I just bought a smart things hub starter kit.
I’m fully expecting I’ll need a range extender or two. I’m trying to unlerstand what would work and be cost effective.
Would these work? Any one tried them?
Are there any other cheap extender ideas? Preferably with AU power connector.
Most non-battery powered devices are repeaters/range extenders.
You need rather some bulbs, sockets…
You can find in this thread a list of good repeaters, working with Xiaomi/Aqara sensors.
Those would need a lot of work and you’d have buy a power source and case as well, so not a good choice.
See the profile FAQ (the topic title is a clickable Link)
A much easier and likely less expensive choice is just to get the IKEA Tradfri plug in pocketsocket. When purchased directly from
IKEA it is only £10 , works out of the box with SmartThings, can also be used as a smart socket, and has the requisite residential safety certifications. 
And it’s a very reliable zigbee repeater for the protocols that SmartThings uses, including for Xioami sensors.
Also, if “AU power connector” means you’re in Australia, I don’t think the IKEA pocketsocket is available there yet, but the IKEA Tradfri smartbulbs are, and they also make very good SmartThings-compatible zigbee repeaters. ($15 AU)
Australian Link
Thanks for your reply. I’ll look out for the bulb from IKEA. You are right the IKEA Tradfri plug in pocketsocket isn’t available here yet. I did consider one.
I’ve just purchased 3 powersockets from alibaba:
“WIRELESS WIFI ZIGBEE TUYA WEMO SMART PLUG” is the name they were sold under - hopefully they work!. it was the cheapest price I could find for a extender and having a socket seems like it may even be useful at some point!
Unfortunately, that’s likely to be either a counterfeit or deceptive marketing. wemo and Tuya are two different companies. WiFi and Zigbee are two different protocols.
A lot of times cheap is cheap for a reason, and counterfeit knockoffs is one of the common reasons if you buy from eBay or alibaba.
Banggood and Gearbest are more reliable sources for inexpensive gear.
FYI, what JDRoberts suggested with the IKEA Tradfri plug is exactly what I did for that exact purpose. Works perfectly, and pretty easy to set up.
I think the wemo and tuya were supposed to be brands they would work with? Its not super clear. I’ve only made one other purachse from alibaba I guess if it doesn’t work out it wasn’t a lot of money and I can see how my purchase protection really works with alibaba!
If you are interested this link should take you to the product:
Its a bit late but I did just write to the seller asking confirmation that they could form part of a zigbee network…
The link didn’t work for me but, no, those aren’t brands that they work with. Those are search terms that they know people use so they want to come up in the search results. Like I said, deceptive marketing at a minimum.
Also remember that every electrical device is a potential fire hazard, and about 1/3 of residential fires are caused by electrical issues, so you also have to ask yourself whether it’s worth saving a few dollars to potentially burn down your house. Just sayin’ … 
A friend of mine started to upgrade a flat and he was looking at Sonoff devices. Exactly what I told him. Cheap but can be a fire hazard and probably no proper CE certification.
He went with a Hubitat hub and Fibaro relays at the end.
Well the alibaba merchant rand me (from china!) told me they woudln’t work with zigbee and asked if I wanted a refund - which I did. THere was axactly what I wanted on alibaba - but the postage was over $100 which seems a bit excessive!
So now I’m back in the same position wanting a cheap repeater. I cannot fins anything called “Fibaro relay” anyone got any other good suggestions.
Look at the Ikea bulbs, sockets and the repeater. Or do some more research and read some more on the community pages.
The shipping would be definitely less than 100 $.