This post is intended to be a living document gathering the information that I have about Home Automation.
garden sensors
battery charging monitor
hybrid mains power
webserver+arduino+mains control
wireless power outlet control
proximity mains switch
uC switched power strip and another
RC wall plugs and Raspberry Pi
Control appliances from the internet
Arduino relay driver
RFID door lock
Arduino-controlled greenhouse
Homemade thermostat
The $119 EtherMega can be powered by USB, wall wart, or Ethernet. Has onboard SD slot.
One assumes that you’d need some power relays at some point, to switch on and off a wall socket. Assuming you want to do so with an XBee, you’d need to be able to switch the relay with a 3.3v circuit. There are 3 of these at Digikey, around $9ea, only takes 10A across the contacts. In the 5v realm, the choices are a lot easier to come by; for under $2, you can get a 15A rated job. And for $9 (in 5v), you can get a Latching version (so the XBee doesn’t have to hold it open). XBee (or Arduino) is still the major expense in the build; either would be around $20 per socket, minimum. Beating the PowerSwitchTail’s retail price of $25 for a wired solution seems pretty straightforward. Beating that price for a wireless solution seems like a pretty tall order. For a simple capacitive touch switch, though, this seems pretty simple.
He’s making strides on getting a minimal 5v power supply. He’s trying an Apple charger.
Ardupower. based on 220V circuit, but very simply and nicely done with relays and a ULN2003