TP-Link Tapo Matter Smart Light Switch: Voice Control w/Siri, Alexa & Google Home | UL Certified | Timer & Schedule | Easy Guided Install | Neutral Wire Required | Single Pole | Tapo S505(2-Pack)

Our home has front porch lights and exterior up-lights on separate switches. These were both Intermatic timers, and one timer (unfortunately, with a non-removable battery) kept losing its program with every power outage. When I saw this two-pack on offer, I decided to replace both switches.Installation is well documented and straightforward and literally involved swapping out equivalent wires on the old timers onto the new.Even though I use Smart Life for all my home automation, I installed the Tapo app on my phone, purely so that I could upgrade the smart switches' firmware. This worked seamlessly. However, I was not able to get these devices to work with Smart Life (which is supposedly now compatible with the Matter standard). It recognized the devices and added them just fine. But when I attempted to program a scene, and got to the bit where you say which device feature you're trying to control, instead of seeing something like "Switch", I just got an entry with Chinese writing. Thinking this could have been a simple missing text issue, I selected this option, but it then gave an error when trying to save my scene.I don't know if this is an issue with these switches, or an issue with how Smart Life implements the Matter standard, so I didn't want to deduct a star in this review.It ended up not being a problem for me, as the only automation I want is a dusk-to-dawn schedule, never to be changed, and only to be overridden if I am at my front door and can just tap the switches directly. So, I programmed this in the Tapo app, which was super easy, and everything works as I need it to.

Use as a light switch at the bottom of the stairs for my kids who never turn the light off. Connects easily to my phone, I never have problems with a connection. Tapo has its own app that is super easy to use and you can turn the switch off with your phone with the touch of a button. I will be putting more around the house. Highly recommend this brand

These are a great value. When they have coupons you can get them cheaper than a dumb Lutron light switch at Home Depot. I use apple home and they are easily and quickly added to HomeKit. I did install 3 switches at once and 2 were added then dropped off HomeKit. I readded them and they've been reliable since then. I've been using them for a couple months now and they've been great. They're replacing belkin wemo light switches. The wemo ones would power off and restart or look for updates almost nightly and when they do they'll power off for the 5-15 minutes every time. It was pretty dangerous on our kitchen light switch. These ones are a huge improvement.

I got this to replace my Feit Electric dimmer (the "DIM/WIFI" model). The Feit was better looking, and easier to install, but uses the Tuya app (basically suspected Chinese spyware which isn't always compatible with different smart services) and wasn't Matter-certified. I wanted Matter for better future-proofing. The Feit also did this annoying thing where it was lit up on the panel when off, a sort of standby mode, which wasn't great if you wanted proper darkness. The devices are priced similarly.The TP-Link (Tapo) dimmer here isn't quite as attractive as the Feit. It uses a weird UI where it looks like an always-on rocker that uses the “down” button for both on and off, has dimming buttons that go horizontal instead of vertical, and has a loud and cheap sound when pressed. This has been true of old TP-Link Kasa products, too. At least it doesn't have branding on it, same as the Feit. Both have a removable, proprietary faceplate that looks fine and snaps on and off. I’m glad that the switch itself doesn’t light up in the dark, as with the Feit (the Tapo has an ever-so-faint WiFi signal circle that isn’t intrusive).Installing it was also worse than the Feit. The Feit has holes for wires to enter and lock down with screws. This TP-Link has jiggly, finicky little plates that the wires go under, and because the screws can come all the way out, the plates can, too, so you need to pay close attention. The Feit has holes for every wire needed, including extras, while the TP-Link requires (provided) wire nuts for both the Neutral and Ground. Both come with labels, and while the TP-Link labels are clearer they are also much larger and don't stick well.The Feit has two screw options for attaching to the wall box, whether it’s small or large (I don’t know the standard measurements) and both are metal. The TP-Link has metal if you have a larger box, but plastic for smaller boxes. The smaller option does come with the option to adjust the screw side-to-side (the larger does not), which is useful if your box is not level. However, you need to be careful not to screw it in too hard, as the plastic is very soft and you can screw right through it. I think you could solve this with a couple of cheap metal washers, but it's definitely a design flaw. It's especially problematic if you're relying on the screws to keep the device flush with the wall, which is typical of these devices because they take up much more space than non-smart dimmers and it gets crowded with the cables, necessitating pressure from the screws.My Google Home recognized the device right away (which was actually kind of annoying because I wanted to set up using Smartthings and the popup was intrusive). I was able to add it via Matter-over-WiFi and my Smartthings V2 hub, and it shows up in my linked Google Home. However, I did have to unlink Smartthings from Google Home, and then reauthorize it (“reconnect” alone did not work). This is a Matter problem, not really a TP-Link or Tapo problem. I had the same issue with my Tapo Matter smart outlet. Hopefully Matter fixes this in the future.Because this is Matter-over-WiFi, a Thread border hub isn't needed, but I use a hub for tons of other things anyway. This is not a Thread device, so it won't build out any Thread network, but it will still work with Matter if you're OK putting it directly on the WiFi.So far, it's working as it should. The switch works normally, and I haven't had disconnects. I did have disconnects with the Tapo Matter smart outlet, and those were solved by downloading the Tapo app and upgrading the device firmware, so I did the same preemptively for this dimmer. It's annoying that you have to download the Tapo app to get full functionality, but it's basically standard fare for smart devices at the moment, at least until Matter gets its act together. I just download the proprietary apps, get what I need from them, and delete them, preferring my Smartthings setup for smartphone control, and my Google Home for voice control.This is a decent dimmer for the price, if you can live with how it looks and installs and the quirks of Matter in Dec 2023. If ever a Matter-over-Thread dimmer is released, and looks at all half-way decent, I’ll probably move to that. For now, this works and gets the Chinese spyware out of my house.

TP-Link continues to impress me with their Tapo and Kasa products. The hardware and software offerings are both very well built. Setup was very painless, the app instantly recognized the switch, and it was setup in Google Home within 60 seconds. Google Home also did recognize it as a Matter device immediately, but I chose to go through the Tapo app. The button is just as satisfying to click as the Kasa switches, and the automation features add additional functionality through Tapo itself or Home Assistant.

Install was straight forward. Easier then a dumb switch. I had the Tapo app already for a different device. Alexa Reconized the switch automatically. All I had to do was hit the resat button.

My home is wired mostly correct and it was a fairly simple task to install this (and two others). It took me less than 10 minutes (per) from start of project to the satisfying Home Assistant toggle tap of the finished install! Once you add the switches to the Tapo app and WiFi, Home Assistant will almost immediately detect it.I especially love I got these on sale for $10 a piece, so I bought 3. I can automate my dining room and kitchen lights as I see fit. These are better than Wi-Fi bulbs, imo. And almost as cheap while on sale!