Smart home appliance maker Wyze is expanding its lineup to include a new connected wall plug that’s up for preorder today in a pack of two for $15. The device is pretty standard: it connects to an outlet, communicates with the Wyze mobile app, and lets you monitor and control power to whatever happens to be plugged in, be it a lamp or a coffee maker.
Wyze launches $15 pair of smart plugs for controlling your home appliances
The affordable smart home brand is expanding to wall plugs
The affordable smart home brand is expanding to wall plugs
Image: Wyze
is a Senior Producer on Decoder. Previously, he reported on the technology and gaming industries for more than a decade.
It works with Amazon’s Alexa and Google Assistant, but notably not Apple’s HomeKit, as is the case with a lot of smart plugs out there. It also has some nice features, like scheduling, a 15 amp maximum load for more power-hungry devices, and a vacation mode that turns on certain lighting appliances at random to give the appearance that you’re home to any would-be burglars. The plugs work with Wyze’s existing cameras and home security sensors so you can sync automation between them, like having an appliance turn on or off when a door is opening or closing.
Image: Wyze
It’s worth noting that Wyze’s main pitch — ultra-cheap smart gadgets that are reliably high-quality — doesn’t hold quite as well in the smart plug market. There are scores of well-reviewed smart plugs on Amazon, often sold in packs of two or even four, going for $15 to $30. And Amazon also makes its own, which is naturally placed high up in search results. That means it’s going to be harder for Wyze, which made a name for itself selling indoor security cameras for far cheaper than the competition, to stand out, especially when the most basic functions of a smart plug aren’t all that complicated to pull off.
That said, if you already own a few Wyze products, you’re likely familiar with the company and might be more inclined to expand your existing smart home ecosystem to include wall plugs from the Seattle-based startup. At $15, Wyze is still on the low end, and it beats Amazon, Gosund, Kasa, Teckin, and other top sellers on price by $10 or more. Wyze says you can preorder a pair of its smart plugs from its website starting today, with a shipping window of September 2019.
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