SONOFF: Smart switches, energy plugs and local home automation

SONOFF makes connected switches, plugs, sensors and hubs, including distinct Wi-Fi and Zigbee products for appliance and circuit energy monitoring.

Summary

Best for
Appliance-level energy monitoring and home automation using clearly identified plugs, switches and compatible controllers.
Less suited to
Treating a Wi-Fi POW device as a Zigbee accessory or using a consumer energy plug as a certified billing meter.
Deployment
Wi-Fi products, Zigbee accessories with a coordinator, or supported local devices managed by iHost.
Data in
Energy and state data through the selected product and supported hub or application.
Pricing
Hardware pricing varies by model and region; application features and services should be checked separately.

Overview

SONOFF's energy products cover more than one measurement arrangement. A POW Elite is a wired smart power-meter switch, while an S60 Zigbee plug sits between a socket and an appliance. Choosing between them starts with the circuit and installation format, not the app screen.

The plug is convenient for observing an individual appliance within its electrical rating. A wired device belongs in a properly designed installation and may monitor a different load boundary. Both can help explain everyday electricity use, but neither product description alone establishes suitability for revenue billing, protective relaying or detailed power-quality analysis. Those are separate instrument requirements.

Offering

The POWCT manual describes a Wi-Fi power monitor using a current transformer, with a documented detection range up to 100 A. Its sensor arrangement differs from an in-line switching product: a current transformer measures the selected conductor rather than making the whole measured load pass through a plug.

The S60ZB product specification distinguishes Type E/F and Type G variants, including different current ratings. It also identifies the plug as Zigbee 3.0. Keeping the complete model suffix prevents a buyer from assuming that all products called S60 use the same radio or mains connector. The monitoring route and physical connection both belong in the selection.

Products and platforms

  1. iHost

    Local automation hub

    Local controller for documented compatible Zigbee and LAN devices.6

Technology

SONOFF offers a local-controller path through iHost, which stores automation data locally and supports documented Zigbee and LAN-compatible devices. Its supported-device list and add-ons determine the available integration; the presence of a Wi-Fi radio alone does not mean any Wi-Fi product can be added locally.

A separate route uses the ZBDongle-P with host software. This is a Zigbee coordinator adapter, not a complete application or cloud service. Buyers comparing these approaches should decide who maintains the host, device support and automations. The product, coordinator and software together form the integration, so compatibility should be checked for that complete combination.

Markets

SONOFF's company overview focuses on home automation with switches, sensors and gateways. In energy work, that makes its products relevant to understanding individual loads and coordinating everyday equipment. Room-level sensing can add context, while a suitably rated plug can reveal an appliance's operating pattern over time.

For users who prefer local automation, iHost provides a documented alternative to making every action dependent on an external service. This does not establish that every remote-access, notification or third-party function is available offline. The useful commissioning check is whether the required readings and local actions continue through the exact controller and device path chosen for the installation.

Company

The current SONOFF company page identifies Shenzhen Sonoff Technologies Co., Ltd. in Shenzhen, China. Its company-operated profile dates the brand to 2016 and describes its ITEAD origins. The brand's origin is distinct from the later legal-company milestone in its product literature; neither is used here to imply that all products share one technical architecture.

For engineering comparisons, SONOFF's individual manuals and controller documentation are more informative than brand-wide claims. The POWCT manual, for example, identifies a concrete measurement arrangement and radio. That level of detail should also be retained when selecting a replacement, building a device template or comparing an apparently similar model from another supplier.

Alternatives in IoT and data platforms

What to look for in iot and data platforms

References

  1. About SONOFF (opens in a new tab)
  2. SONOFF company profile (opens in a new tab)
  3. POW Elite power-meter switch (opens in a new tab)
  4. POWCT user manual (opens in a new tab)
  5. S60 Zigbee plug specifications (opens in a new tab)
  6. iHost local smart-home hub (opens in a new tab)
  7. ZBDongle-P coordinator (opens in a new tab)
  8. SONOFF 2026 product brochure and company timeline (opens in a new tab) (PDF)

This profile does not imply a commercial relationship with SONOFF and may contain inaccuracies.