When you think about building out a smart home with various "internet of things" devices like door bells, thermostats, light bulbs and connected appliances, you probably don't often remember to include your garage. But smart garage door openers are surprisingly handy. They can remotely open and close the door from anywhere and give you the peace of mind that you haven't left the door open all night, since you can see the status of the garage from your phone. Right now you can smartify your garage on the cheap. Amazon is offering the Refoss Smart Wi-Fi Garage Door Opener for $27, which is 45% off off the usual $49 list price.
The Refoss opener is compatible with about 1,500 garage door models from 200 makers that include Chamberlain, LiftMaster, Craftman, Genie and Stanley. In fact, you can test your garage door opener right now to know for sure if it'll work -- simply use pliers to momentarily connect the wall button terminals of the door opener (you might need to check the opener's user guide). If the garage door opens or closes, it definitely works with RSG100.
The RSG100 is also a stand-alone device -- there's no need to connect to a smart home hub. But it can be controlled from a mobile app or via Alexa or Google Assistant. Once set up, it remotely controls the garage, can display the door status, and even show you a history of when the door has been opened and closed. A smart garage door opener might be one of those smart home luxuries that don't make a lot of sense if the controller is $100 or more, but at $27, it's the lowest price we've ever seen for this device, and a smart buy.
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