It took me quite a while to figure out how to operate these timers. I’ve used numerous manual ones, but this is the first digital version I’ve tried. It has some good points and a few less than ideal characteristics.If you wait a week or two before setting up your timer, the first thing you’ll find is a blank screen. The battery is dead, but the directions don’t mention this as a possibility. I had to charge it before I could program the timer. According to the instructions, it takes 72 hours to fully charge the backup battery, but you don’t have to wait that long to set it up.The timer must be plugged into a receptacle in order to program it. Not wanting to program it using the wall receptacle and since the timer requires a plug with a grounding prong, I used a power strip. The timer is wide enough to take up either two (on the end) or three spaces (in the middle) on your power strip, so it’s not ideal.Programming the timer was a lesson in patience. The instructions are compressed on to a 8 1/2 x 11” sheet of paper folded in thirds like a brochure. The print is written in 6 point Ariel type—single spaced, so trying to read the instructions while programming the timer is a challenge. There’s also a ten second timeout while trying to program this device, adding to the frustration. Use a highlighter to notate the important info, ignoring the extra verbiage that is included.Once you finally get the timers programmed like you want, they work well. My needs are simple; I just want my grow lights to turn on and off at the same time seven days a week. However, these timers will do so much more. You can program them to turn on and off on a different schedule on random days of the week. There are also two receptacles on each timer, so you can run more than one cord at a time. When plugged directly into a wall outlet, it’s designed in such a way that you can still use the bottom outlet.Once you work your way through the instructions and master the programming challenges, the timers are great and I recommend them to other customers.

Arrive in a plain white box. UL Listed.Zero specifications or company info embossed or printed on the product. Only an empty sticker across the back covering a blank back. Very strange.Each timer weighs 117gTimer consumes 0.6W all the time, if the relay is on or not. Typical for timers like these.I have used similar timers by Ingram for many years. The Ingram TE109 includes a countdown function which these programmable ones lack. The Ingram also program with + and - where these units only increment + which is another disadvantage.These are also more confusing to over-ride to manual. The Ingram I can easily over-ride to on-off, or to on (or off) for now, resuming the program the next set time comes around. These split those functions in to two buttons, [on,off] labeled "MAN", and [auto/manual] labeled "M/R". It would have been better to have one button toggle thru 4 options... Permanent ON, Permanent Off, Off (for now) resuming program, On (for now) resuming program, and freeing up a button to have a set increment - which this currently lacks. I used a marker on my timers to re-label the buttons on the right as shown above.Press PRG once to set clock time. Twice to set timer function timesTo turn Random mode on/off requires a 6 second button holdwhen programming the M/R button will clear the current settingClock is 12HR format onlyI keep my washing machine and my entertainment center on outlet strips. The entertainment center due to phantom standby losses and the washing machine because it is used sporadically and I don't see the point to risking the circuit board getting fried when its off 99% of the time. I mention this because I find the outlet strip for the washing machine to be an ideal place to plug in equipment such as these timers which require occasional charging to stay active... tho don't do this to equipment which will discharge for being plugged in. Merely the time I have laundry running has been enough to keep these timers ready to use. With how little the clothes washer runs I get the feeling that the back-up battery will last far longer than the 14 days advertised but I have not tested this.These can be used for indoor holiday lighting. Using a radio as a clock radio, or set the radio to a non station and use as a white noise generator. To make outsiders believe you are home- a good time to use that 'random' feature which claims to vary the set on / off times in to a half hour window to confuse anyone potentially casing your home as a target for theft. To run a fan. Use your imagination.These timers are nice and flexible but I prefer the Ingram I had before as they did everything but the random function. Sadly I can't find them anywhere to buy more. I have two old Ingram timers which I like so much that I repaired them. The after 20 years the backup battery eventually fails or the dropper capacitor fails. Easy fixes for the electronics hobbyist.

Review of B0DR8L768X - TG Programmable Plug-in Digital Timer:I ordered this to control LED grow lights for my seed starting shelves. It is overkill for what I need, because I need only one on/off cycle per day, but it accomplishes that very well. I just ignore all the other settings. It can be programmed for up to 18 timed on/off cycles per day, weekday, weekend, or all days. It can also do random cycles to make your house look occupied when you're out of town.The display is tiny and I was thinking it would be impossible to program it where it would be plugged -- but no problem! It has a built-in rechargeable battery which holds the settings in case of a power outage, and, as I was hoping, it can be unplugged and programmed in the comfort of your easy chair. The screen is dimmer, but it seems to program just as it does when plugged in. If you need a brighter screen, just plug it into an extension cord. After you get it programmed the way you want, plug it where you want it. If you need to adjust the program, unplug and program, then plug back in. That's far better than timers with a larger screen but without a battery. The battery takes 3 days to fully charge and is said to last 14 days without power -- plenty of time to program it at your leisure.The programming is somewhat intuitive, but it's good to keep the instructions for understanding the less obvious functions. I like that the 'manual' is a single 8.5x11 sheet of paper (both sides) so I can easily scan and keep it where I can view it easily on my computer.