7 incredibly practical uses for a smart plug
The internet of things has brought us a better connected world, and the capabilities it offers continue to grow.
One technology that is rapidly gaining interest is the smart plug. It’s no surprise that these are getting more popular by the day – they provide the ability to make thousands of devices “smart”. Depending on how you set it up, you can control the plug with your phone, your voice via a home assistant such as Amazon Echo or Google Home or even automated sequences.
So, what can you actually use a smart plug for? Here are 7 uses:
Lamps
Using the combination of a smart plug and a lamp, you’re able to control the lighting with your voice or smartphone. This is great if you’re sat down on the sofa and don’t fancy getting up to turn the lamp on, or if you’re on a date and want to set the mood with some soft lighting – “Alexa, go into romance mood”.
Hair curler/straighteners
Person without smart plug: “Did I leave my straighteners on? No, I’m sure I turned them off. Or did I? I definitely did… but did I? Maybe I best go home. No, I know for a fact that I turned them off. Okay I’ll go home.”
Person with smart plug: “Did I leave my straighteners on? Not sure, I’ll turn the plug off just in case.”
Slow cooker
Not 100% sure what time you’ll be leaving work, but want to come home to a prepared meal? With a smart plug, you can pop everything you need into the cooker and then, when you know you’re going to leave work within an hour or two, you can turn the smart plug on with your phone.
Electric Fans
It’s currently summer here in the UK, so electric fans are out in many households. However, it would be nice to have them already on when we get home – to ensure air is being circulated by the time we step through the front door. A smart plug makes this easy!
Entertainment system
Leaving TVs, stereos and subwoofers on standby is a great way to waste electricity and money. Having a smart plug makes it easy to turn them off at the source, without needing to get behind the TV/entertainment unit.
Kettle
A coffee in the morning is a great way to start the day, especially if the kettle is already boiled by the time you get down to the kitchen. Fill it up the night before, flick the switch – and turn the smart plug on just before you walk downstairs.
Christmas lights
Is it never too early to think of the season of goodwill? It can be rather frustrating to climb into bed and then remember that you’ve left all the Christmas lights on. Well, it’s not frustrating if you have a smart plug!
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If you’re looking to purchase a smart plug, then look no further than the Ledvance Smart+ Plug.
The 2019 SMART+ Plug with Zigbee allows you to integrate conventional lamps and other standard equipment into your smart home system.
You just plug into a wall socket to control “non-smart” lamps and other devices and can add voice control by pairing with Amazon and Google.