How to Set a Timer on the Amazon Smart Plug

The world is getting smarter. Or, at least, our devices are. Smart phones, smart watches and now smart homes. Name a device, and there's probably a version you can talk to and tell it to do whatever you want. Your fridge can order groceries for you. Your phone can turn off your lights from another country.

These smart devices are usually controlled by an AI assistant, and it's the same with Amazon's Smart Home ecosystem, Alexa will be at your beck and call. One of the most recent additions to their line is the Smart Plug. It can be used to turn non-smart devices on or off by voice command, or at the request of a routine you have set up.

How does it work?

As mentioned above, the bread and butter of your home automation is achieved using what Amazon calls Routines. You program them into your Alexa app, defining a list of instructions that the assistant will follow. You can use these routines to do all sorts of things, from playing your favorite music and slowly turning on the lights to help you wake up, to brewing an espresso when you walk through your front door.

Routines are usually set to run at a specific time, but they're actually quite flexible if you want to do something more in-depth, like turning things off after they've been on for a while. For example, if you know you're still out within an hour of waking up, you can set up your routine so that whatever was on is off again an hour later. This way you don't have to worry about stopping things before you get to work.

Set up a timed routine

Although it can be a bit cumbersome to set it up, once you have your routines in place, they can really make your life easier and save you a lot of time. You'll never have to worry about whether you left the oven on again, because you can be sure you've already told Alexa to turn it off for you (although you don't have to say who you use is an excuse, of course!).

Let's take a look at an example routine, so you can get an idea of ​​what kind of thing you can set up and how it works. For this example, we'll configure the outlet to have a bedside lamp plugged into it, and then we'll configure a timed routine to automatically turn off after an hour. We'll assume that's the only catch you have so far.

Configure smart plug

1. Plug the lamp into the smart socket.
2. Plug the Smart Plug into the electrical outlet.
3. Open the Alex app from the home screen of your Android, iOS, or FireOS device.
4. Press features
5. Then press Plugs.
6. Now press First take.
7. Press the Parameters cogwheel at the top right of the screen.
8. Tap the device name, then rename it Bedroom Light.

Configure timed routine

1. Return to the home window of the Alexa app.
2. Press the Menu button at the bottom right of the screen.
3. Then press routines.
4. Tap the plus (+) button at the top right of the screen.
5. Press When this happens, and choose how you want to trigger the Routine. It can be a fixed time or a voice. command like "Alexa, hello".
6. Next, tap the plus (+) next to Add action.
7. Now press Smart home.
8. From there, press Control device.
9. Press Bedroom lamp.
10. Press to Au.
11. Press Next.
12. Again, tap the plus (+) next to Add action.
13. Scroll to Expect.
14. Slide the scroll wheels on the screen so that it is set to 1 hour.
15. Then press Next.
16. Again, tap the plus (+) next to Add action.
17. Press Smart home.
18. Press Control device.
19. Press Bedroom lamp.
20. Finally, press disabled.

This very simple routine will now automatically turn on your bedroom light when you say "Alexa, hello", then an hour later the lights will automatically turn off. You can easily add other devices and actions to this routine, like getting a weather report or turning on your coffee machine. You can even chain a few wait commands together to have a continuous routine that turns things on and off based on the timers you've set up.

Carpe Diem a little faster

Using timed routines, you can use the wait command to have Alexa make sure everything happens in your home when you want it and it's turned off without you having to think twice . If you have some incredibly smart routines that have made your day so much easier, why not share them with us in the comments section below?