I provide honest ratings and reviews on tech, toys, and consumer home goods that I've purchased and used. Reviews are based on hands-on testing and personal observations. All opinions and comments are my own.
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Takeaway: Easy to connect and control, reliable, works with Alexa. You'll receive the outlet and a brief instruction manual. Last year, I reviewed the original Oittm outdoor outlet and the new version is a little bit different. The new one is slightly more compact, measuring 4.5" x 2.25" x 1.5". It has the same 7" three-prong grounded plug, now with a round shape, and a 3-prong receptacle on the bottom, newly covered by a rubber door. On the back you have the same hanging hole and added are rubber covers for the screw holes. The on/off switch on the front is now rubberized and less likely to stick versus the original hard plastic button. The max Watts rating has decreased slightly to 1875W from 2000W and only outputs 15Amps versus the original 16A. However, it remains IP44 rated for water resistance and should be able to handle wet outdoor conditions just as well and my older unit has been installed outdoor for nearly 6 months without a problem.
To use the WiFi remote control feature, you'll need to connect the device to your home WiFi network and use a mobile device with a control app. The manual recommends the Oittm Smart app, but since I'm already using Smart Life for most of my IoT devices, I use that instead. the unit only takes about a minute to setup and is super simple by following the on-screen directions in the app. The timer and remote functions are great for outdoor lighting installations like holiday or landscape lighting. The ability to track the electricity usage it nice for budgeting and tracking those kinds of stats when you have new devices. Overall, the outlet works exactly as I expected it to, and is pretty convenient to control remotely. Even if you don't use Alexa, you can control the outlet from anywhere there's an internet connection with your smartphone.
