Smart Strip LCG4 Energy Saving Power Strip with Autoswitching Technology and Fax/Modem Surge Protection
by Smart Strip
|
List Price: Our Price: $27.59 You Save: $14.36 (34%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Tools See more product details |
|---|
Tools and Hardware Reviews of Smart Strip LCG4 Energy Saving Power Strip with Autoswitching Technology and Fax/Modem Surge Protection
Customer Review: Great product that works as advertised!
Summary: 5 Stars
I doubted the benefits of this purchase at first, but after the first day, I realized it does make a difference. I connected the Control Outlet to my TV and as soon as I turned it off, my AV system, speakers and gaming consoles(all plugged as Automatically Switched Outlets) turned off, reducing the so called vamp or invisible energy consumption. It's design allows to connect clunky plugs without obstructing other outlets. The presence of Constant Hot Outlets is great for such things as your DVR or Router.Customer Review: Excellent Product
Summary: 5 Stars
Works as the description of the product. Good product - Can save you some money on the power bill. One thing to remember is that all the power cut off are like hard shutdowns. You might not want them for your appliances like DVD player. Customer Review: Good design with some unfortunate limitations
Summary: 3 Stars
This product is a great idea: a power strip that helps to save electricity costs by automatically shutting down idle equipment. This power strip also has a very useful design, with outlets spaced wide enough to accommodate the "wall wart" plugs that so many manufacturers use -- Apple being one notable exception.
I decided to use it with a Netgear RND4250 ReadyNAS NV+ 1 TB Desktop Network Storage (2x500GB) that I have configured to automatically shutdown at midnight every night and then power up the next morning. When I am sleeping, I don't need all the other networking equipment (routers, switches, broadband modem, my PC's LCD monitor, etc) to be consuming power equal to a 60 watt bulb, so I plugged them into the switched outlets.
Alas, the Smart Strip I bought from Amazon isn't sensitive enough to support this kind of switching. The Smart Strip would power up the equipment perfectly when the ReadyNAS turned on, but as soon as the ReadyNAS was idle and spun down its hard drives (how I have it set), then the Smart Strip would turn the equipment off. Obviously, a Network Access Storage device isn't very useful if all the connecting network equipment is off. Despite lots of on-and-off testing while adjusting the sensitivity of the Smart Strip, I couldn't get it to keep the network equipment powered up while the ReadyNAS was idle. In my case, when it is fully active the ReadyNAS NV+ consumes between 50-60 watts and when the drives are spun down it consumes about 25-30 watts. The Smart Strip wasn't sensitive enough to recognize that about 25 watts was not "sleep" mode.
In reviewing the BITS Limited web site, it appears there are older versions of the Smart Strip that have trouble with some newer equipment and require a "3rd Generation" strip. It's possible Amazon is selling the older strips or I got a defective unit; regardless, I returned it.
I still think the Smart Strip is a great idea, the physical layout of the plugs is much better than other power strips, and it offers great surge protection at a reasonable price. Alas, I couldn't get the one I bought from Amazon to work with my equipment.
Customer Review: Great For My Setup
Summary: 5 Stars
I've read some other reviews and I'm confused as to how they had set up their electronics. Perhaps my setup is very simple, but I've had 0 problem with this strip; everything works correctly, I haven't had to adjust it whatsoever and nothing flips on or off unless I have it plugged in to the white outlets. I have two of these strips with television and computers running as CONTROL (blue), answering machine, phone, modem, and paper shredder running on HOT (red) and DVD, home theater, antenna, PS3, computer speakers, etc. running on SWITCH (white). I guess if all you're buying this for is a lamp and tv, or a microwave and toaster...I don't know, yeah, you might have problems. I think you may need to consider what it is you're trying to save energy on, and then decide what CONTROL unit you'll be using. Pretty simple, I'd say. Otherwise, this is an awesome product!Customer Review: Seems great!
Summary: 4 Stars
I haven't recieved an electric bill yet, so I can't substantiate any claims to it's money saving ability. It is, however, very easy to set up. I did not have to do any adjustments and it controls all of my computer peripherals beautifully. I love not having to push the monitor button anymore since it was starting to stick! Seems like a good product. I'm hoping it is also saving energy!