Monday, April 20, 2020

Does Amazon Smart Plug Work With Google Home?

Turning your home into a smart home adds convenience and safety. It allows you to schedule lights, thermostats, and other devices to work when you need them to. You can also turn devices off using your mobile device remotely. But not everyone wants to replace all of their appliances and fixtures with smart versions. It can become expensive to replace so many things at one time. The easiest way to transition to all smart devices is to buy smart plugs, like the Google Smart Home Plug. Connecting your smart plug with voice-enabled controls makes it even more efficient to control your devices. This leads us to the big question: does Amazon Smart Plug work with Google Home?

We’ll answer that question and more, but first, we’ll take a look at what smart plugs are.

A white smart plug is plugged into a white outlet that's on a blue wall.

What are Smart Plugs?

Smart plugs are small electrical plug inserts that can add smart capability to ordinary appliances or lighting. It’s as if the smart plug is the digital computer for each device. Instead of needing an entire smart device, you can add the functions of a smart device through the plug. And smart plugs are better for your budget, because they cost less than buying a smart device.

Integrating Voice-Enabled Controls to Your Smart Home

Turning your home into a smart home is as easy as adding smart plugs for all of your appliances and fixtures. You can control them from your mobile device easily. But what about controlling them from a voice-enabled device? While you may want to add voice control to your smartphone you should be aware that not all smart plugs work with all voice-enabled devices.

And what is the case with using the Amazon Smart Plug-in conjunction with Google Home or Google Home Mini. At this time, they aren’t compatible. So, if you can’t use the Amazon Smart Plug to connect with a Google Home to create your smart home, which smart plugs are compatible with the Google Home?

A grey and white Google Home Mini sits on top of a brown wooden bookshelf that is also holding a plant and other miscellaneous items.

Google Smart Home Plug Suggestions

Google lists all the partners that will work with Google Home and Nest devices here. You can shop for smart plugs and check them on this list to see if they are compatible with Google Home. Usually the boxes they come in or the product information online will tell you if they work with Google Home. Once you find the best compatible smart plug for your home, you can find which commands will work for each device or smart plug.

According to Google:

You can control over 30,000 smart home devices including TVs, remote controls, lights, appliances, plugs, thermostats, and more using your Google Nest or Google Home speaker or display.

That is a lot of smart devices for your Google Home to control.

Note: Just to be clear, the Amazon Smart Plug only works with Alexa, not any Google-owned voice-enabled speakers or other products.

What are the Benefits of Using a Smart Plug?

Besides the convenience of using a smart plug — the ability to turn things on and off remotely and making your home look like you are home with lighting controls — there are other benefits you get with any smart plug. Some of those benefits are:

  • Peace of mind (you can be sure to turn things off if you aren’t at home)
  • Lower energy bills
  • Monitor energy usage
  • Eliminate phantom power draw

Whether you want to save money on your energy bills (who doesn’t?) or support a reduction in energy because of climate change, you can use smart plugs to help. One of the ways you can do this is by eliminating “phantom power draw.” Phantom power draw occurs when devices draw electricity when they aren’t in use. The only way to eliminate this power draw is to shut off the electricity going to that device from the circuit breaker box or by unplugging it when not in use.

However, if you insert a smart plug between the device and the energy source, it will automatically interrupt that power flow, saving you money and eliminating wasteful use of energy simultaneously.

Smart Plug Brands that Work with Google Home

Several high-quality smart plugs that integrate well with Google Home. Examples include:

  • Belkin WeMo Insight
  • iDevices Switch
  • iClever Smart Plug
  • TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Mini Plug

Controlling Your Home with Smart Plugs

After reading this article, it’s apparent that smart plugs are beneficial. This is because of their ability to give us wireless control of items in our home. A smart plug can also enact important safety measures such as remotely controlling and switching off electrical connections.

But when you integrate smart plugs into a smart home security system, you’re equipping your home with complete interior and exterior protection. This extends upon your lights switching on while you’re away to convince potential intruders that you’re home. With smart home security from Protect America, you have a 24/7 professionally monitored system that’s customized to your needs. Our security packages don’t just include smart plugs, but other award-winning equipment that’s ready to detect suspicious activity. Click here to request a free quote today.

The post Does Amazon Smart Plug Work With Google Home? appeared first on Protect America Blog.



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