Lately, the big thing has been the Internet of Things. We’ve seen some companies creating some really cool alternatives to the typical light bulb, smoke detector, thermostat and even outlets. Nyrius has a Smart Outlet that’s on sale now for about $40. We’ve spent the past couple of weeks with the device, and it’s pretty good. Although it could use some work.
To get started with the Nyrius Smart Outlet, just plug it in, download the app from the Google Play Store, and connect to it via Bluetooth. And that’s basically all there is to setting it up. You can rename the outlet as well. Which is a good idea if you have multiple Nyrius Smart Outlet’s throughout the house. From the app, you are able to turn on or off the outlet, as well as set a location. So for instance, you can set the outlet to turn on when you pull into the driveway. Which is great if you have your lights plugged into it. So your lights will be on when you open the door. You can also set timers, and schedules. So you can have the TV on for your kids for just an hour or two. Or you can even schedule the Smart Outlet to start brewing your coffee in the morning just before you wake up. Which is actually really handy, and cool.
The Nyrius Smart Outlet does do a lot of cool stuff. The app isn’t the prettiest app in the world, but it is simple to use and does get the job done. There’s not a whole lot of options right now with the Nyrius Smart Outlet, but we should see plenty more functionality added in over the next few months as Nyrius puts more time into the product. I do really like that they put the outlet on the Smart Outlet at the bottom. Making sure there’s enough room to have it plugged into the wall. Definitely a great placement.
This isn’t the only product that Nyrius sells for Home Automation, they too have made their own smart light bulb. You can check out their bulb and the Smart Outlet on their site. The Smart Outlet is actually on Kickstarter right now. Nyrius will be selling the Smart Outlet in a few months, around May, if you don’t want to back them on Kickstarter.
