Is Harbor Freight's Wireless Remote System Worth Buying For Your Home?
We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.
Harbor Freight is well known for competitive prices across the nine different tool brands they own. While they offer an enormous range of different products for the home and yard, they are perhaps best known for their affordable automotive, construction, and power tools for DIYers. Still, the retailer also sells a range of gizmos and gadgets that can make life a little bit easier.
Among these is Harbor Freight's Indoor Wireless Remote System, which consists of a three-button controller and three separate receivers that fit into standard wall outlets. Plug the item of your choice into these outlets (lamps or fans, for example), and you can turn them on and off remotely. The system works through walls and floors, up to a range of 80 feet, and costs just $19.99.
At first glance that seems like great value, and over 1,400 reviews give it an average of 4.8 stars. One customer said it was such a great product they bought another set. It sounds like Harbor Freight's wireless remote system would be well worth buying for your home, and really there's no reason why you shouldn't. However, there are plenty of alternatives, and some of them are even cheaper.
There are competitors that do the same for less
Indoor wireless remote controls may be one of those lesser-known gadgets you never realized you were missing out on, and $20 is hardly expensive. That said, over at Amazon you can get the BN-LINK Wireless Remote Control for $5 less. It has a 100-foot range, and over 25,000 buyers give it 4.6 stars. One tech website even picked it as their "best overall wireless remote."
There are also sets with five plugins for just $5 or $6 more than the Harbor Freight model with thousands of positive ratings. Technically all of these gadgets seem very similar, so unless there are reliability issues (which seldom seems to be the case), there are other options that function in the same way as Harbor Freight's wireless remote system but cost a little less.
If you're concerned about having another remote to deal with, there are a number of stylish DIY solutions to organize them around your home, so there's no reason not to take advantage of the benefits they offer. However, while Harbor Freight's system is by no means expensive for this type of device, some competitors are even more affordable.