TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Power Strip KP303 review

One-minute review

As well as producing an affordable range of routers and powerline adapters for more than two decades, TP-Link has become a trustworthy name for the best smart home devices, too. Since 2015, the brand has offered a range of such items, including some of the best home security cameras, best smart light bulbs, and the best smart plugs.

The TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Power Strip KP303 takes some of the positives of the company’s smart plugs – such as the KP105 and the HS110 – and builds them into a powerstrip that allows you to control up to three electrical devices plugged into the sockets, even when you’re not at home.

Smart plugs can be great for offering peace of mind to forgetful types, who often can’t remember if they’ve turned off the coffee maker or hair straighteners before leaving the house. Plus, integration with Alexa and Google Assistant enables the use of voice commands to control the smart plug as well. The power strip also features two USB sockets, although these aren’t of the smart variety. 

Simple to set up, the TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Power Strip KP303 connects to your home Wi-Fi network and allows you to use the Kasa app to turn it on and off, or to set timers and schedules for when it should be switched on or off. If you own other TP-Link smart home devices, these can be grouped together with the smart plug, in the app, so several gadgets can be controlled at once.

The TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Power Strip KP303 is best suited to those who have a number of electrical appliances in one area that they wish to control remotely. Or for those that are buried behind furniture but often need to be switched on and off – for example, when rebooting a wireless router in your home. 

TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Power Strip KP303 price and availability

•  List price: $ $29.99 / £34.99 / AU$66.95

The TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Power Strip KP303 is priced at $29.99 / £34.99 / AU$66.95 and is available worldwide through Amazon and a selection of electrical retailers.

TP-Link also offers individual smart plugs, the most affordable being the TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Plug Slim KP105, which is priced at £14 / AU$24 and available in the UK and Australia through Amazon. In the US, the TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Plug Mini is the brand’s most affordable smart plug at $22.99. 

Design

• Three smart sockets 
• Two USB ports
• Manual power button for each socket

TP-Link’s smart plugs sport an inoffensive white plastic design, and the Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Power Strip is no exception. Measuring 10.2 x 2.5 x 1.5 inches / 26 x 6.34 x 3.8cm (w x h x d), it’s a compact device; it isn’t as bulky as some of TP-Link’s individual smart plugs. It has a 3.3ft / 1m cable and plug that connects to a power outlet in your home. 

On the left of each socket on the power strip is a manual power button and an LED that glows white when the socket is switched on. Two USB sockets can be found to the left-hand side of the power strip, while on the right sit two LEDs that flash to indicate when the power strip is in pairing mode. There are two mounting points on the back which ensure it can be screwed to a wall if you’d prefer.

The smart plug only works on the 2.4GHz band, which may mean you suffer connectivity issues if you’re installing it in a different room to your router. 

Performance

• Simple to set up 
• Customizable icons
• Away mode 

The KP303 is extremely simple to set up: just plug the power strip into an electrical outlet, download the Kasa app onto your smartphone, and follow the steps on-screen. The whole process took only a couple of minutes, which included connecting our phone to the plug’s own Wi-Fi network, so the app could discover and connect to it. If the plug doesn’t connect as expected, there’s a help option that’s clearly visible in the app. 

There are plenty of customization options on offer. This includes the ability to assign an icon or a photo from your smartphone to each smart plug to make it easier to identify individual plugs, if you have several installed in your home. 

During testing, the plug instantly responded when we used the app or Alexa to switch it on and off, and it made a reassuring click each time. 

We were impressed with the Away mode, which can turn the smart plug on and off at random intervals. This can be particularly handy if you’ve connected a lamp or radio to the power strip because you’re trying to simulate occupancy to deter intruders. 

Unlike other TP-Link smart plugs, while the app will display how many hours any device connected to the plug has been on for, it can’t monitor the level of energy consumed. We’re not quite sure how useful the run-time figure is without energy consumption, however. 

App

• Easy to navigate
• Ability to create schedules
• Integration with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant

We’re big fans of the Kasa app and the ease of navigation it offers. The different options are clearly laid out, and since a list of all TP-Link smart home devices is displayed on launch, it takes just one tap to switch any of your Kasa smart home devices on or off using the power icon to the right of the screen.

From the app, we could create a group of devices that can be controlled at once, as well as set timers and schedules for when the plug should switch on or off, and even activate Away mode. 

The Scenes tab lets you create automations, where several compatible smart home devices are controlled at once. Plus, thanks to integration with Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, IFTTT and SmartThings, you can also assign a word or phrase that can be used to instruct the voice assistant to activate the automation. Note, though, that this power strip doesn’t support Apple’s HomeKit. 

Automations that can be activated at a certain point in time, or based on any motion detected by TP-Link cameras you may have in your home, can also be created in the Smart Actions section.

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First reviewed: July 2021

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