Gadgetory

lighting is a great entry point into the smart house why because everybody needs lights and you can get a smart switch or bulb and it will change the way that your home functions but a new product the iDevices socket is neither a bulb nor a switch this thing lets you screw in any standard bulb and voila you could schedule it dim it and control it using Siri or alexa plus it includes this nifty LED ring nightlight now on a technical level the iDevices socket performs really admirably the problem is it's 80 bucks and I can't think of a single use case where a smart LED plug or switch wouldn't do the same thing more affordably say you want to use the socket in a lamp first off it won't fit under many lampshades because it's so bulky secondly you can get features like dimming scheduling and voice control from Cheaper smart plugs and bulbs which both work with lamps ok so say you want to use it in a light fixture instead that means you can't use a smart plug the problem is the socket still doesn't add any features that a smart bulb or in-wall switch can't replicate for less money finally let's say you want to install particular lights that aren't smart like Edison bulbs well the socket is still going to be attached to them which kind of ruins the aesthetic appeal and in most cases an in-wall switch will do most of the same things again for less money so at the end of the day unless you're looking for a one light fixture that works with one bulb that isn't smart that needs smart features and you need it to be homekit compatible this really isn't gonna be the best option for you and even then it's gonna be kind of pricey so if you do have a situation like that at least you can take comfort in the fact that you are a unique snowflake and almost nobody else will have that problem