If you want something to help you save a few buck on your energy bill while also prolonging the life of Equipment, this is the tool for you.
I had an idea what this SmartStrip could do but i really wanted to see it for myself. This guy is as simple as it sounds and just as convient.
You have 1 outlet that you plug your switching device in. The switching device is the device that when you turn on or off turns everything else on or off. You also have 2 Always ON outlets (for DVR boxes or Broadband Modem, etc). And 4 "Controlled" outlets, 1 of which is an extra wide one. Now, the 1 outlet for the switching device is an Always ON outlet.
There is a little knob on the side for helping you tweek the switching setting that power off everything else when you put the main device into a low power state or off. Because some things draw power even when turned off so you may need to tweek it.
I bought this to try it out at work. If you want something to definitely help at home or at the office, this is perfect. At work, i had my Laptop at the switching port. I plugged the Monitor, the Speakers, the Desk Lamp, my cell chargers, any and all accessories into the controlled ports. I tweeked the knob on the side so that when I put my laptop into Standby, that it will also shut off everything else as well. To tweek it, you must put the computer into Standby mode and adjusted the knob until all the devices turn off.
This is great because the moment i shutdown the computer at night, it turns everything off and i don't have to forget about turning anything off. All that littles of electricity its saving is great.
You could easily use it at home. You can have it setup where your TV is the switch, your DVR is in the Always ON, your DVD, VCR, Game Consoles, Stereo, Home Theater, etc are all plugged into the Controlled Ports, So that the moment you turn the TV off, everything else turns off. No more nagging the kids to make sure they turned everything else, no need to round through remotes to make sure everything else is off.
The price is right as well, you are going to pay about the same price for something that also does about the same amount of Surge Protection, so why not get something that will save you in long running cost as well. It could pay for itself in the first year alone. Smart Strip LCG3 Energy Saving Surge Protector with Autoswitching Technology, 10-Outlet
Works perfectly! I'm sure I'll start seeing savings right away since I have plethora of equipment. Setup is simple, just plug the TV i it into the controlling outlet and then the DVD player, xbox, etc... into the switching outlets. Now when I power off/on the TV everything shuts off/on with it. The nice thing about the power strip is that it has a couple of always-on outlets for recording devices - so they don't lose the date and time. This is a well thought out and simple product.
After hearing about the "vampire" effect of leaving things plugged in, I ordered two of these thinking I could use one for the living room and one for the home office. I couldn't get either of them to work with my computer even after calling tech support and adjusting the sensitivity settings.
Oh, I also purchased a Kill-A-Watt meter after the fact to measure this vampire effect and I was shocked at how LITTLE energy all these appliances use in the off position. Most of my appliances and electronic devices didn't even register a tenth of a watt while in the off/standby position. I measured my whole home theater system with my former power strip. All of the electronic devices combined barely registered a watt.
So, I could go on about what works and what doesn't with this product, but the bottom line is that it really isn't worth the extra money. Remember, having this thing shut your electronics down by powering off another device is like pulling the plug of each device out of the wall. There are many modern electronics that are not designed to be turned off in that manner.
This thing is fine now that I have worked around all the kinks, but I don't believe I am saving any money and I would not recommend this to anyone. A good surge protector is all anyone needs.
We love this product and it works well.
My issue is with the description on the box of how much money using this device can save. By their figures, the device, when used with an "average" computer system, saves 113 KWH per month; at 15 cents/kwh (about what we pay in the Philadelphia area) that would be about $203/year.
We have a typical 3-year-old Dell Dimension desktop computer, LCD monitor, printer, sound system, and DSL modem that together consume about 14 watt hrs. in standby (I checked with a Kill-A-Watt meter). Using the LCG3 reduces the standby power draw to 1 watt hr. So, assuming 12 hrs. standby/day x 13 watts saved/hr. x 365 days x 15 cents/kwh gives an annual savings estimate of about $8.50/year (for 57 kwh/year saved), a much more realistic $ savings estimate for today's computers.
However, we bought this smart strip to help reduce electricity demand and greenhouse gases from power plants, so perhaps the most important benefits aren't strictly financial. And electricity prices have nowhere to go but up. - Green - Energy-saving Devices - Conservation - Smart Strip'
Detail Products
Detail Reviews
Click here for more information
