Review of UseeLink SM-SO306E Smart Zigbee Extender with Separately Controlled Outlets and Dual USB Ports by Tuya 2022.
Today we’ll talk about a Zigbee extension cable for 4 euro sockets with separate control and a pair of USB ports for powering and charging gadgets. As usual, we will consider its capabilities in the standard control system, and the device works in the Tuya Smart ecosystem and we will not disregard the methods of integration into the alternative Home Assistant control system.
Buy UseeLink ZigBee Smart Power Strip on Aliexpress
ZigBee Smart Power Strip 16A EU/UK,UseeLink Smart Power Bar Multiple Outlet Extension Cord with 2 USB and 4 AC Plugs by Tuya
Parameters
- Model: UseeLink SM-SO306E
- Number of sockets – 4
- USB quantity – 2
- Input voltage: 110-240V
- Maximum current: 10A
- Maximum current on USB: 2.1A
- Standby power consumption: 0.3W
- Working humidity: <80%
- Working temperature: -20 ° C – + 70 ° C
- Wireless interface: Zigbee
- Shell: ABS + Polycarbonate fireproof material
- White colour
- Size: 335 * 65 * 41mm
- Wire length – 145 cm
Supply
The device is delivered in a simple white cardboard box, there are no manufacturer’s logos, there is only a drawing explaining that it is an extension cord, the name and a list of parameters on the side.
The kit contains a small instruction in English, with a standard description of the connection for sockets and relays. Let me remind you that the basic ecosystem of this device is Tuya Smart…
Design
The device is made of white refractory plastic, outwardly it does not particularly differ from the most ordinary household extension cord.
The power section consists of 4 deep Shucko earthed sockets. The contacts are child- and splash-proof.
On the other side there are LED indicators, two USB ports – they are paralleled and a power control button that turns on or off all the sockets at once. Side, black – fuse.
On the lower side, in the center, the model number and basic characteristics of the device are duplicated.
There are special fasteners along the edges of the extension cord, for installing it on the wall – both vertically and horizontally
The device measures 33.5 cm long, 6.5 cm wide and 41 mm deep. At the same time, 31 mm is incorrectly indicated on the device page in the store on Aliexpress.
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Disassembly
For disassembly, from the bottom side, you need to remove 8 plastic plugs from the bottom side, which cover the screw heads.
Power contacts – zero and ground – common, phase – separate for each outlet, since they all have separate control. Everything is done thoroughly, the soldering is good, the wires are thick enough.
Control board. Brown wires – go from the relay, separately for each outlet. To remove it, you need to unscrew six more screws, 4 from the board itself and 2 from the wire attachment.
The fuse at the input is 10 Amperes, this is the total maximum current, an extension cord cannot be used for powerful loads. No more than 2.2 – 2.3 kW in total.
And this is how the control board looks like. I did not find any flaws in the design, the soldering is neat, the flux is washed off.
For each of the channels, 10 A relay modules are applied, that is, when using one outlet, it will be able to pull the maximum load for the entire extension cord.
Standard for Tuya Smart Zigbee ecosystem devices TYZS3 module
After power on, the extension cord is ready for pairing. Manually switch to this mode by holding the power button for 5-7 seconds.
Tuya Smart
Let’s start the logical part with the standard Tuya Smart application. You will need a compatible Zigbee gateway. We start the mode of connecting child devices and wait until the extension cable appears in the list of detected devices.
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Next, set the name and location, after which the extension cable will appear in the general list and in the list of connected gateway devices.
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The plug-in window consists of five switches – the first 4 are power outlets, then USB is common, of course, and under them there are three buttons, turning everything on and off at once and setting the state when power is restored.
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There are three options for the behavior of the extension cord when power is applied – turn on all ports, turn off everything, or remember the state before disconnecting.
There is an offline notification option in the settings, but you need to provide an uninterruptible power supply for the gateway and router. I got a device with the current firmware version.
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Automation
The extender can participate in scripts in both the triggers-conditions section and the actions section.
For triggers, state changes are available – on or off, for any of the switches, as well as a change in the state of the relay when the power is turned off.
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For the automation actions section, this is what the extender will do when the trigger is executed, for each of the five switches there is an on, off and state switching, and it is also possible to set the mode when the power is restored.
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Testing
Clicks of the relay modules of the extension cord. They are obvious and, especially at night, will be clearly audible, consider this moment.
You can listen to them in the video version of the review
The maximum current on USB, the total, since the ports are parallelized, is declared 2.1 A. But at the same time, the voltage is still within the normal range at a load of up to 2.5 A.
But no more – so after this value, the voltage begins to sink heavily.
And the side of the extension cord where the ports are located becomes noticeably warm.
Testing operating modes – everything is off after power is restored, everything is on and the state of conservation mode – see the video version of the review
Google home
Tuya Smart Account – integrates with Google Home. The added devices will be automatically forwarded here as well. An extension cord – like six switches, 4 – sockets, USB and a switch that controls all ports at the same time.
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What is what is easy to identify by name. Controls the entire extension cord, sockets one through four, and USB.
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Zigbee2mqtt
The good news is that the device is officially supported in zigbee2mqtt about which there is an entry in the list of compatible devices on the project website.
We start the mode of adding new devices, I use the native web integration interface, which replaced zigbee2mqtt assistant. On the extension cord – by holding the button, launch the pairing mode and wait until it appears in the general list
The device is a router, which is natural – since it has a stationary power supply. The device model is identified as TS0115.
Other devices on the network will be able to connect through it, this is an automatic process and not very fast.
There are six entities in total – this is the signal quality level and five switches, sockets and USB ports.
Of the minuses – there is no way to set the operating mode when the power is turned off, and this is very sad, since by default it is in the all off mode.
In exactly the same way, everything is forwarded to Home Assistant – a signal quality sensor and switches.
SLS Gateway
Also, there are no problems connecting to the SLS gateway. The device passes the interview and is correctly identified and added to the general list of devices.
Extended information about the extension cord. There is also no opportunity to set the operating mode when power is restored, although in theory it can be added.
Entities – signal quality level and five switches that can be tested right from here.
Thank you for your attention
