Remote-Outlet

Tag Archive: power strip

Fantastic Way to See What Anything You Plug in Uses for Energy!

I have an older model and needed more. I really like this Conserve Power Switch and the new style is nice. They are both economical and terribly useful.

I wish the unit could be thinner but it does the job. Three setting; 6, 3 and 30min as I recall. No more leaving my chargers on all the time. I have an old electric razor whose batteries are dead. Leaving it plugged in was a waste of power but this unit allows me to set the charge time for 30min and I can shave with my old razor. It was worth the money. I am thinking about getting one more.

It works as advertised- select the time to charge, hit the top button and it shuts off after charging for that amount of time. What I dislike about this product is that the time spans given of 1/2, 3 & 6 are too ridged for me. Find that I charge my instruments by the half hour several times to keep from having to have it on for the full 3 hours. I only need 1.5 hours to charge most things and think that adding a 1 hour option would have served this product well or to have it shut off automatically after it somehow senses that the charge is full. My other complaint is that my children like to push the ‘on’ button just to see the green light. Probably should have been made so that it doesn’t turn on to charge something when nothing is plugged in. With these two changes I would have given it 5 stars but it would probably cost a lot more as well.

While this is really nice, it’s not really any better than unplugging your device from the wall. Either way, when you want to use the device you have to reach to the outlet, and either plug in your device, or flip the switch. Then, when you’re done, you have to reach to the wall and unplug the device, or flip the switch. Flipping the switch doesn’t really take any less time than unplugging the device. While these outlets do look cool, and do do what they’re supposed to do, I’m not convinced it’s worth the cost.

This can be used for Blueray players, DVD players and similar devices that consume some power even when powered down. A simple flick of the switch to off position will cut off all power to the device. It works as advertised but I prefer the other products such as smart power strips that cut power when you turn the main device off. That type of strip does the turn off automatically of the other devices so you never have to think about it. This device is probably better suited for a kitchen for coffee makers and other applicances that pull power.

I’ve owned many power strips, USB hubs, surge protectors, printer cables, and peripheral-sharing switches. Every single device has performed reliably over time, exactly as advertised. This little energy-conserving device appears to be another fine product. You plug the device into a wall outlet, plug an appliance into the device, and the device turns the wall outlet and the plugged-in appliance on or off, with the flip of a little switch. The switch lights up in green to show that the wall outlet is delivering power to whatever it is that is plugged into the device.

When it is plugged into a wall outlet, the on/off switch is quite close to the wall. This means that it is just as easy to unplug whatever is plugged into the outlet as to flip the switch. So the main use for this switch that I see is to be able to turn off a device that you don’t want to plug and unplug all the time (to avoid wear and tear on the power cord).

As a matter of design, the lighted on/off switch isn’t particularly well-placed–it’s on the right side, not on the front. This means that when the device is plugged in, the lighted switch may be facing away from you or downward (depending on how your wall outlets are oriented), and you won’t be able to tell at glance whether the outlet is on or off.

February 24, 2014 Outlet, , , , 0 Read more >

Money Saver

You have a choce of three time settings, on the side; and a tap-on button on top that lights when the plug is being used.

I use 2 in the kitchen – electric teapot and the toaster; and another in each bathroom, where they come in handy for hair dryer or curling iron, and even a night light.

Wish there was a double outlet model so you could set two devices for different power periods at the same source. For instance, I would like to be able to charge my phone a set of flameless candles in the same location. The single outlet model is too large to allow use of 2 in the same outlet.

Don’t really know how much power it saves, but it certainly can’t hurt, and it is a lot more convenient than having to unplug the many devices used around the house

One of my TVs would turn on after a power failure so now it can’t. We just set the unit to run for 3 hours when we want to view this TV as we normally only watch this one for perhaps an hour at bedtime. The unit does not use any power once it turns itself off. Times devices for 30 minutes, 3 hours or 6 hours, whichever you want.

First to figure wattage loads of different products in our home for our emergency generator. Second to find out just how much power items around the house use when “off”. I was amazed at how much power some things around the house use when “off”. Individually they are not much but when you add them all up it equals a lot of wasted money and add to it the fact that our power company is upping their rates 10% this month and this monitor has saved us a good bit. I have since put many things on power strips and now when I turn the strip off things are really “off”. One last thing, not having to crane your neck down under the desk to read the display is a definite bonus compared to many of the other energy monitors I have seen.

I have an extra battery so I just put it in for 3 hours and then when I need the extra battery it is ready to go and I don’t have to worry about unplugging it all the time. It would be nice to have on of these with more outlets.

It does have the benefit of being easy to read when the socket is behind furniture. Measuring power consumption is kind of a pain if you have to crawl behind furniture with a flashlight to read it. The Belkin’s display is on a cable that can be placed nearby so it can be read easily.

And after exactly one month, my energy bill arrived and it was a whole $10 less!!! So, now I’ve installed the Belkin Conserve Smart AV F7C007q Energy-Saving Power Strip (for the TV console–keeping the Tivo & router on but turning off the 2nd Tivo and Netflix box when the TV gets turned off); and also 2 of the the cute little Belkin Conserve Socket F7C009q Energy-Saving Outlet (one for my office shredder and my electric toothbrush). And now I’ve added the Stanley 31164 Indoor Wireless Remote Control with Single Transmitter, White, 3-Pack for the hot water pot that’s on 6 hours every day, my appliance strip which covers toaster, rice cooker, blender and Breville juice extractor–to my kitchen to stop vampire energy loss.

I’m on a roll and look forward each month to how much I’ll save with these 3 Belkin and 1 Stanley products together! If I can saving $20-25 per month…well that adds up to a LOT in one year!!! I can think of other, better things to spend my money on like here on Amazon–more Kindle books…and…I have a huge wishlist.

February 22, 2014 Outlet, , , , , 0 Read more >

Glad It’s Simple, But Could Use a Couple Features

We use this hooked up to a power strip for our cell phone chargers, iPod charger and bedside table lamps. Turn it on about an hour before bed and turns off at what time we select. It is so easy to use and actually does turns off when it’s supposed to! I only wish it had two outlet holes and had an option for 8 hours(intervals are 1/2 hour, 3 hours and 6 hours) as I would like to hook it up to our sound machine.

If you are wanting to save energy on some outlets you know you use only at certain times like we do, purchase this! It is such a great, useful way to conserve just a little energy in your home (and some money on your bill!) Very happy with product and ease of getting the item out of packaging.

It was thrown into a paper bubble envelope which had been smashed and torn almost open. I was concerned that it would even work and I had to pay a lot for shipping. I ordered another one a few days later from another company for the same price and free shipping. This one came in a box inside of another box. I was shocked at the difference. I know where I will be ordering my future items from.

I like that it is simple. I wish they made one with a remote and/or a corded “button” to activate it, however, so it could be more easily activated. I also wish they’d let you use the start button as an on/off toggle button– currently, you can only cut the timer on by pushing the button, but hitting the button again will not cut it off; The only way to shut it off is to unplug it. I also wish they’d sell them in packs of 3 or 4 at a discount (maybe four for $25 or $30?). Easy to use buttons. The longer you leave it connected, the more accurate the cost estimate over time, as chargers for things like laptops and cell phones use different watts depending on how much of a charge they have. Having the display away from the wall is genius. Excellent purchase.

I would have given it five stars if the instructions had said that the green led that shows that the power is on is vey very dim once you have pressed the start button. Without that clarification, I was concerned that it wasn’t operating properly.

For the money it is a very good purchase. I would have liked the option to reset the timer without having to unplug the unit from the wall, but I suspect that that would have added to the price, so I can live with the shortcoming.

The cost of a kWh in HI is 28 cents, more than double most places on the mainland. Having a long cord on the unit allows me to check on the power usage without having to weasel around to read the device at the wall outlet. The unit can tell you how much you will pay for power used on a monthly and yearly basis. You can also update the power cost which is set by default at 11 cents per kWh.

February 21, 2014 Outlet, , , , 0 Read more >

Excellent Power Saver

It lacks any sort of archival features such as memory to save results or USB to computer data transfer, but for testing devices one at a time, this is an excellent device. The inclusion of a carbon-footprint mode seems silly, but for those that care about such things, it can be interesting to see. Overall, the product is excellent and I would recommend it to anyone wanting to gain insight on their electric bills.

It’s very helpful with something like a space heater or a vaporizer that you want to make sure is off after a certain amount of time. We’ve been using it with our space heater in the bedroom to warm up the bedroom while we’re getting ready for bed and after we go to bed, then it shuts off after we’re asleep. It has a half-hour setting, 3-hour setting, and 6-hour setting. Very handy, except I wish it had an 8-hour setting.

Some efforts have been quite expensive like installing all new heat pump and air conditioners while others have been small and simple such as power strips etc…

When this came up, I decided to give it a try as every little bit adds up. It’s super simple to install..plug it in, plug in the appliance or item, hit a small switch that acts like a timer. That’s all there is to it. It’s a great way to reduce those vampire watts without the headache or hassle of having to always unplug items.

Unfortunately there were two problems we encountered – one is with appliances without a solid memory storage that require reprogramming if shut down entirely. That is NOT the problem of this device but limited the use on some items.

Next, like many households we actually have a LOT of little items that could use this but even at a relatively low price, it would add up significantly to change over. Also, negating a plug was a little problematic in some areas. All in all, a nifty little device that works as advertised and is simple to install.

Most days I notice it, but still worry on the days I don’t look before I leave the house. The Belkin Conserve Socket is a robust timer that can run some heavier loads (such as a hair iron) without issue. In the morning, my wife presses the button on the top of the Conserve Socket and it allows her to power-up her iron and do her thing. When she is done, she shuts it off normally, but if she forgets, we don’t have to worry because the Conserve Socket will kill the power after 30 minutes (a value that you can select) For the money, it was nice because it eliminated a worry of mine and wasn’t too complicated to upset my wife.

February 14, 2014 Outlet, , , , , , 0 Read more >

Very Well Thought-out Product

My application required the three-prong feature, or for me to use multiple adapters. The only switches in my local hardware store were two-prong, so this suited my needs. Now, my application is for an overhead lamp in the laundry area of my garage. It has a power cord hanging down from it to plug into a wall AC socket. No switches. This product has an LED light embedded in the switch. Except it ‘lit’ when the switch is on, and dark when the switch is off. This is a bit counter-intuitive for my application – I would rather have the swtich lit when the overhead light is off so I can navigate to it in my darkened or dimly lit (depending on the time of day I do my laundary) garage. But it works the opposite of that.

Electricity cost/kwh can easily be set, and co2/khw can be set as well. Averages tell you the yearly/monthly cost based on duty cycle / historical usage. I read the 1-star reviews and there are some mistakes and misinformation there, however, one legitimate complaint is that it does not give you total KWH used since beginning a measurement. You can back-out the math to easily calculate this based on the yearly cost projection if you know the amount of time spent measuring, but this is a legitimate shortcoming that it can’t simply display the number. Overall however, a VERY well thought out product and still squeaks by to deserve 5-stars.

This is very handy when you have devices that continue to draw power when “off” (like electronics with power bricks and other so-called “vampire” appliances that constantly draw power) or appliances for which you want to have extra assurance that they’re off (e.g., irons). Given that U.S. power outlets down’t have switches, I usually unplug such appliances. This solution is more convenient. It essentially introduces a power switch right at the outlet, cutting power completely to whatever is plugged in when you toggle the switch, without having to unplug the device. It’s like a power strip without the big strip. It’s a relatively low cost and very convenient way to completely cut the power without having to unplug and replug appliances all the time. I sort of wish U.S. electrical outlets were wired with this functionality, as in the rest of the world. In the meantime, this is a relatively cheap and simple solution.

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

Probably the Best Option Right Now

The Kill-a-watt type meters are bulky, and plug into an outlet where they’re really hard to read.

This unit solves both problems: The bulk at the outlet is reduced, although it can still be improved; there’s no reason the bulk needs to be at the outlet at all.

And the display is not only nice and large, easy to read; it is also connected with a wire that allows you certain freedom in where you put the meter. The cable could be longer, but, you know, this is still a fantastic unit, and reasonably priced.

I bought this primarily for my bathroom so I could turn on my speakers and if I forgot to turn them back off, the timer would do that on my behalf. However, I do like to shut it off manually to save energy before the 3 hour wait is done (30 minutes is too short for morning rituals) and it just plain doesn’t work. I can turn it on, but turning it off requires pulling it from the wall. Probably a fluke, but there should be some product consistency.

I originally was going to buy the P3 Kill-A-Watt but thisdevice allows you to plug it into the wall and look at the monitor at a distance with the lengthy wired lead. There are adaptor leads for the P3 but this made more sense.

I would suggest this device for anyone wanting to know how much energy your various devices use.

I think the concept here is spot on. However, I have used routinely “light strips” (power strips) that do the same thing, some of these even with lighted switches, most of these available at various places including hardware stores for comparable prices but having up to 6 outlets which can be handy if there might be some additional item that you need to plug in to the same circuit without of course overloading the circuit. True, even the 3′ corded power strips can be a tad bulky compared to a single switch item like this, so you really have to decide what would work best for you.

One thing I mentioned to Amazon in their “Tell us what we missed” section regarding the description is that I can’t see any mention of the maximum amperage or wattage rating (someone please correct me if I’ve overlooked that piece of information). Given that they describe how this can be used with appliances that are typically high wattage (coffee pots, etc.) I would ASSUME that the amperage is at least 15A, but ideally this should be specified in the information for the product.

February 8, 2014 Outlet, , , 0 Read more >