Make a motionsensing light
You don’t need to buy into a single smart system for extra features – you can build your own
DIY automation isn’t difficult, but dipping your toe in the water for the first time can feel a little scary. If you’ve never concocted your own smart home recipe before, a motion-sensing light is a great place to start – and it can be cheap, too.
The key components are a couple of Internet of Things devices – a smart plug and a motion sensor – both of which need to be compatible with online service If This Then That. You can then use IFTTT to trigger hardware from one ecosystem using kit from another.
While IFTTT’s compatibility list is long, its list of triggers can tend to be much shorter than its list of actions, and it’s often a bit picky about what exactly you can do with particular kit. If you’re buying a passive infrared motion sensor, look out for a WeMo Motion (if you can still find one), a D- Link Mydlink Wifi Motion Sensor (around £30), or a SmartThings motion sensor (£15, but it also requires a SmartThings hub to work), since all of these are supported as triggers by IFTTT.
Its much wider range of push actions means just about any standalone smart plug works. We’re using a TP- Link HS100 (£ 25) but you can check compatibility before you buy by searching for your device’s manufacturer on ifttt.com, clicking the appropriate device, then
Plug a switched-on lamp into your smart plug and build your custom Applet
scrolling down to click the link which says ‘triggers and actions’. Once you’ve confirmed that it’s all going to work, plug a switched- on lamp into your smart plug and build your custom Applet using the instructions that appear on the right – and don’t forget to create another Applet to switch the light off after a certain amount of time.