TrickleStar TS1110 PC Advanced PowerStrip + Review

Designed specifically for use with a PC, monitor, and other office peripherals, the TrickleStar TS1110 PC Advanced PowerStrip + ($69.99) gives you seven power outlets with maximum surge protection.

It doesn't offer the Wi-Fi connectivity, mobile app, or voice controls that you get with our top choice for smart plugs, the TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Power Strip HS300, but it's smart enough to put your PC and monitor to sleep and turn off your printer, desk lamp, and other devices when it senses that you're not around.

Design and Features

The TS1110 is all about saving power and is designed exclusively for use with office components such as desktop computers, displays, printers, and desk lamps, that tend to draw (and waste) power when not in use.

It shouldn't be used with things like power tools, space heaters, coffee makers, or any other household appliances.

At 1.0 by 15.3 by 2.6 inches (HWD), it's the longest power strip we've come across and among the few we've tested that doesn't offer USB charging ports.

However, it has something that the other strips don't: a programmable USB motion sensor that puts your PC to sleep and triggers the strip to shut down power to other plugged-in peripherals.

The power strip contains seven three-prong outlets with sliding child-protection covers.

There are three gray outlets and four green outlets.

Two of the gray outlets are marked Always On and are for use with devices that require constant power such as a PC and a router.

The other gray outlet is marked Control and is for use with a display or an All-in-One PC.

The four green "switched" outlets are labeled Printer, Task Light, Speakers, and Desk Fan, but these labels are just suggestions: you can plug in any peripheral that you want to be automatically powered down when your PC enters sleep mode.

The top of the strip has three LED indicators labeled Surge, Ground, and Switched.

The Surge LED is lit when the strip's surge protection is functioning properly, and the Ground LED is lit when the strip is properly grounded.

The Switched LED lights up when the green outlets are receiving power.

On the side of the strip enclosure is a circuit breaker reset button and a switch that lets you set the power threshold for the Control outlet (the minimum power reading required to power down the other outlets).

What gives the TS1110 its smarts is a small motion sensor that you can attach to the bottom edge of your display using the included mounting tape or bracket, and the Control outlet, which contains current-sensing circuitry.

The sensor measures 0.5 by 2.2 by 1.3 inches and has an 11-inch USB cable tethered to its back.

A passive infrared (PIR) motion sensor and an LED indicator are on the front of the device and a timer reset button is on the right.

The reset button lets you set the amount of time before the sensor is triggered.

There's also a PC/MAC switch on the back panel: set it to PC if you're using a system running Windows or Linux, and use the MAC setting for a system using macOS.

Here's how it works: The motion sensor plugs into a USB port on your PC and contains a countdown timer that you can set between 5 and 30 minutes.

Press and hold the timer reset button for 5 seconds until the LED on the front turns red, then press it once to set a 5-minute timer, twice for 10 minutes, three times for 15 minutes, and so on, up to 30 minutes (six presses).

Once the timer is set, the LED will flash the same number of times that you pressed the button before it turns solid blue.

If the sensor doesn't detect motion, a keyboard stroke, or mouse movement after the countdown timer has expired, it will send a command to your PC's operating system that will put the PC into sleep mode (when the sensor detects motion, it continues to reset itself so as not to disrupt work).

When the current sensing Control outlet senses that the PC is in sleep mode and the display's power usage had dropped, it will tell the strip to stop providing power to the four green outlets, effectively turning off those devices in your workspace that continue to draw power even when you're not using them.

To restore power, simply enter a keystroke on the keyboard or move the mouse.

In addition to its power-saving features, the TS1110 offers top-level surge protection of up to 1080 joules (the amount of energy the surge protector can absorb over time before it fails).

That's more than twice the protection you get with the Geeni Surge 6-Outlet Smart Wi-Fi Surge Protector.

One feature I'd love to see added is the ability to monitor the energy usage of each outlet to show just how much power is being saved when the outlets are switched off.

Installation and Performance

Installing the TS1110 is easy.

I plugged it into a wall outlet in my office and plugged my desktop PC power cord into one of the Always On outlets.

I plugged my monitor into the control outlet and used the switched green outlets for a printer, a desk lamp, and a pair of desktop speakers.

I used the double-sided tape to attach the motion sensor to the bottom edge of my display, connected it to a USB port on my PC, and waited a few seconds while Windows installed the driver.

I set the countdown timer to 5 minutes and was ready to go.

The TS1110 worked without a hitch.

The motion sensor never failed to put my PC to sleep regardless of the timer setting, and every green outlet on the strip powered down within seconds of the PC entering sleep mode.

Likewise, the peripherals never failed to power up when I woke up the PC.

Conclusions

The TrickleStar TS1110 PC Advanced PowerStrip + doesn't offer Wi-Fi connectivity, and it doesn't have a mobile app or react to voice commands, but it's still a very smart power strip that will help reduce power consumption in your office.

It uses motion and current sensing to put your PC to sleep and cut power to other computer peripherals and desktop accessories that typically continue to use energy when you're not around, and it works like a charm.

That said, a power-monitoring feature would be a welcome addition.

If you prefer a smart power strip that lets you turn outlets on and off with a mobile app and with your voice, check out our Editors' Choice, the TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Power Strip HS300.

It has six outlets and three USB charging ports, and it'll tell you how much power each outlet is using.