The Meross smart plug mini boasts excellent compatibility and slim construction. On the hunt for new smart plugs to upgrade your home automation? One of our favorite picks, the Meross MSS110 Smart Plug Mini, is currently marked down on Amazon. The two pack is discounted from $34 to $27, and the four pack is down to $34 from its usual price of $52 . These plugs help add smart functionality to otherwise dumb devices around your home, like lamps or fans, so they can be included in your routines.

Should You Buy a Smart Plug? Smart plugs can add controls to any outlet, but they aren't perfect for everything. Here's our guide to using one and which ones to buy. A smart plug is a pretty handy gadget, but for a while they were touted as a device you could add to anything to turn it smart. That's true to a certain degree; you can use a smart plug to add instant power control to any outlet, letting you turn the outlet on and off at your command from anywhere in your home (or even if you aren't there).

When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. These are the smart devices I can't live without My household would fall apart without these smart gadgets up and running. I've been covering smart home and security products for years, and I've written about and reviewed scores of smart devices. Yet I can count on one hand (plus an extra finger or two) the number of smart devices that my family and I actually depend on. Sure, I have plenty of smart gadgets in my house that are nice-to-haves.

Smart homes don't need to be complicated or expensive. Take a methodical approach and keep an eye out for bargains and you can enjoy many of the conveniences of living in a smart home without spending much at all. The secret is to start slow, and to invest in a few solid products that will have the most impact, I'm talking electrical outlets, lighting, climate control, and the like. In other words, you can probably get by without a smart washing machine, but installing a smart thermostat will be a game changer for both your comfort and living expenses. One of the keys to successfully getting a smart home up and running is to ensure everything you install is fully compatible and interoperable. Many smart home ecosystems were originally designed around a central hub and wireless protocols that were supposed to hit it big, but that either never really took off or have faded in importance and mainstream appeal.

Do you want to turn your house into a den full of smart technology that's easy and fun to use? Look no further: Prime Day is here! From Ring doorbells to smart TVs and security cameras, there a whole suite of smart home products on sale for day 3 of Prime Day that will transform your home into one connected piece of advanced tech. You can get all the items on the list shipped to your door in 24 hours if you're an Amazon Prime member. You can join or start a 30-day free trial to start your shopping today. Amazon Smart plugs turn any outlet into a smart device.

Don't buy this multi-outlet for its surge protection feature, as it won't warn you when it can no longer deliver it. TP-Link's Tapo Smart Wi-Fi Wall Outlet Extender has some great features, as well as one critical shortcoming that prevents us from recommending it. Tapo doesn't make big promises for this product in terms of its surge protection, but it does list a key feature on the box: the ability to warn you when it can no longer provide surge protection. The Tapo Smart Wi-Fi Wall Outlet Extender isn't all bad news--provided you're not buying it for surge protection. Most surge protectors use sacrificial MOVs (metal oxide varistors) to absorb excess voltage from power surges, and this one is no exception.

The Tessan Remote Wall Outlet is a simple and reliable way to wirelessly control lamps and small appliances. Some will value its independence from the internet; but for a similar price, a smart plug with app and voice control offers far more versatility. The Tessan Remote Wall Outlet is a no-frills way to control lamps, fans, and other household devices without getting off the couch. Instead of relying on Wi-Fi, an app, or a voice assistant, it uses a simple remote to turn a plugged-in light or small appliance on and off. That makes it an easy option for anyone who wants wireless control without dealing with smart home hubs, apps, or the accounts associated with them.

Installing a smart plug is the easiest and least expensive way to get a feel for how the technology can improve your life. Plug one into your wall, plug in a lamp or a small appliance into the smart plug, connect it to your home network with the manufacturer's mobile app, and you'll be ready to experience all the advantages hands-free control can bring. There's no special wiring required. You'll be able to operate your smart plug remotely with your smartphone, set up a lighting schedule, or program it to turn lights on and off in a random pattern when you're away from home. If your plug is compatible with a smart speaker--and every one worth buying will be--you can also control it with voice commands: Alexa, Google Assistant, or Siri, depending on the device.

Some of the best smart home tech is the stuff you don't have to think about. My lamps have been connected to smart plugs for a long time now -- my living room lights turn on at dusk, go dark around 10PM (or when I tell Alexa goodnight) and complete a similar routine each morning. I haven't manually twisted a switch-knob or stumbled in the dark for over a year. And if I weren't continually thinking about smart plugs for this guide, I'd have forgotten about them completely. But not every plug offers seamless connectivity, and which plug works with which home ecosystem varies, too. Right now, the best plug for just about everyone is the Kasa Mini EP25, but there are other winners, depending on your needs. Based on our testing of around 15 options, these are the best smart plugs you can buy. All of the plugs eventually did what they said they would, but each had a quirk or two that gave me pause – except TP-Link's Kasa EP25. From installation to implementation, it was fuss-free and reliable.

There are 45 Prime Day tech deals under 50 that are still live for the second day of Amazon's sale. Here, we've gathered up the smaller gadgets and supporting accessories, brands and devices we've tested and reviewed and know to be worth your money. This list includes useful gear like chargers, storage cards, cables, batteries and even earbuds -- plus a few Lego sets thrown in for good measure. Here are the best Prime Day Tech deals under 50. If you've got 25 and some change in an account somewhere, you can get something decent from Amazon's sale (particularly if you're a Prime member and don't have to pay for shipping).