Smart sockets from China - no remote access outside the home.

Question

I have a problem with three so-called smart sockets purchased in China - exactly these: Adding them to the SmartLife app went without a problem. Controlling these sockets too.... As long as I am at home. When I'm at home I can control them both via my home WIFI and when my phone is using the...

p.kaczmarek2 · Answer

Or did you accidentally buy a Bluetooth device? If you disable Bluetooth on your phone, can you still control them while you are at home? Do you connect the same way at work via mobile internet?

marcinradom · Answer

Being at home I can control them both via home wifi and with wifi off. BT I have disabled completely. While at home I can check the network connection status of each of these sockets, their address etc. I am very surprised that while at home I can control them using mobile data and while at work I cannot.
While at work I use the company wifi and the mobile data. In both cases I cannot control just these three sockets. The others shown in the picture I can seamlessly regardless of my location.
The status of the app when I am 'away' from home is shown in the image below.

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p.kaczmarek2 · Answer

I would rather be inclined to think that we are leaving something out. To the best of my knowledge Tuya has no way of 'determining' whether you are connecting over mobile internet from home or work. This is provided that when testing at home you have WiFi and BT turned off.

I'd sooner look for the problem somewhere else, e.g. maybe you have that WiFi on at work and someone on the router has blocked the Tuya ports (but then it wouldn't connect at all), or e.g. when you leave for work someone in the family turns off the extension cord to save electricity....

Well, but the next step of diagnosis would probably be to determine if then these sockets are working when you are e.g. outside the house? Or on the road...

Added after 1 [minutes]:

Maybe, for example, you paired these sockets with a hotspot on your phone or something.... disconnect them from the app and pair again, making sure you give the home WiFi directions.

Added after 2 [minutes]:

You can also try at home to go into the router, into the DHCP address list and determine the IP addresses of these sockets and enable pinging of such an address on the laptop and look to see if, for example, the socket somehow loses connection to the router.
In the console, type (change IP address to socket address).


ping 8.8.8.8 -t

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Maybe by some miracle there is an IP address conflict or something else is causing the router to not see the socket, only then, it would be more of a coincidence that it disappears when you are at work.

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marcinradom · Answer

. This is exactly what happened. I checked several times last night. On mobile data alone (no wifi and no BT) I could switch sockets on and off. . This is certainly not the case. . I will check the operating range today. During setup, the app itself read the SSID of the wifi network and the password for that network. I understand it was doing this to be able to contact the sockets. I will disconnect them from the app today and reinstall.

p.kaczmarek2 · Answer

What do you mean alone? I've paired so many of these devices, and it always looks like, for new sockets, the app detects them by itself (via Bluetooth) and then asks for our SSID and password. I enter them manually, and then the socket connects to our router and from this step should already work independently, also via mobile internet. Try vaping and pairing, maybe take some screenshots of the pairing, see if that helps. Do you know how to unpair? It's in the options for the particular device Disconnect and wipe data or something like that, maybe Remove, can't remember.

marcinradom · Answer

b9d16bb2b only then, it would be more of a coincidence that it disappears when you are at work. or malicious action by the Chinese . Added after 2 [minutes]: I gave the network data when I paired the first socket. Now it reads them from its memory somewhere. When adding these three new sockets, the app suggested my network SSID and dotted password. I just confirmed this and it worked. Added after 1 [minute]: . . I will.

marcinradom · Answer

After yesterday's tests, a little clarification has been made:
1. it's not the network that's the problem - I'm at work now and I can control the sockets and view them.
2) The sockets lose contact with the network after some time, even when they are switched on. Simply unplugging them from the power supply and plugging them back in immediately returns them to normal operation. Switching them on and off manually using the button on the housing does not help.
3. these sockets are T34-Smart Plug+.
In the socket settings, as well as the app, all options that can put them to sleep are disabled.
This is not the action I would expect.
One thing puzzles me. In the settings for these sockets I have an item for "Relay status" which is a radio channel controller for remote control of devices. I have the option set to "Remember last status". It seems to me that the setting is correct, but maybe change it to "ON"?
I'll try installing Tuya today, maybe the app itself doesn't feel like working properly with these sockets, although that seems unlikely to me.

p.kaczmarek2 · Answer

Maybe the router is not coping? Give the router a closer try. . Unfortunately this has nothing to do with the radio. This is the state of the relay when power is lost. You have three options available: - Remember last status (socket remembers relay status before power loss) - On (always on) - Off (always off)

marcinradom · Answer

. Distances of router to sockets: one 1mb, second 5mb, third floor below. So I am ruling out this possibility. . Yes I know, but I'm grasping at everything already. I also don't believe that the Chinese are selling crap. The reviews for these sockets are very good. I still need to check whether that time after which the sockets lose the network runs from their connection to the power supply, or from the last remote operation. I have had no luck with these sockets purchased in China. The previous ones did not connect to the network at all. Added after 10 [hours] 50 [minutes]: . And all three outlets off the grid. Roughly 12 hours after being plugged in they lose the network. Regardless of whether any operations were performed via wifi or not. Where to look for a rescue? . Added after 13 [minutes]: I logged into the router and found something like this: . Maybe this is causing these problems?

p.kaczmarek2 · Answer

Try switching off and checking

marcinradom · Answer

. Checked. It didn't help. There is, however, a light at the end of the tunnel. I have removed these three problematic outlets from Smart Life and added them to Tuya. Not to jinx it, but so far it's ok. Added after 5 [hours] 57 [minutes]: .Unfortunately it's the same on Tuya. I'm not kicking myself with a horse. I am returning the Chinese. .

marcinradom · Answer

T34 sockets returned to the Chinese. I have now ordered sockets that present themselves as WSP and these have been working as they should for a few days now.

p.kaczmarek2 · Answer

Can you give more details about the previous (problematic) and these new (working) sockets? A screenshot of where they were bought, what they look like, etc?

"WSP Tuya" on Google doesn't show me specifics

marcinradom · Answer

>>21505839 .
The ones that don't work properly are the link to the listing on aliexpres in the first post. The second ones, the ones that work correctly, look identical and I bought them from the same seller: https://a.aliexpress.com/_Eu5pKyg

marcinradom · Answer

I did an experiment and again bought two Chinese sockets at a promotional price of 3.80pln each. Such a promotion for new users. The T34s arrived. I connected, configured and just when I thought it was ok.... the sockets are out of network.

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I need to connect them on a different network, in a different house, as an experiment.

marcinradom · Answer

I will informatively write that one of the WSP sockets fried without the slightest load. I'll take it apart at my leisure and see what's inside.
In conclusion, I can write to tell you to give up buying such sockets on ali.

p.kaczmarek2 · Answer

I'd love to see it, you could even do a longer piece for the main site if you have the desire and time

DJ MHz · Answer

>>21489022 . If you turn on your wifi on your tel, and the app, it automatically downloads your network data and pastes it into the socket when you connect to its ap