I’m puzzled: Why can I control my Nedis Wi-Fi Smartplug even from a different city?

Question

I bought a set of Nedis SmartLife Wi-Fi electric sockets. I connected them to my home Wi-Fi network and installed the control app on my phone. To my great surprise I can turn the plugs on even from very far away (different city). What makes this possible since I thought these devices are operating in my home Wi-Fi network? How can it be possible to control them from outside the range of this WiFi?

the device gets its instructions from a central server – jsotola Dec 24 '21 at 16:12 — jsotola, Dec 24 '21 at 16:12

score 3 · Accepted Answer · answered Dec 25 '21 at 08:35

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Both the smart plug and your phone connect to a sever somewhere on the Internet (“in the cloud”).

When you use your phone to control the plug, it sends the command to the server, which then sends it to the plug. And vice-versa for the plug status.

answered Dec 25 '21 at 08:35

jcaron

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Thanks, that’s both brilliant and a little bit of a liability.. – Stranger Dec 27 '21 at 11:10

I’m puzzled: Why can I control my Nedis Wi-Fi Smartplug even from a different city?

1 Answers1