individual socket does go off correct, but in the app Alexa thinks you turned the entire power-strip off, so the app no longer reflects what is actually on/off.

So I have a HUUUUUGE amount of smart tech, I mean everything, so I am no stranger to Alexa and smart plugs. I actually purchased this as it works with the Tuya/Smart Home app which when you have as much smart tech as me it's always better to have it use an app you already use.Now my Tuya app already controls 26 bulbs and 10 power sockets so to have the 2 of these I purchased use an app I am way more than familiar with and means I don't have to install yet another app, currently 17, was the reason I got them. Now setup went as smoothly as it always does and I had them on my network within a minute, I then gave them a try and named the switches according to what was in them before asking Alexa to discover, no point in asking her to do the same job twice. She said she didn't find any new devices, this was strange so I made sure I was connected to the exact same router as the plug since I use a mesh system and launched the command on my phone. Again no luck. I decided I would enable the smart home skill again (something I don't like doing as this duplicates all the Tuya switches and bulbs and as mentioned I have a lot of them) anyway enabled and sure enough she found all the devices again so I now have duplicates BUT she did not find these power strips. Now I gave it my best shot but as a professional in this area I can tell you that the ones sent to me DO NOT work with Alexa.I see on some reviews that others have managed to get them to work and others not so my guess is that there are 2 different suppliers and the one who supplied mine is using some dodgy cheap knock off of the already dodgy cheap Chinese strip. I am unsure about keeping them without Alexa integration but I don't actually need Alexa for what these are doing, just always a nice touch and a fun game to try and remember what I've had to call a product to be unique, I swear that it takes longer to turn a TV I don't use often on with Alexa than an app or getting off my butt and pressing a button since I keep forgetting what I call the room it's in or if this is a TV or television. Maybe the lack of Alexa is a good thing for these.

I am going through the process of implementing smart devices into my home. I was going to purchase some smart plugs when I came across this, it integrates the functionality of several smart plugs into 1 extension lead, not only is it cheaper, it is also more compact.The extension lead feels well made and the power button is very nice feeling. It also features a mount on the back allowing you to install it onto a variety of surfaces.I connected this extension lead through the smart life app, this is convenient as most of my smart home devices use the same app. When adding it to Google home it is treated like 6 different smart plugs, 1 for each socket, 1 for the USB sockets and 1 for the entire extension lead.

I have a number of smart plugs that work with the Smartlife app and Alexa. I use the smart power strip to provide power to my TV and a number of devices that connect to my TV such as fire TV, Apple TV, Wii, Sonos Sub. There is no need to keep these accessories on all the time so I use Alexa voice commands to switch them on and off as appropriate. Great way of controlling devices and saving electricity by only switching on devices when I need them. Well made device with all relevant safety certificates. As with other smart plugs I have to switch off my 5GHz WiFi as I use a single SSID and the setup only works on 2.4GHz WiFi otherwise setup won’t pick up the device. Once setup you can switch the 5GHz WiFi back on. Each socket can be individually controlled but USB sockets are either all on or all off - this isn’t an issue for me. Would highly recommend this device, it doesn’t need a dedicated hub.