Treatlife Smart Plug Review

Smart plugs offer an easy way to turn regular appliances such as lamps, coffee makers, and desktop fans into smart devices that you can control with your phone. The Treatlife Smart Plug ($15.99) does all that, and as is the case with most models, it can also be turned on and off using Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant voice commands. The plug is easy to install and worked well in testing, but it lacks some of the features that you get with our Editors’ Choice, the $17.99 Samsung SmartThings Wi-Fi Smart Plug.

Design and Features

The Treatlife Smart Plug looks identical to the SmartThings and Amazon smart plugs. Its white enclosure measures 1.5 by 2.9 by 1.2 inches (HWD) and has an on/off button on the left side, a tiny LED indicator and a single three-prong receptacle on its face, and a three-prong plug around back. It has an 1800W maximum power rating and connects to your home network using an embedded 2.4GHz Wi-Fi radio.

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The Wi-Fi radio also allows the plug to respond to Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant voice commands, but it doesn’t work with Apple HomeKit or support IFTTT applets that allow it to interact with other smart home devices. You can add the plug to scenes in the mobile app to have it turn on and off at the same time as other Treatlife devices such as smart bulbs and smart dimmer switches, and you can have it turn on and off based on your local sunrise and sunset times, but it won't trigger or be triggered by other devices. Also missing are the power usage reports that you get with other smart plugs including the SmartThings model, the ConnectSense Smart Outlet 2, and the Eve Energy.

Treatlife Smart Plug Review

The Treatlife mobile app for Android and iOS devices is powered by Smart Life. It opens to a My Family screen with tabs for all of your connected Treatlife devices. This is also where you’ll see one-touch buttons for any scenes you’ve created. Next to the name of the plug is an on/off button that's green when the plug in on and white when it's off. Tap the tab to open a screen with a much larger on/off button in the center. Oddly, there’s another smaller power button on the bottom, along with timer and settings buttons.

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Tapping the timer button takes you to a screen where you can use a countdown timer to turn the plug off after a set period of time, and create on and off schedules for various times and days of the week. Here you can also set the plug to an Away mode that will have it turn on and off randomly to give the appearance that someone is home when you are away.

Back at the My Family screen, there are three buttons located along the bottom edge. The My Family button takes you back to the opening (home) screen, and the Smart button takes you to a screen where you can create the above-mentioned Tap-to-Run scenes. Use the Profile button to edit the name and location of your home, add rooms where Treatlife devices are installed, enable app notifications and sounds, set a do not disturb schedule that disables notifications during a specific time period, and test your network connection. Here you can also link the plug to your Alexa and Google accounts and view frequently asked questions.

Installation and Performance

I had the plug up and running in a manner of minutes. I started by downloading the mobile app and creating an account, then verified my email address. I tapped Add Device on the opening screen, selected Smart Plug from the list of devices, and plugged it in. Once I confirmed that the LED was blinking rapidly, I entered my Wi-Fi password (the app automatically selected the Wi-Fi SSID used by my phone) and waited around 30 seconds for the plug to be added to my account. I gave it a name and the installation was finished.

The Treatlife Smart Plug worked as advertised. I had no trouble turning it on and off using the mobile app, and the plug never failed to adhere to my schedules. Tap-to Run scenes worked without issue, as did Alexa voice commands to turn the plug on and off.

Conclusions

If you’re looking to smarten up some of your home appliances without spending a lot of money, the Treatlife Smart Plug will get the job done. It offers built-in Wi-Fi and is easy to install, and it supports voice control using Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant voice commands. You can also create on and off schedules and use scenes to control multiple plugs with the touch of a button. However, the plug doesn't interact with other smart devices, nor does it offer power usage statistics. For just $2 more, our Editors’ Choice, the Samsung SmartThings Wi-Fi Smart Plug, gives you usage reports and supports IFTTT applets, and it plays nicely with other devices that are connected to a SmartThings hub.