My dryer is older, so it doesn’t have fancy settings. It gets the job done—eventually. That’s because I over dry all of my laundry. Towels, pajama pants, sweatshirts, delicates—I cook them all till they’re dry, and then I cook them even longer. (I’m convinced the one sock that’s always missing actually spontaneously combusted.) That’s how much I am drying, and it’s a problem. It wastes energy, costs me money, and damages all of our fabrics.

On a lark, I recently tested out the Smart Dry Wireless Laundry Sensor, a $50 smart sensor that works with existing dryers and Wi-Fi. After speaking with Wire cutter’s laundry team, I had my reservations about the value of “smart laundry.” However, Smart Dry isn’t just some neat gadget—it actually solved my problems and transformed the way I do laundry.

As Wire cutter’s smart-home writer, I love smart devices and write about them at length here. Read more