Building a smart device is now the order of the day and dizzying expenses are no longer necessary to obtain satisfactory results, and a truly efficient and functional system. Among the accessories that cannot be missing in the home, for remote control, are the smart sockets. These allow you to turn on and off non-smart devices, from the washing machine to the coffee machine, and even to control them with the Google assistant or Amazon Alexa. This time we try Tapo P100, the smart plug that comes from TP-Link.
Tapo is a TP_link brand, which offers smart peripherals at very competitive prices (see our review of the Tapo C200 camera), but without sacrificing quality and without compromising. Taking the P100 socket by hand, you immediately notice the quality of the peripheral: it is solid and well made. Over time this type of socket has been improved, and in fact the P100 appears more compact than many other competitors. Overall it has square shapes, very modern, and even when it is in plain sight, perhaps on a high and not hidden grip, it makes its figure.
It works at a maximum load of 2300 w, 10 a, on 2.412 – 2.484 GHz wireless frequencies, and supports the IEEE wireless standard IEEE802.11b / g / n. What immediately surprised us positively was the ease of configuration.
We did it with an Android smartphone of Chinese matrix, which often with other peripherals of the kind returned some initial setup problems. In this case, with the P100, we saw no difficulty: after turning it on, it was enough to open the Tapo app, carry out an automatic search for the socket, connect it to the wireless line at home, and start using it.
Tapo P100 is, therefore, an essential grip, which points straight to the goal, without getting lost in chatter. The simplicity and speed of configuration is also reflected in its use via the app.The main screen is minimal, but it has everything you need: at the top the button to turn it on and off, while a little further down it offers three different modes: program the '' switch on and off automatically, set a timer, and start the out-of-home mode.
The latter is used to turn the socket on and off randomly in a predetermined amount of time, when you are away from home. In this way it will be possible to simulate, for example, the switching on and off of a lamp, rather than the TV, or other appliances in the house, so as to simulate the presence of someone in the house and keep any malicious persons away.
A little further down, again in this main screen, there are the usage statistics, and the hours of work carried out in a day, week and month are shown.
The Tapo P100 smart socket works particularly well, and has never made us register malfunctions: it responds perfectly to commands, both those given remotely and those from the same wireless network, both from the app and from the voice assistants .
Yes, because in addition to operation via the app, the Tapo socket can also be controlled via voice assistants. In this case, simply connect the Tapo account with which you made the first access through the app for the first configuration, and the Google Assistant (or Amazon Alexa) will automatically recognize all the sockets previously configured in the house. From this moment on, it will be sufficient to launch the command “ok, google, switch on / off socket …” to obtain the desired effect. Also in this case the operation did not lend itself to weak points.
Possible uses
It goes without saying that the uses at home are innumerable. Not only is it possible, for example, to choose to turn a lamp on and off at certain times, thus always simulating a constant presence inside the house, but also to power the coffee machine or other appliances in the kitchen, being able to turn them on with a simple voice command.
Conclusions
The Tapo P100 smart socket works well, there is nothing to object to, and it also costs little. A little more if you look at lesser-known Chinese brands, but the TP-Link brand is still known within the panorama and, probably, this makes the peripheral more secure for long-term support. As has already happened with other smart sockets, the advice is to buy the bundles on Amazon, which allow you to take home, at even more advantageous prices, packs with plug, light and Tapo camera.
PRO
VERSUS
Prices and availability
The single plug costs 14.99 euros, while the 4-socket bundle costs 39.99 euros, so less than 10 euros per outlet. For other Tapo devices, and bundles, click here.
