Remote-Outlet

Tag Archive: outlet remote

Great Idea, and Almost Perfect Execution

Came across this one at a good price and 5 outlets. I attach the remote to the wall and use the outlets for various lighting setups throughout the main floor of my house, and also my Wireless router that I use with a mobile broadband card. To get good signal I have to set it up quite high, and would need a ladder to reset it as needed. Now I just click the remote off and on to restart.

Why I gave 4 stars.

Pros:

More outlets than most with 5.

Slim remote with front loading batteries so I can attach it to the wall and still change them.

Distance seems good, the furthest I have is about 20feet.

Price is right.

They have a manual on/off button on the outlets.

Cons:

The outlets themselves are quite a bit bigger than the other units I have had. Basically they are ugly, and you will want them hidden from view. No idea why they are so big because it doesn’t appear that the casing is full of electronics. Meaning most of it appears hollow.

Overall, if you want a simple setup like I described, and your outlets will be mostly hidden, you can’t beat these for the price.

I choose this one because it had on and off button right on the units so the remote control is not required. Remote has good range and units do what they are suppose to do…. well sort of.

The knock I have against this is that they too drain power even with in the off position. For instance, I figured I’d use on the microwave for when it’s not in use, which is like 23.5 hours a day. Although the microwave only drained about 0.8 watts when plugged in, I though I’d attempt to save even that by turning it off with one of these units. The problem is that each of these units also drain 0.8 watts per hour when connected. That’s not so bad right? not at all except in the case of the microwave and a few other items, it makes no sense to use these.

However, if you have say an entertainment center or at a minimum a flat panel digital TV, the 0.8 watts is nothing. Many people don’t realize that just having the average LCD/LED/Plasma screen TV plugged in and turned off drains 40-60 watts per hour.. Again, that’s turned off. That like running 3-4 CFL light bulbs 24 hours a day. If you simply connected that TV and any other items nearby (say DVD player, cable/sat receiver, or TIVO) to one of these units and turned it off when not in use, you’d save upwards of 70-90 watts per hour during non use times.

However, since have most of my electronic on a surge strip that has an on/off switch, I simply turn off the switch and it uses no additional power. So now I find myself looking for a place to actually use these that will save me on power.

I realize the power is needed, probably, for the wireless remote communications…. so you give a little for the convenience.

I did find a home for a few of these. I put them in the kids’ room. I already had power strips in them but found another convenience. Because we have the power strips and plugs in hard to reach places, these make it easy to shut the power strips down. Also at night, we can easily turn of the TVs, DVD player, cable box, and etc… from our bedroom, after the kids fall asleep. We can also turn them off as we prepared to walk out the door.

Between using this and a number of power switches with on/off switches, we’ve seen a decrease in our power consumption/bill of between around 16-19% over the months following the installations. I accredit most of the drop to the use of power strips and us diligently turning them off when not in use, but these controllers make it easier to turn of several of those switches.

Good luck and think GREEN!

January 20, 2014 Outlet, , , , , , 0 Read more >

Best Christmas Accessory EVER!

This unit works every time all the time and is easy to install and use. The receiver is large and my cover on outlet in the duplex so that may be a slight negative for some – no non switched outlet so you take up a plug with your application. For me these are very minor issues – I would purchase again if I need another five receivers.

It still provides power, but without taking the plug apart, I can’t see why the remote simply stopped turning it on and off.

If you need to control 5 outlets with a single remove, you can’t beat this. Highly recommended.

I have a few lamps behind my couch that are hard to reach to turn off. With one click of the button I am able to turn them on or off. I have used one additional outlet in my bedroom to turn on a light in the bathroom so when I wake in the middle of the night, I can walk safely with out tripping. So many possibilities for this product. Great for hard to reach areas when you must have access to power a product on or off. I am considering purchasing an additional set for my elderly Mother.

I used it only inside, so I can not say anything about outside use, sorry.

But it worked great for remote controlled Christmas lightning. I had pieces connected all over the house on all floors and it worked like a charm. There is no a lot else I can say :-)

Ok, one more thing, the boxes are a little big 2.5 by about 5 inches is not small…..

Worked well. Can control all five plugs with one control. Since control has five separate on/off switches, you can separately control each of five plugs from anywhere in house. Makes holiday light management enjoyable. I highly recommend this set. I might order another set or two as gifts.

Now, I don’t have to always go underneath the aquarium stand and manually turn off or unplug certain electrical components. The receivers are huge and you need to make some space so they won’t be piling on top each other which may be a hazard. I used a surge protector with five 6 inch extenders which plug into the receivers. Works great.

This was amazing! Now I just pick up the remote and done. Even better, I can turn on my tree, my garland, the mantelpiece, the kids Christmas tree and the snow village all without getting off my bum! One thing to note it does make a soft little click every time you turn it on or off just in case you needed absolute silence when using it. I love this and show it off to everyone who comes over.

January 16, 2014 Outlet, , , , 0 Read more >

All in One Now

We use to have 4 or 5 individula remote controls to operate the Christmas lights on our tree, the hanging fiber optic decorations and other decorations around the house. We had to have a remote control for each one. Now we just have one remote and it controls all of them, We just make small taped labels to identify which operates which. They also worked great for our outside decorations on the house and porch without have to go outside to turn things on and off. They-re Great.

It works beautifully! Turns my garbage disposal on and off without having to run special wiring to a switch. Would be an awesome remote for a lamp, tv, stereo, etc. I highly recommend it.

They work flawlessly. I can now selectively turn on lights around my room to save power. It is also great because I don’t have to fumble around for a light at night. I just keep the remote near my bed.

The remote works well. The buttons provide good feedback, and there is a small light at the top to indicate that you’re pressing the button. When the units turn on, they make a slight, audible click.

There are only two things I dislike about this wireless socket. First, if you plug the socket into a switched outlet, it forgets it’s last setting. For example: when I turn the light on with the remote, then I turn the wall outlet switch off. You might expect that if I switched the wall outlet on, the light would come on. Unfortunately, it defaults to off. The only other downside is that it is positively gigantic. I will upload pictures that will try.to demonstrate the size of these sockets. I expected them to be big, but I couldn’t help but laugh when I saw how big they actually are. This isn’t a deal breaker, and it doesn’t affect me much. It doesn’t allow much room for other items to plug in. I have only found one lamp that has a plug small enough to fit beneath this socket without unplugging it too much. It is impossible to securely plug both this socket, and another cord into the same outlet. If you are thinking about putting this thing behind any furniture, think again. With the plug sticking out of this socket, it is virtually impossible to fit it behind anything. You could always attach it to a grounded extension cord. It probably says not to do that, but I’m sure it would be fine if the cord was strong enough. It would allow it to be stashed in less noticeable places. Also, the range is unbelievable. I can turn my lights on from anywhere in my house. It can go through literally anything. Short of taking the remote outside, I can’t find anywhere that it doesn’t reach.

Hindsight, I would have purchased the set with 2 remotes. It would be nice to be able to keep one by the entrance to my room, and one by my bed. That way, when I walk in the room I don’t have to look for a remote in the dark. I have solved this problem by hooking up some of my lights to a main switch by the door, and the rest are in non-switched outlets controlled by the remote.

These sockets may be huge, but I couldn’t ask for them to function any better. They also feel like they’re actually full of something, so it’s not just a cheap design. If function is more important than fashion, these are the sockets for you. If looks are at the top of your list, I would encourage you to reconsider. For the price, I couldn’t ask for much more. I will upload some pictures of this socket to put its size into perspective. I will also update this review if anything changes. They have served me well for over two months. As of now, I would highly recommend these wireless sockets for anyone looking for wireless socket switches.

January 13, 2014 Outlet, , , 0 Read more >

The Work Great, But They Are Immense!

The only problem is the actual sockets are a little big and with old style wall sockets it becomes hard to use both when these are in. The remote is ok I guess, it isn’t 100% responsive all the time so you have to click the button a couple of times to get what you want done, but for the price it is great!

We use to have 4 or 5 individula remote controls to operate the Christmas lights on our tree, the hanging fiber optic decorations and other decorations around the house. We had to have a remote control for each one. Now we just have one remote and it controls all of them, We just make small taped labels to identify which operates which. They also worked great for our outside decorations on the house and porch without have to go outside to turn things on and off. They-re Great.

The price is excellent. I would right a more extensive review but there is no need to. If you want to control your refrigerator, lamp/lights you can easily do this with this remote control pack. Did I mention the price is great for this set of controllers.

My only complaint is the fact that the receiving units that plug in are so large. It would be nice if they were a bit smaller! You will need to really reorganise how the rest of your stuff is plugged in, because you will lose an outlet when you plug one of these units in…

The price is excellent. I would right a more extensive review but there is no need to. If you want to control your refrigerator, lamp/lights you can easily do this with this remote control pack. Did I mention the price is great for this set of controllers.

This solved the problem quickly and for a great price. I haven’t found a use for all 5 of them yet, but 3 of them are working on various lights and air filtering units as well as the DC. Try it, you’ll like it !!

I’ve had them for months now and they are extremely reliable and and sturdy, the remote control signal has also been reliable and strong. The only drawback is their size. They are extremely large and bulky units and given the way the plug portion is designed they have to be plugged into the upper openings of outlets and sometimes will still block the lower opening for all but the smallest plugs of other devices. I would still buy again, as previous wireless units I’ve brought would not last very long and have some kind of malfunction. These have been bulletproof so far…

January 12, 2014 Outlet, , , 0 Read more >

Great Item. Very Useful. Highly Recommended

i knew before that these things are usually pretty big but these are significantly bigger than the Stanley ones. Stanley 31164 Indoor Wireless Remote Control with Single Transmitter, White, 3-Pack for me this really wasn’t an issue but it basically takes up both outlets. the open outlet still has enough room for a simple plug to be plugged in but anything bigger like an iPhone charger won’t fit.

the range is good. i’ve been able to activate it from at least 30 feet without direct line of sight through dry wall. sometimes you have to press it more than once but usually works on the first click. depends on how picky you want to be.

the only down side is that it uses special 12V 23A battery so harder to replace. also the left and right buttons don’t really mean anything. you just have to hit it in the middle. one press = off; next press = on and so on.

i haven’t tried it with any heavy duty appliances so can’t speak towards how well that works but it’s rated at maximum 1200W per outlet.

even with these few negatives they don’t really bother me and they work extremely well for my purpose at this price range.

I use it with floor standing lamps with CFL bulbs when I am not using a 3 way bulb to allow for instant on instant of turning the nob 3 times. It works really well and had good range of at least 30 feet. I deducted 1 star because of the size. It is really big and essentially makes the 2nd outlet unusable unless you’re using a small, basic plug which is annoying. Also the plug on the back cannot be rotated to fit into certain outlets/spaces which would be a nice plus. If they could make this slightly smaller (like the Stanley version) and the plug able to be rotated then it would be perfect.

I have not tried 2 separate ones in the same house as the 2 I have are in 2 different homes.

The receivers are a bit larger than I had hoped but doable. Had to add a couple outlet strips. Nice to be able to control 5 outlets with one remote control. I reserved the 5th one for our yearly Christmas tree.

I use it to light up my accent LED lights behind my IMAC and my Flat Screen TV. It is very responsive. I dont even need a line of sight to operate these. I must say that it does the job well.

It is very economical and ideal to have 5 outlets and 1 remote. No need to carry multiple remotes.

I have setup 1 remote outlet to my Modem. Sometimes my kids will not stop using the internet. I just hit the switch to shutdown the modem and not the router. Meaning, they are still connected to the router but without and internet connection. :)

I highly recommend this to all. Trust me, you will definitely find a use for it. These are better models than what Home Depot and Lowes sells.

About the seller, I spoke to them on the phone and they are very professional, polite and most importantly, they listen. I hope everybody is like this seller. I called them to tell them how satisfied we are with this product.

I will definitely buy again from this seller.

January 9, 2014 Outlet, , , , , , 0 Read more >

Gives One Great Convenience for Lighting Fixtures Around the House

Every time I press the button it turns whatever I have plugged in on.The outlet part is bigger than I expected.If you are planning on putting it behind furniture than it needs to be far from the wall.

This is the best package deal: 5 outlets and 2 remotes. Most packages have only 3 outlets and 1 remote. What if you lose one (or both) of the remotes? All is not lost since each outlet has an override button. Separate on and off buttons on the remote for each outlet. Other remote models have only one button for on and off, so you have to watch your device to see if it turned on or off, which is not as convenient. Good range: The remote works in our 2-story house with 4,000 square feet (box says 100 feet range). LED indicator light on each socket to indicate power is flowing.

Overall, I’d recommend this particular remote-controlled outlets combo, especially for the holidays. I have several sets of lights around our house. Most of them are LED, so I don’t have to turn them on and off, but it’s nice to have options. After the holidays, I might hook them up to the floor lamps inside our living room.

This one has the range the quality and everything else you would want. Only thing that could use some improvement is how bulky the plug in is… other than that love it!!!! I’ll just add my own comments on the pros and cons and value offered. First, I think this is a great value and a good deal for all that is offered. The product performs well, and works as described here. Overall, I am satisfied and think these are very good and a solid four stars, but see the pros and cons below.

Works as presented!! Came in a timely fashion. Only one draw back. It only allows. one plug in device in into a outlet. Would be nice if they redesign it so you could use another item into the same outlet.

And mine worked easily right out of the box. Mentioned in another review, do not under estimate the size of the plug. It dominates a duplex receptacle turning that outlet into a one trick pony. It is even difficult to find a multi outlet splitter that will accommodate the remote plug and a second standard transformer. I found a six plug tap at Wally World and it barely worked for this remote plug in and another transformer. That said, I bought this for a specific task, but having four more I’m on the prowl for more uses around the house.

January 8, 2014 Outlet, , 0 Read more >