WiOn 50049 Outdoor Wi-Fi Wireless Plug-In Switch; Smartphone And Tablet Automation For Up To 12 Devices 2 Grounded Outlets Weather Resistant Energy Saving Wifi Controlled Switch

I had the same difficulties other reviewers expressed, in setting up this plug-in. I reset it about five times, and re-installed the WiOn phone app a couple of times before I got it all to work. As others have commented, I had the same issues with the ambiguous printed directions. Once programmed, I installed the plug-in at a sheltered outdoor outlet, so far it is working correctly. Time will tell...

I bought these to use with our Christmas lights. They are very easy to set up and even easier to control. The options are endless as far as programming it to turn on with a timer or controlling it with your device. Ive been using it for about 10 days now and love them. Weve even connected it to Alexa. My kids love to turn the tree and outside lights on and off through Alexa. The cost is so worth me not heading out at 11:30pm every night in the freezing cold to unplug lights. One thing I did learn through looking at reviews and FAQ is that in order to connect to Alexa you need to name the device with one word.

Worked great for a while, then we had to unplug and re-plug several times a week to get it to connect with Alexa. This week NONE of the 3 we have worked with Alexa and would not connect no matter what we tried. Checked the WiOn app and saw several people had the same problem starting THIS week. No longer compatible with Alexa. I ordered 3 OTHER brand plugs that I have had success with. LOOK ELSEWHERE!! If you are OK with just using the WiOn app it works fine. We bought specifically on the promise to work with Alexa. *UPDATE: Returned these plugs and purchased the Kasa plugs. SO easy to I install and work like a charm with Alexa! Also, BOTH plugs on each unit can be controlled separately. ( Not so with the WiOn plugs.)

This device works great but the app could use a couple of improvements: 1) Please add an auto-off timer feature: Id really like to be able to set a custom max run time so any time I turn the outlet on, it will automatically shut off again after, say 2 hours, or maybe 3. I hate waking up in the morning to realize I left it on all night. 2) Change the color scheme! I dont think I suffer from any form of colorblindness however I have a really tough time differentiating between the gray off and green on colors. The green is so pale. Add it bit more contrast and pop to the palette please! Other than these tweaks, I think its a great product.

Works very well. I have three of them. Has a timer function and an astronomical function, so for example you can have it turn ON at sunset and OFF at 11pm. I have one controlling a webcam that’s set up to turn on at sunrise and off at sunset. Another controls landscape lighting that goes on 30 minutes after sunset and off at 10:30pm. The third controls a heated doormat, which I set to come on at 11:59 am and off at noon — I actually only use this occasionally so I turn it on manually and the noon setting is just to turn it off automatically if I forget to turn it off manually. My only complaint is that the manual doesn’t tell you how to change to a new Wi-Fi signal, but if you scan reviews you can find how to do that.

Super handy device. It does the job, but has a few hiccups along the way, hence the 4 star rating. We have a guest and an internal network on an Asus router. For some reason, the guest network was visible to the WiOn device, but the internal network was not showing up. It took me a bit to realize that I could manually enter a WiFi network (SSID and credentials). Once I manually typed in the network info, the WiOn connected fine and has been solid since. The app is good, and does the job. The interface is a little clunky, and does not look like an iOS app, but it gets the job done. At this time, it doesnt appear to have any integration with Apples HomeKit. We use this for our Christmas tree. Whipping out my phone to turn the tree on to show it off sure beats having to climb under the branches, getting sappy, and potentially knocking off ornaments.

Overall it works well. The physical form factor is a bit bulky and the short cable length works better in some locations but not in others as it just dangles from the outlet. The phone app (Android) could be simpler and could certainly make better use of smart phone screen space. The UI designers try to hard to make their own interface rather than stick to typical Android UI/menu features. I have three of the plug-ins and I can only see two at a time on the screen. They use an icon to represent each plug in and the icon is about the same size as an Android app icon so in theory I should be able to see up to 20 of them on one screen. As more companies make smart plugs, light bulbs etc I expect there will be a lot of innovation in this space both in the industrial design of the physical plugs and in the UIs to manage them. One can only hope that in the long run there will be standardization so that you can control and manage all of these devices with a common interface. I will hate to have to maintain numerous apps to control all my smart devices but suspect we are a long way from such commonality.

Ive had this unit for a while and all of a sudden stopped connecting. I went on the WIOn website and selected support. A chat window opened. After some back and forth dialogue and correction steps (which did not work) the agent said that they would charge me $55 to correct the issue because they are a third party...and WiOn does not have customer support. What?!? No idea whats going on. I can but a whole new unit for that, and the idea that one would pay to get basic customer support from the vendor is ludicrous. Beware.

I bought two of these to use for Christmas lights and both work perfectly. The 2nd one was a little bit harder to set up until I unplugged my 1st one, then it set up instantly just like my first one did. I use the timer for the entire week and that has worked flawlessly and reliably. Im very happy with these and would recommend them for sure.

Edit 2: It seems Southwire / Woods has merely rebranded the ECO Plugs RC-028W. I was able to install the ECO Plugs app from the Google Play store and successfully connect a factory-restored WiOn outlet to my router with it. It took me a few factory resets and forgetting the ECO-serial network on my phone and reconnecting, but the connection eventually succeeded. Although the Woods WiOn app is abandonware, the ECO Plugs app is a passable substitute updated for compatibility with Android 9. Connecting with the ECO Plugs app is quirky, though. A successful connection to the router does not deactivate the plugs temporary wifi access point. --- Edit 1: Beware! The Woods WiOn Android app doesnt fully work on the latest version of Android. It doesnt appear that Woods / Southwire has updated their app in a year and a half. Unless you have access to a device with an older version of Android, you may not be able to get this outlet to connect to your router. The out-of-box router connection dialog simply will not appear as it should when a new outlet is detected, regardless of clearing your phones cache and app data or resetting your outlet back to factory defaults. Maybe the ECO Plugs app would be a suitable workaround? Maybe, but I havent tried it to see. I ended up digging an ancient Android 4.4.2 device out of a drawer to perform the connection to my wireless network. Also, the WiOn products domain seems now to be controlled by a cybersquatter. There is no longer a website available for you to find support or documentation for this outlet. The outlet and its app are abandonware. I emailed Southwire a request for assistance, then followed up with my Android 4.4.2 workaround. If they respond with anything worthwhile, Ill update this review. So far my emails have gone ignored. --- Original review: Rugged, stable network connectivity from the opposite corner of the house and through walls, and Alexa integration is flawless. The WiOn app features above-average flexibility, offering automation with many triggers: time of day, countdown, astronomic, and random vacation timers. It does not offer Google or IFTTT integration, though. Bear in mind that Internet of Things devices such as this are heavily dependent on a reliable router. If youve got a garbage router, dont bother with this or any other IoT / smart home devices until youve upgraded. The Internet of Things tends to expose latent instability in mediocre routers. If youre not running Tomato, DD-WRT, Google Wifi, Ubiquiti, or better, dont blame inexplicable disconnections on your outlets. With OEM router firmware, more often than not, bugs are par for the course.