Kasa Smart WiFi Plug Mini by TP-Link – Smart Plug, No Hub Required, Works with Alexa and Google (HS105 KIT), white

I started out by purchasing 2 of these to control standalone lamps in my master bedroom and home office/den. I quickly used the Krasa app to add them to my network, then in less than 60 seconds I used my Alexa app and connected these to my Amazon Echo system, which now consists of 3 echo dots, 1 regular echo, and a new Echo Show.I then bought 2 more to connect my living room main light and an additional lamp. Flash forward to this year with the onset of the Christmas season. Because I go all out for Christmas, decorating my entire downstairs and part of the upstairs, I had one goal in mind—to control ALL of my Christmas lights on both levels through my Echoes and dots, which means going through my Krasa app. To accomplish this, I purchased a few more of these smart plugs in the 2-packs (which are slightly cheaper than buying them individually). I used the Krasa app to add them to my current setup, gave them a short name so I'd know which was which, then I used the Alexa app to discover them all. I presently have 8 of these around the house in various places, with Christmas lights, animated figurines, even my main Christmas tree all plugged into these smart plugs. I did this with the help of extension cords and a power strip that are used to accept the plugs of all the aforementioned lights and figurines, etc. The power strips are at the end of the chain and get plugged into the TP Link mini-plug. Then on the Alexa app I place all of these mini-plugs into one group entitled, quite simply, "Christmas lights." When I want to turn them on, I now simply say, "Alexa, turn on Christmas lights," and instantly, all the lights, figurines, and the Christmas tree are on. I use a similar command to turn them all off. No more running around to all the different outlets, bending down, maneuvering around tight spots or Christmas decorations that are placed to hide the outlets, plugging and unplugging everything. My entire house can now be all controlled with one command to Alexa.I should point out that for me, the setup of these mini-plugs to my Wi-Fi network took less than 1 minute per plug, if that; and connecting them to my Krasa app (the app used with these devices) also took less than 1 minute. Ditto for getting them set up in the Alexa app. Total for each device's complete, individual setup was about 2 to 3 minutes.Final but very important note here: if you have an old Wi-Fi router or a weak signal in some parts of your residence, the latter of which is common if your router is placed a bit of a distance from your mini-plugs, you will probably experience connection issues when trying to set up or use these devices. In all seriousness, if you're going to even have an Echo or Dot, you really ought to seriously consider spending the money to upgrade your Wi-Fi router, and this might include buying a setup like the Netgear Orbi, which is THE best system to give you powerful and strong Wi-Fi in a large home of 3 stories, for example. Extenders aren't that good. The Orbi is uniquely different. My Wi-Fi router is a year old, has 4 antennas on it, runs all the wireless bands, and was placed by me in the center of my house, providing a very strong signal to all my various devices, of which there are plenty.Lastly, it's also good to have a reliable and fast Internet service. After having Comcast for so long, where I had their fastest service at the time, when I moved into my newly constructed house in summer 2016, I went a different route. Comcast was wired for my new subdivision, but they didn't even realize it! Because they argued with me about this, telling me they couldn't provide more than 100 megs download and 25 megs upload, I decided to go with AT&T, which had installed fiber optic lines along their entire paths. They hooked me up right when I moved in, and I'm getting 1GB download AND upload on my wired main PC, while I'm getting anywhere from 700 to 900 megs download and 700 to 900 megs upload on my wireless connections (wireless will always be a bit slower than wired). This absolutely blows away Comcast, and at a lower price! More importantly, however, these speeds provide for far more reliability and performance with my TP Link smart plugs and smart bulbs, which I also have.

I have had a few of these since they were first announced and have bought more! I am up to 6 of these.Pros:- Does not block the other plug on an outlet! This was important, especially in older homes where outlets may be limited.- Easier than installing smart switches, dealing with grounded switches, etc. It is all plug and play- Very Fast response! I have seen other brands take upwards of 30 seconds to respond. I tell Google or use the TP Link Kasa app and within 3 seconds or sooner the plug responds.- No Hub required, it uses WiFi, which is probably why it has a fast response.- Set a schedule to turn on/off, or vacation mode. Besides a specific time of day, you can use Sunrise and Sunset per your location- Set a timer, so it turns on/off after "x" amount of time- Has runtime reporting in the Kasa App for Today/Past 7 Days/Past 30 Days for the number of hours the device has been on- 15 Amp rating or 1800W at 120V so you can plug in space heaters and lamps- Installation and setup is easy. The pairing process with the app walks through the setup. Integration to Google Home was as simple as signing into and giving access to your TP Link Kasa account for control through Google Home. Took maybe 4 minutes.Cons:- Need to have 3 pin outlets. I rented at a place that we had to upgrade the outlets to 3 pins, it is more safe to have the ground especially for space heaters or things with a high load.- Relies on lower frequency WiFi. So the plugs us a 2.4Ghz WiFi band, not a 5Ghz band. Most smart devices use the lower spectrum, so it is not a big deal, unless your router is only a 5Ghz WiFi router. Most routers have both frequency bands. Could be problematic depending on your home layout and building materials along with your network setup.These smart plugs are part of my daily routine. I have them connected to lamps that help me wake up in the morning, turn on at night, run fans in the summer, christmas lights (indoor) and a heater in the winter. I feel more safe knowing I have lights on at home when I am away, I can schedule space heaters that are not always on, and I can integrate with my phone and smart home.