Thanks for the video. For those who can't switch from 5Ghz to 2.4Ghz: move your phone to a distance away from your router (your back or front garden) and it should connect to your 2.4Ghz as the 5Ghz doesn't reach as far. Then scan for the new smart device. Another option which I didn't get to try out is if your router has 2.4Ghz & 5Ghz then find an older phone that doesn't support 5Ghz and use that to add the new smart device.
Great review thanks. Only drawback is switching to 2.4g a lot of people will be confused at that. Is there any info on it using MQTT or any of the home automation software such as Habian, Home assistant, etc.?
Well done with the video. I was chuffed to bits with the socket and it used to be reliable but lately, it has become unusable. The phone app is hit and miss if it works inside the house, outside on a remote network or 4G I can see that my socket is online but if I attempt to go in more detail perhaps altering the random feature, it just presents a continuous loading wheel. Very annoying. I use the latest v1.2.3 Android App on Android 9. Another annoying feature is that randomly I have to login to the app. There is no fingerprint authentication so I have to type email and password again - painful if all I wanted was to switch the light on. I have tried to use the Google Home App on my phone and that works quite well for other smart devices. The BG socket / Google home interface just has very basic features - I can't for example change the random setting.
Thanks for the full feature review, warts & all. Doesn't really meet my needs. For around the same price, I've opted for a pair of Tapo P110 sockets for the washing machine & tumble dryer point. And I can move them around if I want to monitor other appliances, unlike a fixed socket. BG need to work on their compatibility issues before I'd consider buying the next version of this socket.
I have tons of these in stock (I work for a national electrical wholesaler). We sell tons of these to the trade, mostly electricians who have used the BG Nexus wiring accessories for years.! To offer a wifi integrated socket is a must now if future proofing your range... We are cheaper than the likes of Screwfix too 😉
@@GeekStreet I'm the branch manager for Eyre & Elliston, we are a well established large independent electrical wholesaler... One of BG Electricals biggest customers..! & yes this is without doubt a popular product line, far better seller over their wifi extender socket that's for sure..!! (We also stock & sell their socket plug through adaptors! As some will already have pre existing wiring accessories that the BG socket just doesn't match with, or they don't feel confident changing a socket themselves & would prefer a plug in / through device. Obviously not a requirement for a fully competent electrician though. But I think BG have covered both aspects of the market with these two products. I'm sure that as they monitor sales, the range will no doubt expand into their light switches, dimmers & also cross into their decrotives ranges too, or at least I hope they do..!!)
@@bellas_switch_adapted_toys thanks for the reply and info, in the current economic climate its going to be tough times, so I hope this plug for your company helps!
@@bellas_switch_adapted_toys How can it be future proof when it only supports out of date 2.4GHz tech and won't configure on a dual-band router that supports legacy you have to go back to slow connection this is hardly future-proofing as I understand it.
@@onwingsofmidnight I hear what your saying but the majority of smart home products only work currently on 2.4ghz..? & its simple enough to configure your dual band router to 2.4ghz only whilst you connect your smart device & then switch back to dual band after. Done it many times when testing various smart home products. If you don't know how to do this then give it a search on RU-vid maybe 😉
Most people only have one hub and most are Dual band so this is not a great product if you can use it with a dual band hub or a 5ghz router only an old router ?? Any one been able to connect this to a dual band Router?
Great video as always. No smartlife integration is a deal breaker for me. Bye the way they make 2 versions of this socket, one with square edge profile and one with round edge profile, both available from screwfix.
Thanks for the comment much appreciated I felt exactly like you no smart no life support then no point, but the build quality is really good and from a known brand that would have tested to UK standards. And it has the max work time and random time which are really good options, only negative from me is the app, it didn't work so great on my S10 plus.
I had already purchased the item when I came across this review. I found it very helpful. I have set one of the sockets on a timer for a table lamp. I was disappointed that you could not set sunrise/sunset as an option. I have that function on some of my adaptor plugs. Also Google home can’t find it. I will persevere
Might be a daft question, but looking at terminals, can this be used to to convert a single socket into a double? I've got a single socket that I want to change to a 2 gang.
You can do that with any socket, the only change is the back box behind it. If its flush with the wall this you may have to cut into the wall to fit a larger one.
Great review! 😊 Would this manage having a large appliance plugged into it? Like a washer or a space heater? I know it’s not recommended to use them on smart plugs that’s all.
i have one in my kitchen to stop my guessing if i turned the iron off 😊 maybe its a new feature but it does have device sharing, click the "ME" icon at the bottom of the home screen, device sharing and it gives a QR code for another device to scan.
Socket occasionally looses wifi even though very close to the router, which means Alexa wont turn it on or off occasionally. Id seen reviews on Amazon stating the same but thought id chance it - wish i hadnt.
Same here, router is very close but this still loses connection. I've given up and have decided on smart plugs rather than a smart socket, these BG sockets are more hassle than they're worth. I sent my BG smart socket back to Amazon.
Thank you for a clear and well presented review. I see you have also reviewed the Ener-J equivalent with has a USB port and is approx £15 more. Is there anything else we should know before choosing between the 2.
Thanks for the comment much appreciated. Both products are really good functionality wise ENER-J's one is the best as it can integrate with a lot of other Tuya / Smart Life tech, but the BG one is from a major company which you know would have gone through good safety checks. Most electrician tend not to like the product with USB charge points as they say there is a high risk of failure. If i had a choice I'd go for BG as it come from a known and trusted brand. But thats just my view. Also keep in mind the Smart Life app cannot be used with the the BG device which a big shame.
@@GeekStreet I have one from Ali express in my kitchen that we use for the slow cooker but the one in your review is far better looking and better quality I'd imagine. I'll defo invest in some of these.
That's definitely worth doing if you have issues connecting, I actually use a wifi extender that only supports 2.4Ghz WiFi and it sort of acts as a kill switch if wanted to disconnect all my smart tech in one go.
Great video. This says no hub needed on box and on various sites. Has anyone managed to get this thing working with out there WiFi router being switched on? My BG smart switch keeps turning off and on every few minutes without WiFi router being turned on after initial setup.
Great video! The rating on the socket is 13A and my Plug in hybrid takes 10A for about 3.5-4hours to charge. It’s currently connected on a regular three pin socket and I was wondering if I could make the socket smart and get it to charge at off peak times, perhaps I could set up a schedule? I wasn’t sure if that’s safe because I’ve come across topics which have said not to connect large current draw devices to smart sockets but this is a wall socket (as opposed to a smart plug) - no different to the regular non-smart socket it’s connected to right now. Any ideas?
Thanks for the comment. If you can plug in your hybrid into a standard plug then this should be fine. One thing about this socket is that it's made by a major electrical company so I have more faith in this than other unknow brands. In terms or timers from what I remember pretty sure it can be set.
nice video mate.... couple of q's. Do you know if these switches work with IFTTT and do you know if there is an option to 'lock' a side like you can with the Lightwave range? Thanks
Thnak for the comment no there is no IFTTT support of the lock option. These people are quite new to the smart tech market. I bought these myself to review, but I have reached out to them recently to advise on adding IFTTT....and a few other bits. Lets see if they do.
Geek Street I purchased a couple of these plugs, they are really good. Quick update for you in case anyone should ask. They work perfectly with IFTTT and you can parent lock them which is great as it stops people from turning them off which would take them off your home network.
@@GeekStreet Let me explain a little more clearly. I have installed two double smart sockets in the conservatory. They are working fine and connect to BG Home app on my phone. I now wish to operate a lamp in the lounge but using a Smart Plug (not socket). I want the lamp to be controlled by the BG app on my phone as well. My question is...does the new Smart Plug need to be BG or can I buy from another manufacturer?
@@bigpapanoodle ah ok now I understand! Buy a bg smart plug then others won't appear in the app. You would have to go via another app not worth the hassle. Have it all nicely in a single app.
You may have to contact the company to confirm. Just a note I've had 2 on these fail on me, so really disappointed, I may just give up and go back to using a normal socket.
Not sure I want another app, especially one that wants me to sign up? They need to integrate this with Smartlife etc. Wonder if Shelly will start doing something like these?
I know what you mean if you integrate though google home of alexa you could just use that interface. I want the big brand like MK to do this a proper trusted good quality brand.
@@GeekStreet Hi, so I have added and setup the BG Home App on Playstore but still no sign of BG Home in Alexa Skill, even checked on PC Alexa App and its not there either, strange. Thanks
what you fail to mention is why we have to give our email address to them to make the appliance work with the app. i bought 2 smart life plugs and it took over an hour to install them as the bluetooth bu=it could not find them so i ha to find them manually. eventually got them both to work, but now they have sold my email to anyone and i get a minimum of 150 spam emails every day. they dont need my email address at all. the price of the device should include mark up for the cost of the app. these maybe cheap but not worth the hassle of having to d;ete hundreds of emails every day.
The reason you have to setup an account is to allow remote connectivity so the device can contact their servers and allows you to control. If they didn't do that you would have to use port forwarding to forward certain traffic from your internet router to the switch, the average home user would have no idea how to do this hence they use this method of cloud based connectivity. I hope that helps clear this up for you.
Sadly that is the way the world is going. YOU are the product. Even some TVs wont work now unless you sign up to an account so they can monitor everything you do. 10minutemail dot com is useful for some of these spam traps but you might get caught out if you needed to log in and change settings or something.
@@GeekStreet Don't see why you need to setup an account with an email address, or phone number. The app is installed on your phone and authenticates/pairs during setup. If the software is smart when using it remotely, out of the house on 4G or another network, it should be able to just use a token/hash to connect with the correct socket using a BG cloud service. However, its useful to have another method of authenticating in case you lose, or can no longer use, your phone, then it's useful to transfer the setup details to a different device. That was probably their intention.
Geek Street that’s it I current have a couple of tp link smart plugs which work great but moving house soon and looking to install a new kitchen so want new led lighting and machines controllable on a tablet on the wall with easily clicking on screen
Many thanks for review Are you still happy with it Can I control through app with android and set timer for all week from time I want turn on and off I sow there WP22/HC-01 for outside
Just spent two hours trying to set one of these up .... so frustrating ...... tech support shut over the weekend as well.... especially when you finally get it to connect, you put your sofa back and it then doesn’t work..... it need full bars on you WiFi hub, any dodgy areas in your home, or a weak signal you’ve had it..... will be taking it back for a refund on Monday
DANGER BEWARE...... YES The can fail live. Even when I operate the socket manually although the light around the button goes of the socket is still live. Phoned support and the same as you reply was just take it back to the shop if you have a receipt which I don't. However tech support did explain how the unit can fail to danger which did not help at all. DANGER BEWARE.
hummmm. 2021, and the are not working these days, just got a couple from Screwfix, battle to connect but got there. but they wont firmware update and keep going offline. Back to Screwfix!
No tricks here my friend, both are good double sockets last weeks one had the advantage of the USB point and working with the generic app Smart Life / Tuya and you can easily create smart scenes to get multiple devices working together which can be very clever. But this one is limited to their own app but has the 2 special options random timer, max time and it's a known brand. The limitation here is you can't use IFTTT to interact with other smart tech. It's really is a tough choice.
@@GeekStreet Thanks for your detailed reply. Haha I know I know, its good you have reviewed a better looking version. I watched your other vid last week and bought it for £15 off ebay but I dont know if I trust the quality as I had few sonoffs that have burnt out! This BG one looks quite nice, the IFTTT but is interesting. I may get this one too and put them head to head. Keep doing what your doing!
Fabulous.... I just finished off some home built EMF/Microwave shielding to deaden the 5250Mhz @ 80mhz, 82dBm from next door.... This is the kind of kit some "fookin" muppet with a suicide wish want's to put in their home and share with their neighbours.
No - get things into perspective. The Coronavirus Pandemic is terrifying. Someone being able to ‘hack’ your electrical socket and turn on your table lamp isn’t in the same league as terrifying. Get a life and take the tin foil hat off!
@@GeekStreet I'm a bit gutted by it. I got mine from Screwfix. However I have just been looking at the Lightwave smart socket on Screwfix which is £60 and an electrician on there has said he has had 2 of them fail after 2 years. At £60 I would of thought they should be better quality than the £20 I paid for the BG Electrical one. I am currently thinking of whether to get the TCP one to try or the new TP Link smart extension cable.
@@RyanJohnsonsgtry85 BG is a good brand and personally I'd say trusted brand. What are you plugging in? I wonder if it got overloaded?! This shouldn't be the case. Have you contacted screwfix, their service is pretty good. I wouldn't buy Lightwave too expensive and you need a hub too. The TP extension strip definitely looks good.
@@GeekStreet I have a console, monitor, speakers and PC plugged in. Not sure what would cause it. But it doesn't click as loud when you turn it on and off. Seems like the motor or whatever switches it on and off is not fully open and closing the switch on the circuit. The blue light around it goes on and off when pressing it. How long have you had the your plug for?
@@GeekStreet no problem. There has been a few updates since your video went live. It maybe worth getting in touch with the tech team and ask for myself. Very good video by the way
@@GeekStreet let me know what you think. If you could get in touch with the office we have new lines coming soon across our three ranges LUCECO MASTERPLUG AND Bg
@@GeekStreet Yes, Done that. It's very frustrating as very few of the items that are supposed to be "Zigbee" compatible are. It's also frustrating that everyone seems to have their own app and not working together.
@@daveemsley7185 yes I hear your pain, to bring all your devices together just add them in google home or in Alexa if you use that. Give you a central place to control all.
Dual 2.4 ghz /5ghz WI-FI problems. Go to router and turn off 5ghz while pairing socket/s once paired turn on 5ghz again. Sockets will then ignore the 5ghz signal. IFTTT still in development. (so BG tell me)
If you turn off the 5ghz the app loses the router so it's hard to set up the socket if you disable the 5ghz band?? I get the theory but the practice is not so simple.
@@CortinasAndClassics ok then don’t buy it ? Do you think people with disabilities might not need stuff like this ? For non disabled people where sockets are in awkward places such as I have one on a like landing area above my door you think that’s easy to access ?
@@conor20118 people got by before this. Apps are not going to solve all the problems in the world. I am short and I have to jump or use a pole to hit a switch above a door in my home.
Even more wifi bouncing around your house 👍🏻 great ... do we really need these type of things? Even more technology to rely on, yes they may seem convenient and useful but everything come at a price and I ain't talking ££££ what's the health price ? Being able to be a self sufficient human being and not living life through technology
