Once you get into the whole smart home vibe, regardless of the provider of the goods, you’ll definitely want to get a smart plug or two. Smart Life plugs (from different hardware manufacturers) are one of the best in the market when comparing actual quality and price. However, issues can occur from time to time. If your Smart Life plug is unresponsive, not working, or slow to react to commands, check the Smart Life plug troubleshooting steps we provided below.
Table of contents:
- Ensure that the smart plug is compatible with Smart Life
- Update the firmware and check Time Zone
- Check the network
- Set up your smart outlet from scratch
Why is my Smart Life Plug not working?
Your Smart Life plug is probably not working for one of these reasons:
- Connectivity issues. Check the network.
- Incompatible device. Make sure that you’re using a smart plug that uses Smart Life as the companion app.
- The plug is defective.
1. Ensure that the smart plug is compatible with Smart Life
There are so many low-cost smart devices, surging from China to Europe and USA. Many of them are advertised to work with companion apps like Smart Life and can be integrated with Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa.
And, sure enough, the majority of them work with some companion apps available on the Play Store. You can find the Smart Life app on Play Store. Which doesn’t mean that the device you use is working with Smart Life. Sometimes, things are, inconveniently lost in translation.
You should check the specifications to concur that the device is indeed supported. Also, you can scan the on-the-box QR code and see if the Smart Life app recognizes the device. That’s the first Smart Life plug troubleshooting step.
2. Update the firmware and check Time Zone
If the smart plug is supported and you managed to add it to the Smart Life app but it’s unresponsive, make sure to update the firmware and set the accurate Time Zone. You can do both in the Smart Life app. The downside of some low-budget smart plugs is the fact that the manufacturer will drop software support rather quickly.
Here’s how to update the device firmware and set the Time Zone in Smart Life:
- Open Smart Life.
- Tap on the Me tab.
- Tap on the Settings icon in the top right corner.
- Select Device update. If available, updates will install automatically.
- Open Personal information.
- Select Time Zone.
- Choose the City that fits your Time Zone. The list is super-lengthy so searching for the city is the best option.
3. Check the network
Network issues are often the main reason why smart devices won’t work as intended. And issues aren’t always caused by a weak Wi-Fi signal and rarely because your outlet and smartphone are connected to different networks (SSIDs). The two reoccurring things we got into are either the unsupported Wi-Fi frequency band or an IP conflict and an overburdened network.
You can always reset your router, bring it in closer, and check for improvements. Also, most Smart Life devices support solely the 2.4GHz band and the 5GHz band won’t cut it. Finally, if the Smart Life smart plug won’t connect to a network, try disconnecting some other devices and try again. It’s essential for the device to connect at least once. After that, it should work.
4. Set up your smart outlet from scratch
Finally, the best Smart Life plug troubleshooting step is to set the device from scratch. Just make sure to remove it first from the list of devices. If you use Google Home or Smart Things, make sure to delete the plug from there, too.
After that, reset the smart plug. The procedure might differ but, usually, you need to press and hold the power button for 6-10 seconds until the LED indicator starts blinking.
After that, you can set open Smart Life and add a new device. Make sure that Wireless, Bluetooth, and Location services are enabled on your smartphone. This is necessary only until you add the device.
That should do it. Thank you for reading and make sure to share your thoughts or alternative troubleshooting steps with us. You can do that in the comments section below.
Editor’s note: This article was initially published in February 2022. We made sure to revamp it for freshness and accuracy.
