Wemo Insight WiFi Enabled Smart Plug, with Energy Monitoring, Works with Alexa (Discontinued by Manufacturer - Newer Version Available)

I purchased a WeMo switch on its own some time ago and six months ago Costco had a deal on a Belkin Netcam HD+ with WeMo switch. Ive actually went the route of plugging the Netcams into the WeMo switch so I could time when the cameras were functional during the day. (ie: out of the house then house cameras turn on. Garage camera shuts off for a minute daily to reset) In addition to this I did install a WeMo light switch to control some porch lights. Belkin definitely has issues with their firmware updates. At times the device will seem like its completely blown away. When this has happened Ive just left it sit out of frustration and have come back to it an hour later, it was fine at that point. Other times Ive had to reset at which point sometimes it signs back onto my network and wants to do the firmware update again like nothing happened and other times (though less and less frequently now) Ive had to completely reconfigure the switch. I have not messed with motion detection on the cameras ... But Im thinking about doing that soon for the garage. Motion in the garage == lights on in garage :) IFTTT integration can be a little iffy .... Ill explain below The additional Wemo switch I have I wasnt sure what to do with so I plugged it into our washer/dryer combo to see when it turns off and send a notification. That seems to work well .... If youre having the notification done through the WeMo app. If you link that through IFTTT youll get that notification about an hour later. Since our washing machine drains into a washing tub there are times where that will overflow. I plan to get a moisture sensor at some point set to cut off power to the washing machine wemo switch if it detects an overflow. Looks like Belkin isnt planning on offering one that I can see so it would need to be something else tied to IFTTT. Something like that I would trust the IFTTT integration to handle even with a 10-60 second delay. The switch that controls porch lights controls an outlet and works perfectly for that. Theres also a light fixture that I stuck a Philips Hue bulb in. I set it up so when the switch is tapped it would tell IFTTT to turn the bulb on to a specific brightness and color and when the switch is tapped off it would turn that light off. That works well with about a 10-20 second delay which I find reasonable considering the trip the command has to take. All in all Im mostly happy and will be adding more WeMo devices to our home for various purposes.

It took me an HOUR to get an insight connected. It should have taken 5 minutes. Belkin has taken a simple task of connecting a device to a home network and made it ridiculously cumbersome due to a very poorly designed app. Im quite experienced with setting up and connecting devices to a wifi network. Maybe the app is too dumbed down for me, but this should be a simple matter of selecting the device and pairing it with a wifi network. For those who have seen the movie Office Space, the scene were they take the malfunctioning printer out to a field and smash it into pieces is EXACTLY what I would like to do if the wemo app were an animate object. First, the app throws up a dialog about some settings, even though I saw that dialog a kajillion times, I dont remember what it said. The first time it came up, I dutifully clicked on the button that would (so I thought) give me useful information. Unfortunately this was not the case because Im on the latest version of Android, and apparently the instructions are written for a different version as I only had one of the items I was supposed to shut off (which was already disabled). Unfortunately, each time you are at the very beginning of insight installation, you get this dialog. It doesnt seem smart enough to detect if your settings are already correct, nor does it let you disable the dialog during the install steps. Once you get past the dialog, you select your device and then youre forced to go through a set of screens to connect your insight and app. On the last screen it says its connecting, but I never did get a message saying the app was connected to the app. If you X out of the screen, youre forced to start over at the device selection screen. The only way I could get the insight and app to connect was to do the following, once I got to the last screen where it said it was connecting, close the wemo app and re-open the app. Then when the wemo app opens, it tries to connect to the insight. It took me 20 minutes to realize I should try to close and re-open the app. Once I got the insight and wemo app connected, I was able to get the insight connected to my wifi network. And then the next problem arose. The app kept throwing errors about not being able to turn on remote access. No matter how many attempts, I could not get past this error. Also, the insight never did show up on the main screen, even after closing and re-opening the app. I did notice during the install that there were a couple of times where my phone reporting the insight connection as unstable. Next, I reset the insight and uninstalled and reinstalled the wemo app per the instructions on belkins web page. Once again started the pairing process. Once again, got the remote access error. Tried remote access again, then the device showed up in the app. A floor lamp was plugged into the insight. Turned the lamp on and off with the wemo app and it worked fine. But in the settings, it did not register that remote settings was on, even after using the app to turn the floor lamp on and off. Within the settings I selected the remote access and it then realized it was on I guess. FINALLY, my insight is connected and so far works. But Im afraid to connect the 2nd insight device. That the app might break the connection to the first device. After the insight is paired to the app and the wifi network, Echo pairs very easily to the insight device. This happens in the Echo app using a menu in the settings. Setting Echo up on the insight was the easiest part of the process. Another app quirk is that sometimes I would get the device and rules buttons on the bottom of the main screen, sometimes I wouldnt. Sometimes, Id have the icons at the top right of the main screen, sometimes I didnt. App performance seemed to be slow or go out to lunch occasionally and Id close the app and re-open it. Sometimes, clicking on something didnt seem to register with the app, sometimes it did. An alternative to the current app design would be to offer a guided install and the direct aka expert install for people experienced with installing smart devices on a network. The expert install would scan the area for a broadcasting device, allow the user to select the device, pair it with the app and wifi network, and wham bam be done with it. Device settings for renaming the device could be the last step or easily accessible through app settings. NEVER should the main app screen be hidden from the user. And if you X out of the guided install, you go back to the main screen, not the dumbed down getting started screen. This app feels like the specifications were VERY poorly written and test cases may have just been for the happiest of happy paths. It also feels like no integration testing was done for the various parts of the app. The only reason I bought a belkin product was for the Amazon Echo integration. This review is written after Amazon released the Echo SDK and hopefully more home automation products come along and I can dump the belkin products, or maybe belkin we re-write the app. I wanted to give the device a 1 star rating, but the extra star is because so far (after 15 minutes anyway) the insight continues to work. See how well this goes in the long term since some people have reported having problems with their devices. Updated one day later - Tried to install the 2nd insight device. Tried 5 times, roughly 40 minutes then I gave up. Im past the return window, otherwise itd be getting boxed up and sent back to Amazon. Each time the install went like this - my phone detects the insight and connects to it. I open the app and the app connects to the new insight device. Very quickly the app brings up the settings for the new device; the screen where I can change the name. I hit Done, and the app goes back to the main screen in which the devices are listed. The new device does not show up. I reset the device (apparently this is the only way to get it to show up as a device my phone can connect to again), and go back through the same process. Never does the new device show up as a connected device. Shutting down the app and re-opening did not help either. Also, each time I received the error about remote access not be able to be enabled. And each time, remote access was listed as enabled in the settings. After each reset, the light sequence went like this - green, green and orange (this is when my phone would detect the insight and connect to it), green while the app is connecting to it, no lights (which does match my already connected insight, so this must be OK), then orange. I believe orange is poor or no connection. Removing a star in my rating Updated 3 days after setting up the first device - Now the first device is flashing the orange color and does not show up in as being detectable in the wemo app and echo cant find it either. I absolutely refuse to reset the device and go back through the poorly executed installation process. The insight is less than 10 feet away from the router. Im completely done with this product, if I could give 0 stars I would

I tried to use this on multiple objects in my room, and I ended up having it sit on my side dresser for awhile after being disappointed. Kind of thick, so if you have an outlet behind something against the wall, be prepared not to use it there or to have it sticking out a good amount. For some reason, some of things I tried to use this on was hard to plug into. Bad planning on my part and even stupidity, but for some reason didnt expect this to be 3 prongs. After having to do some cleaning and moving around, I was able to set this up to my main bedroom light. Setup was a little wonky at first, but it was pretty easy and painless in the long run. Thought I read somewhere that you could walk into room with this, and it would pick up your phone and turn the light on for you. Didnt see this option in setting unfortunately. Man am I satisfied though! There was some disappointed with the setup of things, expectations, and settings.. but overall I would recommend this. So far one of the cheapest routes for this type of thing for lights, and one of the few at this time that work with Amazon Echo. Love it with my Alexa!

DO NOT BUY THIS - There are better products available. Do not get sucked in to the Wemo ecosystem like I did - there are better, more reliable and - most importantly - flexible systems out there. Belkins support for this product is near zilch. The iPhone app crashes constantly at startup - very frustrating when I just want to turn on my bedroom lights in the morning. IFTTT support is now completely gone - whenever I try I receive This is not a valid IFTT code or similar. 10% of the time Wemo works, 90% of the time Wemo crashes (the app). More times than not, the app launches, crashes, and after many many times of relaunching/manually quitting on the iPhone, it finally connects to all devices. (Let me be clear here - the app CRASHES A LOT. A LOT. Ive given up on the damn app and just go to the switch and manually turn it on) Point is - way, way more frustrating than simply turning on a light. If the Insight feature is what youre after, save yourself from this junk and just get http://www.amazon.com/P3-P4400-Electricity-Usage-Monitor/dp/B00009MDBU/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1418942439&sr=8-3&keywords=power+wattage+meter for $15 to measure your usage in spots. Instead, heres what you should look into - Ive had GREAT success with GEs Wink platform, mostly because its open to other Z-Wave (aka generalized/standard home automation protocol) products which makes it easy to add other random devices without worrying about the Belkin ecosystem. Luton, GE, etc products are all supported with this purchase. Dont buy in to Belkins home automation products. Theyre horribly buggy, completely unreliable and the lack of media/app updates makes me think Belkin is slowly backing off this entire thing. Home automation has been around for a while now and perfected by companies like Lutron, Z-Wave products, etc. Look to those first and take the time to research what you really want. The open protocol devices are far more future proof than Belkins very weak attempt in this market.

An update to my previous rating and review. After many updates this has become a much more stable device. While I havent been brave enough to factory reset and configure from scratch, day to day usage has much improved for both the Android app and the device itself. I do wish the USB port were useable to configure the device. Currently it only provides power to the device, which is more convenient than having it plugged into an actual outlet while you set the WEMO up. You still have to use the iOS or Android app to configure. Previously, maintaining a connection to the WEMO long enough to complete the configuration was a problem. ------------------------------------------------- Previous review: Attempting to set up a WEMO is more painful then rabies shots or puberty. Setting up from an Android device as far as I can tell is not possible and from an iOS device is an exercise in patients and self loathing. If you successfully configure the device it works quite well, up until it mysteriously loses its configuration. From that point on, good luck ever getting the thing to work again. 20 years of configuring all kinds of networking equipment and wireless devices and never have I disliked a device as much as this.

This is the buggiest piece of tech I have encountered since CD-Rs were first introduced. I am an electrical engineer who specializes in embedded software and really, there is no excuse for how poorly the software operates - wether it be in the device, or the app required to use the device. I would love to get a look inside the software for this, as I can only imagine how awful it must be. When the solution to every problem is to reset the Wemo, forcibly stop the application on your phone, uninstall said application from your phone, and reinstall, YOUR CODE HAS A PROBLEM. Its like reasoning with a petulant child. EVERYTHING seems to derail it. Change the name of your wemo from the app? FAIL. Add a second rule to the device? FAIL. Connect the device to IFTTT? FAIL. Seemingly connect the device FROM the IFTTT website? FAIL I fought with this thing to enable remote access. It looked like it wasnt going to work. After repeated messages that it was not working, hours later I open the app and remote access is enabled. I vacillated between giving this review from one to three stars. It does have a great form factor. And in its most fundamental terms, it works. I can actually remotely turn on and off the thing. And the rule I created to turn it on works (after much fighting with the device). The subsequent rule to turn the thing off? Not so much. And there is no easy way to change the network settings. And the settings I can change, any attempt to change them often results in an eternal spinning wheel. The worst part is, I dont feel I can rely on this device. The one I have I wanted to use as part of my irrigation system. But, as of writing this, it only operates as a remote control.

I bought one Belkin WeMo Insight Switch to dip my toe into some simple home automation. It works well, easy to set up and the app is simple to use. I currently have it connected to a space heater and it shows the watts the heater is using which match the specs of the heater so it seems to be accurate. Somehow it even tells me the daily and estimated monthly cost. Time will tell if that is accurate. You can set up rules on the app to automate when it powers on and off which are handy and work well. I have also set up rules and an alerts using IFTTT which is pretty great. You do not have to be on your own home network to control it and you do not need a special hub which was a real selling point for me since I do not have one yet. My only complaint is that sometimes the remote access fails, when that happens if I close the app and re-open it that will usually get it working again. ....Update to initial review: After living with this for some time I have found it to be unreliable. Others seem to have the same issue and apparently it is linked to the loss of WiFi. If it disconnects from your router (which happens in every network) it cannot be counted on to work as expected. Randomly turns on on off...I was using it to control a space heater but since it would turn it on without my knowledge I had to unplug it. Currently sits in a drawer in my desk until I have the time the mess with it. All and all...it does what is says it will do and it does it well. I think Ill get at least one more.

I use this to remotely turn on and off a mining rig. For the first few weeks, the android app and the wemo would have frequent problems connecting, often to the point where I would spend at least 10 minutes pressing the power button on the app to get it to turn back on. Additionally, a power outage caused the wemo to refuse connection to my wifi and I ended up resetting the entire device. On to the good part of the story. I updated the wemo and the android app, and now it has performed exactly as I expected. The connection between the app and the insight switch is perfect, connects on the first time, every time now. I no longer have to fight the app to make the switch turn on, it does it on the first button press.

I purchased one of these on a price dip, thinking it was time to give this technology a try. Its a rather clever device, providing integration of home automation controls and energy monitoring, with capable notifications, actionable rules and remote management. However, execution does have a few flaws. The limitations become more apparent in a more complex scenarios: no support for hidden wireless networks, inability of software to deal with multiple access points, or recognize home and remote wireless networks if they share the same network name. This device would likely perform much better in a country home with just one wireless access point and little interference, but in a dense urban environment, where 2.4GHz wireless spectrum is heavily congested (with up to 4 wireless stations visible on every Wi-Fi channel), the device seems to have connectivity issues. To provide adequate signal coverage, I already had a couple of access points on dynamically selected channels - but after installing this WeMo Switch, I had to add another one just 4 fee away from it, otherwise it would drop off the network every couple of hours. Even with an access point so close, I still end up having to pull it out and reconnect every couple of days, as it still drops the wireless connection. The vendor specifically states that multiple access points could cause a smartphone application not to find the device - that is definitely the case, as on many occasions I could not see the device while on Wi-Fi, but by shutting off Wi-Fi on my smartphone, I could manage it as if I were remote. The vendor should definitely invest additional effort into application (to remove constraints related to access point / Wi-Fi network name and visibility), as well as explore other connectivity options for urban dwellers, either by supporting 5GHz network band or by integrating PowerLine support.

Update (Feb 2014): turns out WeMo is totally insecure, anyone on the internet could control your devices because of multiple vulnerabilities in the software. See [...] (scroll down halfway). Im now giving it one star since its not acceptable to have such low security, and since Belkin hasnt reacted to the problems (apparently they were notified in October 2013 but havent reacted). Original review: I would love to love this product because it promises to do exactly what I need it for: easy Wifi control (and automated control) of anything you can plug into a standard outlet. And, sometimes, it does exactly that. Setup is reasonably easy. But there are too many glitches for it to be practical. The app starts way too slowly (taking 10-30 seconds to show you your devices so you can turn on/off one of them). Timed events sometimes simply dont work. Wifi reception is weak (in a spot where my phone showed 3 bars of Wifi, the Wemo never connected). Its not possible to control from multiple phones. Operations fail randomly half the time (on a perfectly fine Wifi network where no other device has connectivity problems). Bottom line: I kept it for one application (turn on/off central heating when on vacation) because I rarely need to use it for that, so that spending a minute to get a working on/off button on my phone is ok). I intended it to control some lights, but its just not usable for that. Too bad companies like Belkin dont spend more on writing and testing software.