Netvue Birdfy Feeder Cam Review: Fun But Wonky

Importantly, it’s a stable feeder, holding 50 ounces of seeds, with a pleasant perch large enough for just a few birds (in the event that they don’t thoughts the crowding) and a roof to maintain all the pieces comparatively dry. The hinged roof is made for simple refilling, too. Just slide it open to at least one facet, refill, and click on the roof again in place.

The Birdfy is mountable with or with out truly drilling something—nice for us renters. I used the included strap to connect it to my balcony railing, however the firm exhibits it strapped to timber as nicely. I like to recommend including the photo voltaic panel for the additional $25. It’s value it to by no means should cost a battery.

Netvue is a safety firm, so you need to use the digicam as an added safety measure too, relying on the place it’s situated. There’s an alarm siren you may set off—it’s not a piercing sound fortunately, however I nonetheless strongly counsel not doing that when little birdy ears are close by. The model has responsive customer support too, and you may even dwell chat straight by the app.

For the Birds

The Birdfy isn’t all excellent, and the place it’s missing is a giant one. If you go for the $250 Birdfy, you get a lifetime of free AI identification. If you go together with the Birdfy Lite for $200, you get video solely, with the choice so as to add AI later for $5 monthly. A $50 cost for eternally AI sounds nice to me, however that identification has a protracted solution to go.

I get principally doves at my feeder, however there are a handful of different little ones that cease by too. Birdfy generally identifies a chicken appropriately in a single shot, after which instantly calls it one thing else because it strikes round. In the images above, you may see it recognized the identical chicken as a home finch and a pine siskin. These birds look actually comparable to one another, so I can perceive the confusion there. But generally Netvue recognized what’s clearly a dove as a cardinal. The solar blaring straight into the digicam could be in charge right here, and as you may see it created a reddish blur that the AI might have been confused by. But nonetheless, that is the large and expensive advertising characteristic.