diff --git a/kasa/discover.py b/kasa/discover.py
index a39b2790..4cb7a532 100755
--- a/kasa/discover.py
+++ b/kasa/discover.py
@@ -256,6 +256,11 @@ class Discover:
     ) -> SmartDevice:
         """Discover a single device by the given IP address.
 
+        It is generally preferred to avoid :func:`discover_single()` and
+        use :func:`connect_single()` instead as it should perform better when
+        the WiFi network is congested or the device is not responding
+        to discovery requests.
+
         :param host: Hostname of device to query
         :rtype: SmartDevice
         :return: Object for querying/controlling found device.
@@ -299,6 +304,43 @@ class Discover:
         else:
             raise SmartDeviceException(f"Unable to get discovery response for {host}")
 
+    @staticmethod
+    async def connect_single(
+        host: str,
+        *,
+        port: Optional[int] = None,
+        timeout=5,
+        credentials: Optional[Credentials] = None,
+    ) -> SmartDevice:
+        """Connect to a single device by the given IP address.
+
+        This method avoids the UDP based discovery process and
+        will connect directly to the device to query its type.
+
+        It is generally preferred to avoid :func:`discover_single()` and
+        use this function instead as it should perform better when
+        the WiFi network is congested or the device is not responding
+        to discovery requests.
+
+        The device type is discovered by querying the device.
+
+        :param host: Hostname of device to query
+        :rtype: SmartDevice
+        :return: Object for querying/controlling found device.
+        """
+        unknown_dev = SmartDevice(
+            host=host, port=port, credentials=credentials, timeout=timeout
+        )
+        await unknown_dev.update()
+        device_class = Discover._get_device_class(unknown_dev.internal_state)
+        dev = device_class(
+            host=host, port=port, credentials=credentials, timeout=timeout
+        )
+        # Reuse the connection from the unknown device
+        # so we don't have to reconnect
+        dev.protocol = unknown_dev.protocol
+        return dev
+
     @staticmethod
     def _get_device_class(info: dict) -> Type[SmartDevice]:
         """Find SmartDevice subclass for device described by passed data."""
diff --git a/kasa/tests/test_discovery.py b/kasa/tests/test_discovery.py
index 41578a2c..2aa10f1c 100644
--- a/kasa/tests/test_discovery.py
+++ b/kasa/tests/test_discovery.py
@@ -74,6 +74,26 @@ async def test_discover_single(discovery_data: dict, mocker, custom_port):
     assert x.port == custom_port or 9999
 
 
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("custom_port", [123, None])
+async def test_connect_single(discovery_data: dict, mocker, custom_port):
+    """Make sure that connect_single returns an initialized SmartDevice instance."""
+    host = "127.0.0.1"
+    mocker.patch("kasa.TPLinkSmartHomeProtocol.query", return_value=discovery_data)
+
+    dev = await Discover.connect_single(host, port=custom_port)
+    assert issubclass(dev.__class__, SmartDevice)
+    assert dev.port == custom_port or 9999
+
+
+async def test_connect_single_query_fails(discovery_data: dict, mocker):
+    """Make sure that connect_single fails when query fails."""
+    host = "127.0.0.1"
+    mocker.patch("kasa.TPLinkSmartHomeProtocol.query", side_effect=SmartDeviceException)
+
+    with pytest.raises(SmartDeviceException):
+        await Discover.connect_single(host)
+
+
 UNSUPPORTED = {
     "result": {
         "device_id": "xx",