Smart OK-To-Wake Light
Making the home smart is fun and all, but it becomes really cool when you can start to replace useless devices. One such replacement I recently found is a connected light that works as an “ok-to-wake” clock.
For those who don’t know an “ok-to-wake” clock is an alarm clock for kids who can’t yet read a clock. Instead they are like a light light that will turn a specific color at a programmed time, signifying that it is ok to wake. If you’ve ever had a two year old wake you up because they are “not tired” at 2am you’ll understand how this could be useful.
Unfortunately the function of such a device goes away as soon as a kid can tell time. And they are often a bit cumbersome to program. So, instead why not try a really fun replacement using a multi-color connected bulb.
The picture above is of a TP-Link multi-color bulb. It comes with a handy app that allows you to automatically program it to turn on and off at a specific time. Add to that that you can have it turn all sorts of colors and be prepared to entertain that 2 year old for a few additional hours!
The app, called Kasa TP-Link, makes it easy to pair the light to wifi. Once connected you can schedule a recurring event to turn the light on at a specific time in the morning.
Of course it also gives you the ability to turn things off remotely, or just play around with the colors. There is a bit of magic to it, at least in the eyes of a small toddler.
As an added bonus the TP-Link bulbs pair nicely with Alexa, so if you have an Echo or other Alexa device you can simply turn the light on and off by asking. And of course the best part of the whole thing is that the smart bulb is usable in so many other places. Once the kid starts to learn how to tell time on a digital or analog clock, you can just shift over to using this as a normal lamp.
