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Belkin WeMo offers a range of products that allow you to control your appliances from anywhere in the world. The brand includes motion sensors, smart lighting, smart plugs, and Wi-Fi cameras.
It has also introduced the WeMo Maker, which turns non-smart Internet of Things devices into smart ones that you can control with your smartphone or tablet. These devices connect to your home’s Wi-Fi network and can also connect to popular home automation platforms like Google Home, Amazon Alexa, and even IFTTT.
WeMo has several great points, but the best one is the affordability of its products. All WeMo devices are less than $100.
But are there alternatives to Belkin WeMo?
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Samsung SmartThings
With SmartThings, you can remotely control, monitor and, yes, automate your home. For instance, you can easily turn on all your connected lights just by pressing a button on your smartphone or open your lights the moment you enter the door without searching for the switch.
Samsung SmartThings has several of its own devices, such as the Samsung SmartCam HD Security Camera, which gives you 1080-pixel videos to help you monitor your home from anywhere in the world. The security camera comes with motion sensors so that it records only when something moves near the camera, when there should not be any movement at all. You can also talk to people using the camera.
Samsung also has the SmartThings Outlet, which allows you to plug in your non-smart appliances and turn it into a smart device. For instance, you can plug in an old TV and you can turn it on or off using your smartphone.
SmartThings also offers a variety of sensors such as the:
- Motion Sensor: This detects movement and changes in temperature so that your devices can either turn on or off on their own depending on how you set it. For instance, when the motion sensor detects movement in your living room, connected lights will automatically turn on.
- Presence Sensor: The presence sensor allows you to automate connected devices and task these to turn on when you go inside a room or to turn off when you leave the room.
- Moisture Sensor: This monitors both water leaks and temperature around your house and then alerts you on your smartphone. It can also automatically turn on or off the devices when it senses changes in temperatures, as well as turns off devices that are in danger of getting soaked.
- Multi Sensor: It keeps track of temperature, orientation, doors, and windows. With this sensor, for example, you can monitor when your windows or doors are opened when it is late at night. It will automatically turn on the lights, sound your home alarms, and other stuff.
Ankuoo
Most people might not have heard ofAnkuoo. The company sells connected plugs that do not need to connect to a hub to offer some degree of home automation. Just plug in an appliance and you can schedule it to run at any time or even use a countdown timer to turn it off automatically when time runs out. You can also use the plug as an anti-theft device by setting it to turn your appliances and lights on by themselves when nobody is home. Lastly, you can control your appliances even if you are miles or oceans away.
The company also has the Wi-Fi Wall Switch, which works the same way as its smart plugs, but this time controlling the lights or ceiling fans in your home. Additionally, the Rec Wi-Fi Restarter monitors your Internet connection and resets your Wi-Fi when needed. You can also reset the Wi-Fi connection yourself from anywhere in the world.
Furthermore, check out the Ankuoo Neo Pro, an enhanced version of their smart plugs that has a built-in power meter. You can use the mobile app to know just how much electricity the plugged-in appliance is using as well as the associated costs.
D-Link
D-Link is a Taiwanese firm that manufactures networking equipment, including home automation products. The company’s home automation devices include smart plugs, sensors, hubs, sirens, and cameras. These devices are designed to work together, as well as with other devices that connect to your Wi-Fi. Some of these devices also work with IFTTT.
Smart plug. The company’s smart plugs work with Amazon Echo and can turn your non-smart appliances into connected devices. When you plug an appliance in, you are now able to control it remotely using your smartphone. You can also create schedules to turn your appliance on or off at certain times. The company also offers an enhanced smart plug that helps you monitor your energy consumption. It further has an overheating protection mechanism. Using a built-in thermal sensor, the smart plug can automatically turn off appliances that are overheating.
Siren. D-Link has a Wi-Fi enabled siren that sounds an audible alert when it is tripped. You can use it with the company’s own sensors to provide proactive security for your home.
Security camera. D-Link’s Wi-Fi camera has high-definition resolution and a 180-degree field of vision. This gives you the chance to monitor more of your home using fewer cameras.
Sensors. D-Link offers a motion sensor that alerts you when movements are detected around your home. If you have other D-Link home automation devices, the camera can also work with them. For instance, you can check your security camera to know for sure what triggered the motion alert, or turn on the lights even when you are not home. You can also get D-Link’s water sensor, which alerts you of water leaks and flooding in your home.
TP-Link Smart Home
TP-Link is a Chinese computer networking manufacturer, which introduced the Smart Home line of products. These products rival Belkin WeMo.
Smart bulbs. The company offers several smart bulbs that you can control remotely. There are four current varieties, including a color-changing bulb, a dimmable white bulb, and a tunable white bulb.
Smart switch. This allows you to control lights even when you are far away from home. It has scheduling as well as an ‘away’ mode that turns your lights on or off randomly to make outsiders think somebody’s home.
Smart plugs. TP-Link has a range of smart plugs that you can use to plug in old appliances and make them smarter. You can now control non-smart devices with the TP-Link smart plugs and control them remotely, even tell them to turn on or off using Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. These plugs also have an ‘away’ mode that turns plugged-in devices on or off automatically when you are away, giving the illusion that you are home. The company also offers smart plugs with energy monitoring to help you know more about energy consumption and costs.
Security cameras. TP-Link offers severalsecurity cameras that allow you to keep track of what is happening at home when you are away. There is a cloud version that sends recordings to the tplinkcloud.com site, allowing you to view and manage recordings easily. Depending on which camera you choose, you can get features such as night vision, motion sensors, HD resolution, pan, tilt and zoom, and two-way audio.
How do these alternatives compare to Belkin WeMo?
Hub-less or with hub? Probably the best thing about WeMo is that you do not need a hub to operate the devices. Three of the alternatives do not require a hub for it to work. SmartThings, however, sells the SmartThings Hub for $99.00 and this is required for their smart devices to work. Check out the latest prices and discounts here!
Price matters. These companies have their own pricing schemes for their connected products. In general, TP-Link and Ankuoo have the most attractive prices, while WeMo, SmartThings, and D-Link are priced competitively.
If you are looking for a smart plug, then Ankuoo is the best choice. You can turn non-smart appliances into smart devices for less than $17 with Ankuoo’s smart plug. Most of the other manufacturers offer a smart plug within the $30 to $40 range, while SmartThings sells one for $49.99. If you want a smart plug that monitors your power consumption, your best bet is still Ankuoo, which sells a smart plug with a consumption monitor for only $22.
For security cameras, you can get TP-Link’s non-HD cloud camera for $29.99 or opt for Samsung’s 1080-pixel HD camera that costs around $140. WeMo has cameras ranging from $80 to $100. Check out the latest prices on WeMo cameras here.
Devices. When it comes to the number of devices offered, SmartThings wins with Samsung offering several smart devices such as the lighting, switch, plug, and camera, as well as a range of sensors. Ankuoo is more focused on plugs and switches, while only D-Link offers a connected siren.
The list of devices offered by each manufacturer are as follows:
| WeMo | SmartThings | Ankuoo | D-Link | TP-Link | |
| Hub needed? | x | √ | x | x | x |
| Smart plug (consumption monitor) | √ | x | √ | √ | √ |
| Switch | √ | x | √ | √ | √ |
| Camera | √ | √ | x | √ | √ |
| Smart plug | √ | √ | √ | √ | √ |
| Bulbs | √ | √ | x | x | √ |
| Motion Sensor | √ | √ | x | √ | x |
| Multipurpose Sensor | x | √ | x | x | x |
| Water Leak Sensor | x | √ | x | √ | x |
| Presence Sensor | x | √ | x | x | x |
| Siren | x | x | x | √ | √ |
Connected? As far as integrations go, WeMo works with Nest, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, and IFTTT. Out of the four alternatives, SmartThings and TP-Link come closest, working with Alexa, Google Home and IFTTT. Note, however, that SmartThings can work with Nest using one of the many workarounds.
Ankuoo does not work with any of these devices and platforms, while you can use Alexa and Google Home with D-Link home automation devices.
| WeMo | SmartThings | Ankuoo | D-Link | TP-Link | |
| Nest | √ | x | x | x | x |
| Amazon Alexa | √ | √ | x | √ | √ |
| IFTTT | √ | √ | x | √ | √ |
| Google Home | √ | √ | x | √ | √ |
Last words on Belkin WeMo Alternatives
If you are just getting started with your smart home or just looking for an affordable alternative to Belkin WeMo, you would do well looking at Ankuoo. Ankuoo gives you an affordable way to turn your appliances into a smart connected device. However, if you are really serious with automating your smart home, you should get Samsung SmartThings.
The best thing about SmartThings is that Samsung has come out with several of their own devices for the platform, but left the door open for other manufacturers to also come up with compatible devices. If you already have connected devices at home, it is easy to pair them with SmartThings if they use either Zigbee or Z-wave protocols.
Meanwhile, D-Link and TP-Link can provide great devices that are reasonably priced, making them a logical part of the list of top Belkin WeMo alternatives.
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