I feel this has been asked a few times, and models keep coming up, but is there a cheap-ish, safe plg that I can connect a multi plug to, low amps (Christmas lights, but maybe a lamp), that would fit an Australian wall socked -that I can then control from Home Assistant?
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Do you want something that is legal to use in Australia. If so, this is your thread. Australia - Electrically Certified Hardware
I have TP-Link that I would not call cheap (they are power monitoring though, although they don’t work too well with TP-Link mesh wifi and maybe have other issues, so I’m not inclined to recommend). Lenovo (~$23) recently got a good review because two fit side-by-side in a socket, but not sure about HA integration. Bunnings has Arlec (~$18) which works with Grid Connect - I have some Arlec globes that can be set up in the Tuya app and controlled by HA, so I assume the plugs would work too (although the link from nickrout seems to suggest otherwise). For the prices, suck it and see?
Thanks for that! And these will work with Home Assistant? Will I need a hub or third party software? Or will it be pretty easy to add to HA for a noob like me?
@Cralis Just WIFI and an MQTT server, which can be loaded on your HA instance.
I have a few Arlec powerboards from Bunnings. They flashed smoothly with TuyaConvert.
The process is easy, if you follow the instructions. But you will need some Linux knowledge to get it running smoothly.
I don’t know if that’s allowed in your country (if you have to have certified things and such), but search for Sonoff Basic/Sonoff Mini. Both can be flashed with a custom firmware that fully supoorts Home Assistant natively over API. It’s super fast, reliable and stable.
Our entire home is controlled by these beasts and everything works 24/7!
EDIT May, 11th, 2021: They still work just fine 
Thanks for that. Not sure what a MQTT server is. I’ll need to google. But it doesn’t seem to plug and play. I looked for YouTube videos for the plugs and HA but drew a blank.
Thanks Valentino. I’ll look into that.
Home assistant is not plug and play. It needs configuration.
Much hardware in the consumer space are not plug and play. To work well (responsive, flexible, not tied to the cloud) they need to be flashed with alternative firmware.
Thanks. I’m trying to find a guide for those Bunnings ones. They’re 17.50 down the road. Just trying to work out the steps to get them working with my bc Home Assistant. I can’t seem to find any guides.
Did you look in the thread I directed you to?
I just went and bought the Arlec plug from Bunnings for $17.50 and successfully added it to the Tuya iPhone app (don’t add it to Grid Connect, but follow the same instructions). Soon after it automagically appeared in HA (I already had the Tuya component set up). Despite whatever you name it in Tuya, in HA it appears as switch.01456d8f2d015bbf8895 (for example) but you can rename it in Developer Tools. I could then turn it on and off from HA.
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Well done. Just be aware that the Tuya service relies on the cloud if you use it in it’s stock config, without flashing it with Tasmota/ESPhome. If your internet goes down, you won’t be able to control it with HA.
If you flash Tasmota/ESPhome to it - it will be locally controllable and not rely on a cloud service to work.
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guessing not, or using the search function, or noticing that the thread you linked is VERY active 
Hey mate, is there a guide around to do this? I have looked, but the treads I have found seem fragmented and branch into other topics. I’d like to get the Arlec Power Board integrated into HA if that’s possible. If you have a link to something that’s easy to follow I’d appreciate it. Thanks.
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Thanks mate. BTW, do you know if the powerboard is wifi or just bluetooth?
Definitely wifi.
Awesome, thanks mate.
Just to add, tasmota works on esp8266 devices, which are, by definition, wifi. Hope that helps.
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