Feeling anxious about high electricity bills? Check out these 4 gadgets from Qubo, Wipro, and Ohm to help cut costs.

This summer, many people are facing the reality of higher electricity bills due to rising energy prices and increased usage of household appliances. By being aware of the power consumption of each device in your home, you can make informed decisions to cut costs.

Kill-A-Watt first popularized measuring power consumption at the device level in the early 2000s in the United States. Kill-A-Watt, which means kilowatt, is a device that measures the amount of electricity used by various household appliances. All you have to do is plug the device into a wall outlet, then connect all the devices to the Kill-A-Watt and voilà – you can see the power consumption of the devices in real time. You can then measure the units consumed per hour and get the figure for the month. Unfortunately, this is not available in India and even if you manage to get one, it is not compatible with the 220V used in Indian homes. In addition, this requires some effort to manually measure and calculate each device.

Fortunately, there are several WiFi-enabled smart plugs with energy monitoring features available for purchase on Indian e-commerce sites. Several brands like Hero Group’s Qubo, TP-Link, Wipro, Havells and Philips offer a variety of these products at very reasonable prices compared to similar products sold abroad. Prices start from Rs. 699 for a 10A smart plug and Rs. 899 for the 16A version. Although the 10A version is suitable for small devices such as a laptop charger, kettle or television. The 16A version is suitable for large appliances such as geysers, microwave ovens and even air conditioners. This is very convenient and simple to use and more accurate than the manual method.

Qubo Smart Plugs monitor power consumption and set schedules

My computer at home is on for several hours a day and I decided to check if it was due to the increase in my power consumption and electricity bill. I ordered the 10A and 16A version of the Qubo Smart connectors. I use their Car Dash Cam and have had a good experience so far, so I decided to give their smart plugs a try. Most of their devices are Made in India and mobile apps are available for both iOS and Android.

The installation process is straightforward. You install the smart plug in the socket, launch the Qubo app on your smartphone and start the pairing process. You need to find the device and connect it to your account. You can now connect the device to the smart plug to use all the features. You can also set schedules, countdowns and connect to Alexa. You can see the energy consumption in kilowatt hours for the day and month with the help of a nice little chart. You get other relevant information such as current, voltage and total energy consumption. The best part is that it works over the internet, so you can control your devices at home even when you’re out and about. You can turn on the AC at home before you arrive, set a schedule to turn on the geyser every morning at 7 for 20 minutes, or turn off the refrigerator when you’re away on vacation.

The app shows the data in real-time, so I noticed that my AC draws significantly less power when running at 26 degrees compared to 22 degrees. These numbers add up over time and over a 30-day period the savings are significant.

Wipro smart extension card for multiple sockets, automatic disconnection

If you’re looking to connect multiple devices, Wipro offers an extension cord for as low as Rs 1,890 that comes with 4 outlets and features like energy monitoring, auto shut-off, timing, and the ability to control your devices via Alexa and Google Assistant.

Ohm Assistant for real-time energy monitoring via a mobile app

You can also go a step further and decide to track your consumption directly at the source. There are products that can be installed in your home’s electrical distribution box. One such product is SustLabs’ Ohm Assistant, which was incubated at IIT Bombay. Ohm Assistant is a real-time energy monitoring product for homes and requires professional installation by a qualified electrician. Known as the Ohm Bot, the device takes about 30 minutes to install and once installed, your electricity usage data is available on your smartphone via WiFi. The Ohm Assistant app is available for both Android and iOS, and can also be accessed from the website.

We often tend to assume that devices do not consume power when they are left on standby and not in use. Devices like TVs, monitors, and UPSs draw a bit of power when they’re not in use, and if they sit idle for a long time, those numbers add up and eventually cost you money. It is also highly recommended to use your devices in energy saving mode whenever possible.