UPDATED 13:31 EDT / JANUARY 12 2015

What you missed in the Smart World: Park bench that tells your weight, and more NEWS

5 smart plugs under $100 for the retrofitted smart home

What you missed in the Smart World: Park bench that tells your weight, and more

Last week’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, NV delivered some exciting new products to help homeowners automate their abodes. Seeking mainstream appeal, many of these new solutions don’t require the purchase of new appliances, but instead provide a way to retrofit unconnected objects through smart plugs.

At CES 2015, iDevices, LLC and iHome showcased their up-and-coming smart plugs, as did several other companies. If you’re looking to connect your home appliances to the Internet so you can remotely control them using your smartphone, here are five inexpensive smart plugs that are now available on the market.

 

D-Link Wi-Fi Smart Plug

 

WeMo Smart PlugThis device costs $39.99 on Amazon.com with free shipping. It allows users to remote control devices plugged in the D-Link Wi-Fi Smart Plug using a smartphone or tablet app. It is easy to set up using the Wi-Fi Protected Setup button, and it requires no additional hub or device to make it work. Users can turn appliances on or off or set a schedule for when they want these connected devices to turn on or off.

Belkin’s WeMo Switch

 

The WeMo Switch utilizes your home’s existing Wi-Fi network to let you remotely turn on or off appliances such as TVs, lamps, stereos, heaters, fans and more. All you need is a tablet or smartphone with the WeMo app installed. Then plug the WeMo Switch into an outlet in your home, and plug a device you want to control into the WeMo Switch. You can turn things on or off using the mobile app or use it to set schedules. The device costs $49.99.

SmartThings’ SmartPower Outlet

 

This device plugs into your home’s existing power outlet to allow you to plug appliances and control them remotely using your smartphone or tablet. The device costs $55 for a single unit, $105 for a two-pack bundle and $260 for a five-pack bundle. This is a ZigBee-based smart plug that allows you to control and monitor plugged-in appliances from anywhere in the world, as well as set schedules for when they turn on or off. You can also set it to automatically turn off when you leave the house or turn on just as you arrive.

ThinkEco’s modlet Starter Kit

 

The modern outlet, or modlet, fits into a standard 120V/15A outlet and offers two sockets, each of which has individual minute-level power measurement and is individually programmable for stopping plugged-in device power waste. The modlet Starter Kit costs $50 and comes with one modlet, one USB or Ethernet Gateway and easy-to-follow instructions. The USB Gateway needs to be plugged into a computer with Internet connection to allow users to remotely control plugged in appliances, while the Ethernet Gateway connects to the Internet by plugging into your home Internet router and giving you access to your modlets anytime, anywhere.

Fibaro Wall Plug

 

If you’re looking for a smart plug that’s not too bulky and won’t ruin the aesthetics of your home, the Fibaro Wall Plug may just be what you’re looking for. It is extremely compact, easy to setup with a touch of a button and allows you to control plugged-in devices using your smartphone or tablet. What makes it smart, aside from remote and scheduled control of plugged-in appliances, is that you can get notifications via SMS or email if a plugged-in device is overheating, malfunctioning or overloading. It also has child safety features, as well as over-the-air update capabilities. The device costs about $83.


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