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Superchkn
7
Dec 28, 2016
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I purchased from the drop a couple months ago and here are my personal findings.
1. The app for android is not secure. You'll receive several warnings from the OS that the software and its data go somewhere unknown. Automated feeding requires the app. So make sure you're comfortable being "wide open". The upside is you can log into the camera and audio remotely without security concerns, like pesky firewalls and ISP. So can whomever the company wants to grant access. If they want to stare at my messy basement, monitor my trips to Subway and calls to Grandma...have at it.
2. The feeder jams if too full. I use it for a cat, so small pieces. I have to maintain the hopper at 1/3 full or the weight of the food makes the automated feeder jam. Which means filling the hopper every 3-4 days instead of once every two weeks. I haven't tried dog food or bigger pieces.
3. Video requires strong, if not "good" lighting. The camera does not function well in low light. My cat can't be seen when actually eating. He's too small and falls under the camera's sight line. The camera works, the audio works. I really don't use the camera, but FYI.
4. Helps maintain food intake (AKA diet). My cat was getting portly. I set the feeder to three intervals of a single portion for each day. This way I know how much food the cat gets and that it only eats that amount each feeding time. He's lost weight and is definitely healthier compared to stuffing his face with his whole daily amount first thing every morning.
5. The "event management" in the app shows when there's an issue. Meaning the "jamming" in #2 above. This way I can see that the afternoon feeding when I was at work didn't dispense. It seems to be accurate. If the feeder wheel doesn't turn it registers that failure in the log. This way you know your pet is truly hungry when you get home, not just crying because they know you're a sucker. There is a button to manually dispense a portion. It also logs when you manually dispense food. Thus keeping a detailed record of how much total (auto and manual) your pet has consumed. That way you can monitor your pet's weight and increase or decrease their portions. Obviously this method only works if you have one pet.
6. The lid is secure. There's a button that needs to be pushed to release the lid.
Extra info: The app offers many options I haven't tried and don't use. Sharing to social media. Syncing a recordable sound wave to play when food is dispensed. Syncing a video recording when food is dispensed. Storing those videos to a website or cloud.
In conclusion. It suits my need. I do wish the feeder wheel was more robust so the hopper could be filled completely. The bright side of that coin is your food isn't drying out. I'm going to try some cardboard or plastic dividers in the hopper to help eliminate some weight on the feeder wheel.
Since the hopper itself is kinda flawed and I feel that should be its primary objective, I'd rate it a 4 out of 10 for the price. If you want the video/audio aspect, maybe it's worth $140. As just an automated feeder, I feel that's too much.
Dec 28, 2016
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