Best Smart Power Strips for Gaming of 2026

The Geeni Surge Ultra is the strip we point to when a router, modem, or charging brick has to stay live. Six of its eight outlets are individually controlled; the other two are always-on, which solves a desk problem that all-switched strips create. We like that split because it lets you put the network gear on the always-on pair and keep the PC, monitor, console, speakers, and lights on separate smart outlets.

The 1200-joule rating is the highest stated in this set, and the six-foot cord gives you more placement freedom than the short Tapo cord. We think that combination makes the Geeni the better pick for a console-and-TV corner where a surge hit is expensive and the strip sits farther from the wall. Control is app- and voice-only, though: there are no individual physical buttons, so a dropped Wi-Fi link sends you to the app or the master switch. The connection can be fussy, and some units need a power cycle to come back; if your Wi-Fi is solid and your gear is mostly app-controlled, that is a trade worth making.

The eight-outlet layout is also easier to live with than a six-outlet strip when you have a couple of wall warts. The two always-on sockets are not just for routers: we used one for a desk lamp and one for a charging brick, leaving the six smart outlets for gear we actually schedule.

The Amazon Basics smart strip is an easy recommendation if Alexa already runs your home, and a nonstarter if it does not. It gives you six individually controlled outlets and a useful USB mix—two USB-A and one USB-C—for a desk full of controllers, a headset, and a phone. The Alexa-only limitation is the first thing to check: there is no Google Assistant or Apple Home support, so the rest of the house needs to speak Amazon's language.

We liked the outlet layout for a gaming desk: six switched sockets let you separate the PC, monitor, console, speakers, and lights, and the USB-C port is a small but welcome upgrade over all-A strips. The 790-joule rating is midrange here, not the strongest, but adequate for a desk's worth of electronics. The catch is connectivity: the strip can lose its link, and because so much of the control lives in the Alexa app, a dropout takes voice control with it. If your Wi-Fi is stable, it is a solid budget-minded Alexa pick.

All six AC outlets are switchable, so there is no dedicated always-on socket for a router. Leave one outlet on if the router lives on the desk, or keep network gear on a wall outlet. The USB-C port is the small detail that makes it feel current; the Alexa-only app is the bigger one that decides whether it belongs on your desk.

Three switched outlets is a small number for a gaming desk, and that is exactly how the Linkvolt should be judged. It is a compact, budget strip for a console, TV, and lamp—not the one to buy if you need to separate a PC, monitor, console, speakers, and lights. The six-foot cord and 1080-joule rating are the parts that make it useful in a small corner where the wall outlet is not close.

What it does, it does cleanly: each of the three AC outlets is individually controlled in the Smart Life app, and the 1080-joule rating is stronger than the Amazon Basics strip's. The ETL listing and fire-resistant shell are reassuring for a strip that may sit on the floor. We like it as a secondary setup strip—behind a TV with a console and a lamp, or on a small desk where three devices is genuinely all you need. The app is the same Smart Life platform used by many budget smart devices, so it is familiar if you already have it.

The lack of USB ports is the other limitation. If you need to charge a controller, you will need a separate charger or a USB wall adapter. For a small console corner, that is an acceptable trade for the long cord and the low price. The six-foot cord is the reason it works where a short strip does not; the three outlets are the reason it stays a secondary strip.

The Govee H5089 is the most desk-friendly-looking strip here: a three-sided outlet extender with an RGB night light, wide 1.97-inch spacing, and a retaining screw that keeps it fixed to the wall. It is not a long power strip, so the comparison is really about what you want on the wall behind the desk.

The layout is clever. Two smart outlets, four always-on outlets, and two USB ports give you plenty of places to plug in, and the wide spacing handles chunky gaming adapters that crowd a standard strip. The catch is the smart count: two switched outlets will not separate a PC, monitor, console, and speakers. The 153-joule surge rating is the weakest here, which makes it a better fit for a console, lamp, and charger than for an expensive gaming PC.

Where it earns a place is the desk itself: the night light can glow behind a monitor, and the wide spacing makes it easy to reach the outlets you use most. We came away thinking of it as a desk accessory that happens to add two smart outlets, not the strip that runs the whole setup. The wide spacing is the part we noticed every time we reached for a plug; the smart count is the part that limits it.