SONOFF S31 WiFi Smart Plug with Energy Monitoring, 15A Smart Outlet Socket ETL Certified, Work with Alexa & Google Home Assistant, IFTTT Supporting, 2.4 Ghz WiFi Only (2-Pack)

I got this because I was looking for a smart plug that would alert me to the current dropping below a certain level, which this claimed it could. However this requires integration with IFTTT, which has an additional in app cost. Even after purchasing that, it would not integrate and I could not set up my alerts. Fortinatly I was able to get my money back from google, and return this plug. as far as a basic smart plug with Alexa goes it worked just fine before I returned the item.

***Not Tasmota compatible. This was my own mistake.*** These probably work perfectly in the advertised cloud interface, and integrating with Alexa, although I wont be using them in that capacity. I mistakenly purchased these to flash with the Tasmota firmware, as Im trying to make my own, locally-controlled smarthome environment. I was unaware that this new model is not based on the ESP8266 like previous versions were, but instead they are built on the BL602 chip. I found some talk of a similar custom firmware for BL602 IoT devices and I will be attempting to use it, but if you want to flash custom firmware onto a smart-plug, just get the older model and avoid this headache. These are nearly impossible (and probably dangerous) to disassemble, and the community around this chip is not nearly as large or well-documented as the ESP community is.

The power adaptor is WiFi based, and I still havent connected to hassio yet. I tried to reset the device into local API mode, but still no luck yet. The android app is clunky and requires a cloud login. I run hassio cloudless. After much frustration with DIY mode, I tried flashing it with tasmota. Soldering the wires was a bit delicate - I suggest using headers instead. Then I learned that some FTDI and other serial tools have 5v power with 3.3v logic. After I finally got a fully 3.3v setup, the board appears dead. It just emits zeros. Even if it works, it then needs calibration. Sonoff ZigBee devices, in comparison are flawless and just work. I think Im done with Sonoff Wifi devices for now. I already have one power meter that I made from a raspi and an inductive current sensor. Power measurement isnt that hard. That cost a little more, but I wasnt fighting a black box, I was building with fully specd components. This might work flawlessly for some people. Maybe I just have a broken unit. Still, nowhere near as simple as their zigbee devices.

I used with Tasmota to connect to Home Assistant. It adds a lot of other capabilities. Good even for just monitoring the power.

I am sure that others have been able to connect to this device, but I cannot. I followed the instructions exactly. I changed my wifi settings to 2.4. I have the router four inches from my phone and the device. I had order four of these devices awhile back but just got to the point where I needed to install for smart plugs so I tried just now to connect them. I went through every one and nothing. I have connected plenty of smart devices in my home. I am afraid that it was money wasted. If you buy these, I hope you have better luck than I.

I was hoping this would work as its great value f it would have. After following the official instructions on their website I was happy to see that the plugs populated on the website. But when you read what it says on the plugs that show up it says unsupported. Clicking on the list of supported devices they are on their list. As this is their website I suspect that it wouldnt be just home assistant integration but also others including alexa or remote usage.

Using them with Alexa, very reliable, never had a failure/need of reset. Easy setup and Alexa integration with the ewlink app. In the ewlink app you can turn on some features that Alexa do not have but still works with Alexa, additional bonus. E.g automatically turn off the device after xxx time has lapsed since power on, power on state, timers and loop timers. Very useful for my setup, controlling a water pump for my house remotely.

I needed a method to measure electricity usage on my solar water heater backflush system. It has 1 small pump that moves the heated fluid from the rooftop solar panel to a heat exchanger tank, then another pump draws cold water from the bottom of water tank thru the heat exchanger and dumps the heated water into the top of my tank. The pumps run only when the temperature sensor on the roof senses the temp is warmer than the cold water in the bottom of my tank, so it happens sporadically as the weather changes. This device lets you put in the cost per kWh so it shows the actually cost of energy. Works perfectly for me. Also, these pumps only use about $5 of electricity per month.

Pros: Flashable Affordable Easy to use Compatible with Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and IFTTT Power monitoring feature Cons: Too big it cover 2 gauge outlets Not as fast as some other smart plugs Does not support 5GHz Wi-Fi To flash a Sonoff S31 with Tasmota, you will need the following: A Sonoff S31 smart plug A USB to TTL adapter A micro USB cable A computer with a terminal emulator Once you have gathered your materials, follow these steps: Disconnect the Sonoff S31 from power. Open the Sonoff S31 and expose the PCB. Locate the GPIO0 button and the TX and RX pins. Connect the TX pin of the USB to TTL adapter to the RX pin of the Sonoff S31. Connect the RX pin of the USB to TTL adapter to the TX pin of the Sonoff S31. Connect the ground pin of the USB to TTL adapter to the ground pin of the Sonoff S31. Connect the 3.3V pin of the USB to TTL adapter to the 3.3V pin of the Sonoff S31. Connect the USB to TTL adapter to your computer. Open a terminal emulator and set the baud rate to 115200. Enter the following command to enter bootloader mode: Press the GPIO0 button and hold it down. While holding down the GPIO0 button, plug the Sonoff S31 into a power outlet. Release the GPIO0 button after a few seconds. The Sonoff S31 should now be in bootloader mode. Use the terminal emulator to upload the Tasmota firmware to the Sonoff S31. Once the Tasmota firmware has been uploaded, the Sonoff S31 will reboot. The Sonoff S31 will now be running Tasmota.

Best thing about this device is the ability to reflash with Tasmota firmware which then works with both HomeAssistant and MQTT based home control and automation systems. You can utilize one system for power monitoring and the other for control once the unit has been flashed. Very good support by the community for using the part.