I was lucky enough to receive the Power Plug H2 (RGB) as part of the recent trial program. I’ve been putting it through its paces in my home office, and I wanted to share my setup, a slightly unconventional use for the LED ring, and my honest thoughts on its performance.
The Setup: Automating the Home Office
My primary goal was to save energy. I recently discovered that my home office setup—consisting of a standing desk, my computer, external speakers, and a monitor—constantly sucks about 10W of power on standby. Those phantom loads really add up over time!
I plugged my main office power strip into the H2 and set up a simple but highly effective automation:
- The Rule: If the power draw drops to around 10W (indicating the PC is off and only standby devices remain) for 15 minutes, the H2 automatically turns the plug off.
- The Trick: To avoid the hassle of pressing multiple buttons to boot everything back up the next morning, I configured my PC’s BIOS to “Restore on AC Power Loss.” Now, when I toggle the H2 back on via my smart switch or app, the desk, monitor, and PC all boot up simultaneously. It’s incredibly seamless.
The Twist: The LED as a Visual Status Indicator
My favorite part of the Power-Plug-H2 is the LED ring, which I’ve integrated into Home Assistant. Instead of just using it as a power indicator, I use it as a visual status monitor for the rest of the house.
Using Home Assistant automations, the H2’s LED changes color to alert me if I’ve left windows or doors open in other rooms (for too long). It’s a brilliant, glanceable way to check the house’s status without having to pick up my phone while I’m working.
Deep Dive: Pros, Cons & Performance
The Good:
- Lightning-Fast Readings: The power monitoring is remarkably fast and incredibly accurate. It catches the power drop to 10W instantly.
- Aesthetics: The LED ring is smooth, bright, and looks premium.
- Ecosystem Integration: Setting this up in Home Assistant was completely straightforward. It plays exceptionally well with my existing smart home hub.
The Not-So-Good (and a feature request):
- Thread Stability: I am using this over Thread, and I’ve noticed it disconnects from time to time. This is a bit puzzling because I have other Thread devices nearby (like an Aqara P2 motion sensor and an FP300 presence sensor) that are rock solid. Hopefully, a future firmware update can patch up the Thread routing stability.
- Wishlist - Decoupled LED Control: My absolute biggest wish for the H2 is the ability to control the LED completely independently of the switch state. For example, if the plug’s relay is turned off, I would still love to have the LED shine Red to indicate an open door. Usually, it’s obvious whether a plugged-in device is on or off, so freeing up the LED to act purely as an indicator light—even when power is cut—would make this plug a perfect device for my needs.
Overall, I’m extremely satisfied with the H2. It’s already paying for itself by cutting out my standby power drain, and the custom visual alerts are a fantastic bonus.
Thanks to the team for letting me test this out! Let me know if anyone has questions about the Home Assistant automations.