None the less the same very real issues we all have had - my ol' boy in Heaven was exactly this way and when I exclaimed my issues time upon time with littermaid boxes I was met with 'well your cat must be a special case' - yet my vet says it's very common. This series is a Godsend!! 🙌🙌🙌❤️😍🤗
Yes, very useful. You're saving me hundreds, if not thousands of dollars. Because otherwise, I'd have to try to do something similar, only with fewer cats, and probably a lot less rigor. Not to mention the fact that your cinematography is GORGEOUS! Thank you again!
I was so stressed about looking up all this information and you’ve made it all so easy to digest along with positives and negatives of almost every possible situation. This is the best product review I’ve ever seen of any product line
Insulting Harriet is just a dealbreaker, isn't it?! Honestly! Altho my vet did refer to one of my cats as (and I quote...) "he's, er, a little round"! I covered his ears in front of her, and burst out laughing. She did have the grace to laugh too.
I am super glad for these reviews. Hubby and I are considering self-cleaning boxes but our senior is a wall pee-er like Bertie. These videos have given me many things to consider before choosing a box.
Same, I have one that starts low and raises her behind as she goes and it always ends up over the side of even the high sided trays! *sigh* Good thing we love them so much, isn't it? :)
@@catsandcrafts171 For years, we've used a deep sterilite bin so he has to jump all the way in and the walls are high enough that he can't get over the edge while peeing. It's an inelegant solution, but it worked. At least until his arthritis set in! He's in a lidded box now which seems to get the worst of it, but we really want an auto bin once we can afford it. Looks like the LR4 is going to be the one, after they release the new fence.
Your channel is so so so helpful, thank you! I’m leaning towards the new litter robot and it’s such a large purchase, so good to see how it compares and know it’s worth. Btw, Bertie is ruthless, no f’s given when he’s gotta go.
Thanks! Your reviews have been astoundingly exhaustive and beautifully produced. Buying one of these is a big decision and I feel like I know what I'd be getting into thanks to your hard work.
Your reviews are just WONDERFUL, and cats truly ARE top notch testers; all your kitties are beautiful! Thanks so much for being so thorough, you have saved me hundreds of dollars let alone so much aggravation. Much love from me and my 3 kitties from New Mexico USA ❤❤
Phillip, Thank you for this video. I have followed you for YEARS on your other channel and didn't realize you had this one until I was watching reviews. Cheers!
The timing is eerie, I JUST checked the channel early this morning during a bout of sleeplessness, trying to find something to watch and hoping a follow-up video hadn't been missed to this series. And now, a new video is out 😅.
Pure delight this has been! I laughed and was greatly appreciative of the well done information! Bravo my friend! Indeed, Litter Robot 4 is likely the best on the market, but she is spendy. I have remarked on several sites, that unless you have 3 or more cats, it's simply not worth the price. People who have 4 or more cats, likely NEED this thing, at least one. I have 2 LR3's and 1 LR4, plus a nice big covered old fashion deep pan litter box. All get used, but the robots have saved my back from all the scooping on the daily required for 6 feline furr-babies. The LR4 has improved on the product and for now still has the best customer service. Yet like the good man says: it's a machine and it will break down/ have issues. So invest wisely I say. Out the door LR is an ouch, but I've found over time it pays for itself in back breaking scooping and litter waste. I use less litter and the machine makes the most of it. Now, if only we could find a dust free safe great clumping litter...sigh... that doesn't break the bank. Note: I know it may seem extremely crazy but I will say that over 30 years I've found ironically, cats are allergic to humans...lol. You know...90% of our "dust" is our skin... well turns out that dust is not agreeable to our feline friends any more than theirs is to us. I have 3 terribly allergic cats to this problem... it's truly mind boggling that it never occurs to anyone. Since we focus on our allergies to things or animals. Turns out, cats bodies filter and deal with fine actual dirt dust particles than that of the human fluff. Small world...lol. thanks again one guy and six cats... smiles and blessings...
I think I'll go for litter robot 4. Thank you for the un depth review! It answered all of my questions and worries and gave me some things to think on.
These videos are amazingly helpful and I found them just as I'd started considering buying one. I just wish I'd been a little more patient because I bought the Pura X just before this video came out. It was the one most readily available to me so I hoped for the best... and then the review started with "And it's probably worse with the Pura X." Ah. I hoped for the best because maybe I wouldn't have such a bad experience with it, and while I wouldn't say I regret buying an automated litter box, I do regret that it was this one. I underestimated just how high up the entrance was, and having also got a munchkin kitten, it was obvious he wasn't getting inside without buying a step for him. While it seemed like we were waiting forever for him to grow big enough to let the Pura X run fully automated, these days he's a BIG boy. The entrance is one thing, but the space inside seems pretty cramped and he's started preferring to pee outside on the mat. It doesn't even surprise me that he's going there, because if we don't keep on top of it, it accumulates so much litter! Our other cat loves to redecorate and she'll spend plenty of time rearranging the litter until it's perfect, much of it ending up outside. It's not 100% her fault though since when the waste is full, the barrel will spin the entire way around which makes the litter fall everywhere instead of shifting back into place. So surely the answer would be to empty the waste before that happens. Haha, no. The Pura X will let us know the waste is full whenever it feels like it, including right after a total deepclean. And don't get me started on that! The barrel is cumbersome, the liner has some staining due to clumps sticking to its non-stick stickiness, and for some reason the machine just gets so full of stray litter! I think we're now just outside of the warranty but even so, the cats and I are very ready to move on to something bigger and better. I hope this horrible wall of text finds the next person here who might be considering the Pura X. While it works, I wouldn't say it works well, and after a year it's beginning to malfunction. Someone we know also bought a Pura X just before us and theirs has just died. They didn't replace it with another Pura X.
Great video! As a Pura Max (and former LR 3) owner, I've been looking forward to this one ever since the first one with the LR 4. As mentioned in a previous comment, for some reason we haven't had any leaks from inside but I'm chalking that up to dumb luck with the manufacturing tolerances on our particular liner. It's the same current fabric one with the hard plastic ring. I'll request the new drum from them for comparison as suggested (thanks for that info!). My hardware complaints: The first issue we ran into was our cat likes to pee facing inside with her tail sticking out of the entrance. Some urine was landing on the lower lip and dripping down the front of the drum into the basin below. I made a fence out of ~3cm vinyl weather stripping and velcro tape which goes across the inside of the drum just above the lip of the entrance. It's been completely effective at resolving that pee issue and I haven't seen any urine outside the drum for months. I plan to make a 3D printable version to clip onto the lower lip and will post the design once it's completed. There's a recently introduced "Continuous rotation" setting in the app that toggles whether the proximity sensor at the front is ignored during cleaning and leveling. I'm not sure if the sensor stays active during leveling when that setting is off. That setting helps in our case, because we have fabric curtains over the outside of the entrance (not the official ones that attach to the inside) to encourage the cat to stay inside when using it. The curtains tend to drape over the sensors when the entrance is facing down for leveling so the setting prevents the cycle from being interrupted by this. We haven't been as lucky with the waste drawer design. The waste seems to pile up more quickly than in our LR 3. We only have one cat, but within the first 4 to 5 days after putting in a fresh waste bag, I get a dreaded bin full notification and have to pull the drawer out and shake it to get a particularly wide and flat clump to settle so the lid can close. Sometimes I have to shake the drawer before I can pull it out, to keep a clump from smashing into the front wall of the compartment. The other main complaint is with the app: The app only allows one mobile device to be signed into an account, which is mostly fine because you can share access to a litter box with other users who have their own accounts. Or it would be, except that the other accounts can't receive notifications from the litter box. I thought this was a bug at first, but after a long email exchange with support troubleshooting the issue, they finally confirmed with the technical team that notifications to other users sharing a device weren't yet supported. I had hoped this would be addressed in an update but it's been several months since then and the app has gone through one significant refresh without any changes to this functionality. The other, more minor complaint with the app is that while the weight tracking in the litter box usage records seems pretty accurate, and it consistently recognises our cat by comparing the sensed weight to the weight we input in her profile, it doesn't automatically update our cat's profile for these small fluctuations. This is a shame because the profile can display a nice graph of weight changes over time, but these are all manually updated values.
I too, have the pura max that has worked perfectly out of the box. I guess i got lucky. But i am looking to buy the litter robot 4.I am on the fence because of all the issues they are having.
@@LindaBardin as I said in this video, my two machines have been working perfectly since around October after niggling problems. It’s the best machine on the market in part because they have proper customer service, extended warranty and spare parts. 1 year warranty is not enough.
@@brittanymueller171 the main issues were the loud motor near our bedroom, weight sensor issues that kept it from detecting usage sometimes, and the pinch sensor frequently needing to be cleaned or adjusted.
I’ve absolutely loved this video series, I never thought I’d enjoy watching videos about litter boxes but I have to say, you pulled it off! 😊 I was surprised you had the leaking issues with the Pura X, I guess it goes to show how different everyone’s needs are We’ve got the Pura X and two Burmese and we love ours, we even had a great experience with the PETKIT customer service who sent us a replacement outer shell/robot when ours encountered a fault well outside of the one year warranty
This is the most informative and entertaining series. Thank you so much for all the incredible amount of work you have done on this project. Your Catio is an inspiration as well. I love the oasis you have created for them. This channel, as well as your expertise on camera gear, have become my go to for two of the most important aspects of my life. Thank you so very much
Thanks for the thorough and thoughtful comparisons. It's quelled a lot of my uncertainty over whether another litter machine would have been better. I started with a Litter Robot 3 (the Litter Robot 4 was not yet announced at this time). My first impression was soured, because I received one with a dead-on-arrival Wi-Fi chip. Customer Service was good, and I was sent an entire replacement base quite quickly. The noise was annoying but not a deal breaker. After about 30 days of use, the machine just started smelling absolutely putrid, and no amount of cleaning would make it go away. I believe this issue is due to the waste drawer not having any sealing. I returned it without issue. I've had the PetKit Pura Max for almost a year now, with two cats that have surprisingly good aim. (They both stick their head out the front when peeing and pooping.) The machine requires very little effort to maintain, aside from regular wipe downs and the occasional deep clean, and most importantly it contains the smell. Even so, I feel your review perfectly captures my concerns with the machine breaking down. All-in-all, my impression is that Whisker is a good company with phenomenal customer service policies, but lacks the product development and manufacturing expertise to make truly reliable products. On the other hand, PetKit has solid product engineering and manufacturing, but basically no customer support. Having to make the choice between reliable and fixable is a dreadful dilemma, and feels a lot like buying a car. When the Max eventually does break down, I will likely switch to the Litter Robot 4 (or Litter Robot 5 if the Max lasts long enough for that, hah). The dread of potentially being left with a $500 paperweight is quite powerful, and I was quite happy with the Litter Robot 3 aside from the noise and smell, which Whisker has addressed in the Litter Robot 4.
Darn it! I heard Part 3 was out, only to discover I had already watched Part 3, and it was Part 4 I was waiting for (or the individual reviews that will take its place). Good thing this were the first of your videos I watched. There are many, many more to go! And more to come! Many thanks!
감사합니다. I had no idea you paid for all of these machines for TH-cam except Leo!!!!!!! It/s not much but i hope this helps. I loved loved spending my last 3 hrs watching all of your self cleaning litter box review videos as they were so humorous and cinematic are very beautiful to watch! I have litter robot 3 and i think i am not going to change to anything else yet 😅! I think anyone looking to buy automatic litter boxes should watch your reviews videos😮
I loved this series even though I’m cat-free atm, so thank you! And I cannot wait for the catio series, I’ve been looking forward to that for a while 😊
I can't tell you enough how much I appreciate the effort you put into this, I was considering several of these brands since the Litter Robot is insanely expensive In Canada ($1,000 for the base model 4 with no accessories or extended warranty) but frankly, after watching these it seems like that's the best purchase since there's the least amount of issues.
Thank you and your kitties so much. I spent hours trying to find info on the models they had on sale for Prime Deals. Your wonderful videos and actual experience by Jimmy, Berta, and the rest helped me immensely. Instead of ordering the Pur Max Amazon had on sale for $409, I decided to get the Litter Robot 4. Best Buy actually had a starter bundle on sale with the LR4, litter mat, extra refills for bags and the filters for $799 and with my BB reward points u got it for $754. Thank you so much for your help. As a teacher I always try to do extensive research before making costly purchases. Hard to know anymore if reviews are honest, fake, or paid for. Knowing I could trust your reviews and the products were cat tested made this so much easier for me. I appreciate you so much. My oldest son has the LR 4 and has raved about it for the last 3 months, but it is a lot of money for me to spend on my cats. I have 4 in total, 3 senior boys and a brand new little girl kitty named Lily. Someone dumped Lily at our school and the vet said she was between 5 and 6 weeks old. I have become very attached to the little cutie. 4 cats is a lot of litter to scoop each day. The kitten is now only 8 weeks and is too small for the LR 4, but it will be amazing to get rid of the 3 litter boxes for my mail cats I scoop daily. We have a litter kicker here, so I will be looking for the extra guard like you designed. I am looking forward to watching your other content and I signed up to join the FB group. Again thank you for helping me. Your content is not only informative but it is humorous and so useful 😁
Ive been trying to find a good review on most of the branded available litter robot machines but yours are so exte sive! Thanks for all the hard work amd dedicatio
I so appreciate these videos! I am still undecided on a robotic litter box after watching your reviews. I am currently using 3 large storage bins as litter boxes, and it works very well. Extra room, deep litter, and I only need to scoop once a day. I do want the convenience of a robotic litter box, but not if they have so many flaws that require constant care and attention.
Thank you for the series! That catbula looks like it’ll either beat the others by a mile or be a complete nightmare to work with haha. Either way I can’t wait to see more!
So detailed, funny, perfectly edited with music, voice-over and top graphics… unbelievable! This is a pro production, I guess it’s in your line of work 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
Great review. I did extensive research before settling on Whisker’s litter robot 3. A huge factor for me was the ability to purchase replacement parts for the unit which others didn’t offer. Also, it has the largest interior for my very large and tall kitty. She loves it and took to it right away. While no unit is perfect, I do find the Litter Robot is tried and true being the original automatic litter box.
Thanks for the extensive review. I've determined the way my cats use the litter box, self cleaning boxes are not for me 😢 lol. Looking forward to your catio series.
I’m struggling with this as we all are, but I’m also reminded of the distant past. My neighbor had a huge pile of sand which served the kids *and* the cats of the area. It was the site of huge artillery campaigns and spreading ranch/farmland, and the play continued over many days. We and the cats coexisted peacefully, and the kids were expert at scooping and tossing the clumps of sand. Nobody got sick, as I recall. Simpler times.
Incredible quality, thank you for such a detailed review! Your cats are adorable btw! Keep these videos coming, you are really talented! Would love to see cat toy reviews or scratch posts reviews, for example☺️☺️
Thank you, I have taken the plunge and got a LR4, you will have to get an affiliate link for the UK, so they can give you some commission for all your fantastic work.
Thank you so much for these informative and entertaining videos! I appreciate your thorough explanations and your cat's varied and comical testing. Looking forward to the future testing and any updates. As a geriatric cat owner of six myself I can say that for the most part I've been down the same road though not as numerous with my list. My choice of settling on the Popurx5 stems as much from a monetary decision any other but I am very happy with it. BUT I must add that I understand after receiving it that there could be severe dangers to kittens...and it's not the only one. It's concerning that there are not more warnings against letting kittens near many of these. For the record all of my cats are fully grown and by fully I mean mostly over 2 years old and over 15 pounds. Please , I know I should run them around the block more but alas I am unable to move about much myself. One thing I will say is the Popur is much heavier than expected and therefore a bit of a stretch for me to clean and it does indeed take a large space to be able to get behind and all around it. But after 2 months of using I am so happy with it. The odor is practically non-existent and it's pretty quiet. I cannot use the app at all but the settings it came with are perfect. I can understand why it would not be the best choice for everyone but I can't wait to see if they decide to upgrade it and fix a few issues. And I can't wait til you review the two new choices and for you to put out your catio video! What an amazing looking refuge for your family. Stay happy!
We have a leo's loo and have been mostly happy with it. We had a pipe burst and flood the room it was in with 2 inches of water. This fried some of the electronics. I contacted the company about purchasing replacement electronics, and they sent them out for FREE! They were polite, and didn't make me go through a bunch of troubleshooting like most companies do. I had already isolated the problems and taken the litter box apart to identify the failed components. My big complaint is the notifications from the app are an all or nothing thing. I only want notifications when the drawer is full, but I get a notification every time one of the 3 cats uses it. That's the big thing keeping me from buying a second one. Also, for larger cats, they can't use it. I've found putting a stool or a step in front of the unit makes them more likely to use it.
Been using the pura x for about a year now and it’s working wonders for me personally! Initially it was a bit of a struggle to find litter that worked well but once I did it was incredible.
Loved this series, super excited to see the catio episodes. I’ve had cats all my life and now have 2 new kittens who we want to be indoor cats so we need a catio
Thanks Matt, can’t wait to get that series going. There’s so much to cover and every episode covers a different aspect rather than the review after review of this series which has been repetitive to make and very challenging creatively! 🙃
I wish I had found your video earlier. I only found it as I was looking for troubleshooting with my Lavviebot. What a load of junk it is. If I had seen your very informative videos first I never would have bought it! Now because of your video I am through trying to get help repairing it (which they were not helpful anyway) and I am taking the damn thing to the tip this afternoon.
Thank you! Yeah, despite trying so many, it kept coming back to the LR4. I still think they need to fix front leak issue without needing the large fence as the LR3 didn’t have this problem. Still at least that large fence works.
I got a Pura max from Amazon here in the UK, it’s great, I keep it in the living room next to the sofa because it’s so quiet and handles odours really well. Haven’t had any leaks but maybe my cat is just well behaved and does his business directly on the litter every time.
@@OneManFiveCats I didn’t know about 2 years, cheers for the advice. Petkit keep messaging me on amazon asking me if there are any problems but there haven’t been any so it seems they’re putting effort into customer service… for now.
Just ran across your channel tonight and loved this video! I plan to do a deep dive into the rest of your channel after some sleep. I'm particularly interested in the video you do where you take a look at the Snowy+ because I was just looking into that one but was stunned at the price-point. You are a very brave man to take on all those automated cat boxes on your own! It really looks like so much work! And after seeing your photos of the catio you built, I can't wait to see those videos! Thanks for sharing your entertaining work here. 😃
Thank you! Yes I totally regret starting this. The time it’s taken is ludicrous, if they all worked perfectly it would have been easy. The Snow+ is a good one but also with issues. My review is late as I am on my third machine now. 😵💫 Enjoy my other videos, not just the reviews as the documentaries are my favourites. 🙂
Hi! Just watched your self cleaning litter box. I had already purchased the Popur litter boxes. I still like it BUT to your safety point, one of my foster kittens did get trapped in the box behind the scooper gate. I was able to get him out but it was tough & he was so scared. I am just thankful I was awake at the time he got himself scooped up & I heard him crying!
Great video as always. Your cat's quality assurance work should be the standard. Our new cat is against covered litter boxes at this time so we need to work on that first.
Switched to the pura max from the litter box 3 last year. It’s been great so far. I especially like the smaller form factor. Definitely can be better - but overall good.
Can’t wait to see you cover the new Pet Snowy! Especially because I cannot use clay litter. So would love to use tofu litter but couldn’t do it for LR!
There is some slight shame on my behalf as I have been refring to you as the Cat Man and his 5/6 cats. Nice to meet you Philip XD Thank you for testing these litter robots and being an absolute eloquent dream in describing them! I feel a little superficial as I loved the one that was pink because... it's pink. The 1st one you reviewed with the plumbing is in my opinion the best but if the cats don't take to it. especially when the poop gets a wash and dry ass well. That was kinda funny. I have ordered one I saw as an add and am still waiting for it to be delivered, just out of curiosity! However, I think some saving up and doing overtime will be the answer for me. #KittyGoals! Btw set the 1st one up for auction!
Super thorough, helpful and funny, thanks! I think my solution for now is to try and fix my 4+ year old LR3 that keeps getting stuck upside down, and eventually probably buy an LR4. I was interested in the Popur as I was sick of ours not even being a dumb tray when it was stuck but no tray at all forcing toileting happening in all sorts of places! But now I think learning how to replace bits myself is definitely preferable! Thanks again.
Thank you Sooo much for sharing these videos !!!! I can't tell you how much this has meant to me! 🥰 I have just now learned about self cleaning boxes and I have 6 cats; so I am eager to get 1 as I'm so tired of cleaning & changing the 1 huge box I have every other day. Seeing what can happen to a cat with some of these robot boxes and their unsafe features is a nightmare! 😱 I am appalled. Again, thank you for all your hard work with these helpful videos. 💜 you've saved me money and saved my cats from danger. Bless you! 🥰🙏
I think all your hard work (and of course, the dedicated cats!) simply shows me I can't afford these machines. The risk of not being able to fix breakdowns is my dealbreaker. Even with a 2 year warranty, that's £200-400/YEAR on a cat litter box for 3 cats, assuming faults will inevitably arise and I will be stuck with an intriguing smelling plastic ornament at some point. Not good enough. Perhaps with time, there will be more developments and more sense of security when shelling out so much money. By contrast I spent £600 on a washer/dryer about 4 years ago - the control dial is starting to go wonky, but it's a well known brand (coughHoovercough), and I know I can get any number of local engineers at varying costs to come fix it with proprietary replacement parts, at a fraction of the cost of buying a new machine. I'm disappointed, I honestly thought at the beginning of your reviews I would find an option that would suit me, but I am enormously grateful for your honesty (and investment), which has possibly prevented me from making a grave error. You're a star Philip, you really are!
I gave up waiting for the LR4 to come to the UK and got the PuraMax. Luckily I have compatible cats so no issues. One cat likes it so much she’ll come in from outside, use it, then go back outside. 🤔
I've always scoffed when I saw the prices of the self cleaning litter boxes. But seeing your (very thurough) reviews, I am now thinking of saving up to buy one for my two hellions
Got the pura max 2 weeks ago, can confirm it helps abit with leaking also you gotta admire them actually acting in a timely manner when it comes to improvements. From what i've seen from litter robots i think i might stay with petkit specially when im in the EU and can get most of their products from amazon often with alot of discounts. Thanks for all the testing of the robots, have helped me while looking into a robot before purchase! Also mine did come with the litter remover in the package and i could easily clean the whole drum with 2 wet wipes, seems like my litter barely sticks to any part of the drum. Also i have 2 year part warrenty from amazon which i feel like is fine for the price, could use a extension but i can live with 2 years.
Are you sure about timely? They said to me they had reports about the leaking from the start. Took over a year to bring out a new drum which only half fixes it! :)
@@OneManFiveCats Probably not the right word to use i suppose, but then again you see alot of crowd funded machines stay as is from release. The fact that they also ship with the plastic fence cover for litter removal now aswell is also something , i definitely feel like they are abit more active when it comes to the other companies or at the very least a close competitor to litter robot in my experience. Also got mine for 500 pounds with that 2 year part warranty so that was also a big factor i feel like, whilst also looking abit more slick in a modern home but the community of petkit is mostly chinese. But i do envy that litter robot has alot more control over SoMe's and they answer on reddit posts aswell when issues arise.
Thank you so much, I just nearly going to buy Popur, but luckily I watched your series, then changed my mind. It seems non of the machines are suitable for my cat so I will continue to follow you for any other recommendation 👍
This review has been so helpful, both in finding a new litter box and why our old Litter robot 3 was starting to wear on me. Your video showed why some of it actually happens and that it happens on ALL the litter robots and has to do with where my cat pees. On top of that i have managed to figure out that part of our "up and out peeing cat problem" is that he is a diabetic cat and will have a much stickier pee, increasing the "litter stuck to the wall" situation ten fold. With your review in mind i grabbed a new version 4, choosing it for easier clean-ability, quietness and the much improved drawer. April 6th i hope to receive the version 4, i don't know if the fence comes with it, i will reply here when it arrives with the answer. Some minor background info: Personal experience with their 2 year warranty here in The Netherlands is that replacement of the base is very common (i had 3 and have been using the old ones to refurbish the last base after the warranty expired), even after the 1 year mark. Electronics failing in the litter robot 3 is a common problem due to the use of badly designed sensors that cannot deal with litter dust or splatters. The biggest electronics issue is that is the drawer full sensor fails which means the pinch detection fails and the bonnet detection fails as they are all going through the same chain. But to be honest, after 3.5 years i am just done with the 3. 40 to 50 error messages a day and several parts replacements later it is just starting to aggravate me.
Hi Vincent, thank you. The EU two year warranty was not in reference to Whisker, as they won’t be like this. It’s for the Petkit type machines made in China. Your machine won’t have the large fence yet as they are still making them. I will get my production ones in two weeks. Join the Facebook group if you can as I will be updating people there. Once the large fence is available then you will need to contact them to send it to you. Robotshop should also send it to you free of charge, you won’t be able to ask for it any sooner.
Indeed did not get the large fence, for my cats, the small fence seems to work. First month of use on the LR4, my specific case remarks, based on a diabetic cat and the specific issues that offers.: Good: - Quiet, even quieter then you think. - Well sealed dome (except for the front, which is what the larger fence comes out for), especially nice is that empty actually empties the dome, vs the LR3 that would keep a cup of litter in reserve because of sealing issues inside the dome. - Really easy to clean, partly because it truly empties, partly because of the huge open front. - Much better drawer design, easy to put a bag in, holds much more waste. Had no trouble finding a fitting cheap garbage bag. Using the LR bags is no doubt perfect as well. - Dome Lining is fantastic, it does not hold on to clumps like the LR3 lining, clumps actually come loose on cycle. It is also less stiff (even the new LR3 lining i got last year) making it much more reliable in falling down to dislodge clumps. - Inside of the dome is much less (then LR3) sticky to clumps as a result it stays much much cleaner with a diabetic high peeing cat - weight sensor very accurate, vet confirmed. This was quite a surprise. Bad: - Step rubber is fold able like the LR3 one, litter will get in there, get stuck, get wet and becomes gunky. Old dish brush may help, but some litter is a pain to remove - Under the step is a section with various compartments that can collect litter and if by accident it gets wet you will have a lot of trouble removing it Is the LR4 perfect... probably not, if only because the app doesn't have (not yet at least) cat profiles so you can track individual weight. But is that a bonus or a needed feature on a litter robot, in my book it would be a bonus. That said, for a litter robot, disregarding the app and the bonus features; It does the job really well. Unobtrusive in sound, stays clean easily, easy to clean, no weird errors or bugs, no weird leaking. All i would love is a softer rubber step so you can fold it to get litter out and maybe have the part it lies on with less compartments. But i don't think either issue should be a deal breaker. Obviously, use my mini review here in conjunction with the excellent review videos by @One Man Five Cats as my review without his is rather incomplete.
After watching all your videos about the self-cleaning litter box, I found I was wrong. Because I like the design of Popur x 5 at the beginning. But it does exit the BIG problem, so I may consider other types. Thanks a lot. BTW I like your cats, especially Jimmy! Thanks again for making this awesome video!
Hi Jimmy, thank you so much for making this video. It is incredibly helpful and I believe a lot of the pain-points on the products you pointed out are very relatable to other cat owners across the globe.
Very informative reviews, thank you! I was looking at buying a self-cleaning litter box as we have just moved house with 4 cats, and it's been quite stressful. But after watching all three parts, I think I'll stick to teaching mine how to use a litter kwitter :D
![ทุกครั้งที่หลับตา (Lucid Dream) - AYLA's [ Official MV ]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/4i1OBAQyv58/mqdefault.jpg)
Oh Bertie. Every self cleaning litter box company's worst nightmare.
But imagine if those companies used him as a product tester. “Bertie proof” would be the new gold standard
None the less the same very real issues we all have had - my ol' boy in Heaven was exactly this way and when I exclaimed my issues time upon time with littermaid boxes I was met with 'well your cat must be a special case' - yet my vet says it's very common. This series is a Godsend!! 🙌🙌🙌❤️😍🤗
This series is super helpful. I have five cats and one pees like Bertie
he's gone now 💔
Yes, very useful. You're saving me hundreds, if not thousands of dollars. Because otherwise, I'd have to try to do something similar, only with fewer cats, and probably a lot less rigor. Not to mention the fact that your cinematography is GORGEOUS!
Thank you again!
That’s incredibly generous Brad, thanks so much!😊
so which one did you buy?
Hi sir
@@slaytroniche clearly stated and showed he has LR3 and LR4.
I was so stressed about looking up all this information and you’ve made it all so easy to digest along with positives and negatives of almost every possible situation. This is the best product review I’ve ever seen of any product line
This series is amazing. It’s like a kitty documentary 😂. Thanks for making them!
Thank you!
So informative. Thank you for these litter box review videos.
Thank you! That’s incredibly generous!
This series was so informative! Sending all my thanks to you and the beautiful cats
Harriet isn't a fatty, she is a beautiful fluffy queen!
Insulting Harriet is just a dealbreaker, isn't it?! Honestly! Altho my vet did refer to one of my cats as (and I quote...) "he's, er, a little round"! I covered his ears in front of her, and burst out laughing. She did have the grace to laugh too.
I am super glad for these reviews. Hubby and I are considering self-cleaning boxes but our senior is a wall pee-er like Bertie. These videos have given me many things to consider before choosing a box.
Same, I have one that starts low and raises her behind as she goes and it always ends up over the side of even the high sided trays! *sigh* Good thing we love them so much, isn't it? :)
@@catsandcrafts171 For years, we've used a deep sterilite bin so he has to jump all the way in and the walls are high enough that he can't get over the edge while peeing. It's an inelegant solution, but it worked. At least until his arthritis set in! He's in a lidded box now which seems to get the worst of it, but we really want an auto bin once we can afford it. Looks like the LR4 is going to be the one, after they release the new fence.
@@CrankstaWho - Yes, we do the same, with the higher sides. Thank goodness for Sterilite!
as an owner of a pura X, i'm suddenly grateful for how my cat pees. never knew this is an issue. hahaha
Same 😂
Your channel is so so so helpful, thank you! I’m leaning towards the new litter robot and it’s such a large purchase, so good to see how it compares and know it’s worth. Btw, Bertie is ruthless, no f’s given when he’s gotta go.
These companies are lucky to have you doing such thorough reviews and testing. There is so much valuable feedback here.
Thanks! Your reviews have been astoundingly exhaustive and beautifully produced. Buying one of these is a big decision and I feel like I know what I'd be getting into thanks to your hard work.
Thank you Cindy!
Agreed
Your reviews are just WONDERFUL, and cats truly ARE top notch testers; all your kitties are beautiful! Thanks so much for being so thorough, you have saved me hundreds of dollars let alone so much aggravation. Much love from me and my 3 kitties from New Mexico USA ❤❤
Thank you 🙂
Thank you! I've been really wanting a self-cleaning litter box and have been waiting for this last installment.
Phillip, Thank you for this video. I have followed you for YEARS on your other channel and didn't realize you had this one until I was watching reviews. Cheers!
The timing is eerie, I JUST checked the channel early this morning during a bout of sleeplessness, trying to find something to watch and hoping a follow-up video hadn't been missed to this series. And now, a new video is out 😅.
Pure delight this has been! I laughed and was greatly appreciative of the well done information! Bravo my friend! Indeed, Litter Robot 4 is likely the best on the market, but she is spendy. I have remarked on several sites, that unless you have 3 or more cats, it's simply not worth the price. People who have 4 or more cats, likely NEED this thing, at least one. I have 2 LR3's and 1 LR4, plus a nice big covered old fashion deep pan litter box. All get used, but the robots have saved my back from all the scooping on the daily required for 6 feline furr-babies. The LR4 has improved on the product and for now still has the best customer service. Yet like the good man says: it's a machine and it will break down/ have issues. So invest wisely I say. Out the door LR is an ouch, but I've found over time it pays for itself in back breaking scooping and litter waste. I use less litter and the machine makes the most of it. Now, if only we could find a dust free safe great clumping litter...sigh... that doesn't break the bank. Note: I know it may seem extremely crazy but I will say that over 30 years I've found ironically, cats are allergic to humans...lol. You know...90% of our "dust" is our skin... well turns out that dust is not agreeable to our feline friends any more than theirs is to us. I have 3 terribly allergic cats to this problem... it's truly mind boggling that it never occurs to anyone. Since we focus on our allergies to things or animals. Turns out, cats bodies filter and deal with fine actual dirt dust particles than that of the human fluff. Small world...lol. thanks again one guy and six cats... smiles and blessings...
I think I'll go for litter robot 4. Thank you for the un depth review! It answered all of my questions and worries and gave me some things to think on.
These videos are amazingly helpful and I found them just as I'd started considering buying one. I just wish I'd been a little more patient because I bought the Pura X just before this video came out. It was the one most readily available to me so I hoped for the best... and then the review started with "And it's probably worse with the Pura X." Ah. I hoped for the best because maybe I wouldn't have such a bad experience with it, and while I wouldn't say I regret buying an automated litter box, I do regret that it was this one. I underestimated just how high up the entrance was, and having also got a munchkin kitten, it was obvious he wasn't getting inside without buying a step for him. While it seemed like we were waiting forever for him to grow big enough to let the Pura X run fully automated, these days he's a BIG boy. The entrance is one thing, but the space inside seems pretty cramped and he's started preferring to pee outside on the mat. It doesn't even surprise me that he's going there, because if we don't keep on top of it, it accumulates so much litter! Our other cat loves to redecorate and she'll spend plenty of time rearranging the litter until it's perfect, much of it ending up outside. It's not 100% her fault though since when the waste is full, the barrel will spin the entire way around which makes the litter fall everywhere instead of shifting back into place. So surely the answer would be to empty the waste before that happens. Haha, no. The Pura X will let us know the waste is full whenever it feels like it, including right after a total deepclean. And don't get me started on that! The barrel is cumbersome, the liner has some staining due to clumps sticking to its non-stick stickiness, and for some reason the machine just gets so full of stray litter! I think we're now just outside of the warranty but even so, the cats and I are very ready to move on to something bigger and better.
I hope this horrible wall of text finds the next person here who might be considering the Pura X. While it works, I wouldn't say it works well, and after a year it's beginning to malfunction. Someone we know also bought a Pura X just before us and theirs has just died. They didn't replace it with another Pura X.
Great video! As a Pura Max (and former LR 3) owner, I've been looking forward to this one ever since the first one with the LR 4. As mentioned in a previous comment, for some reason we haven't had any leaks from inside but I'm chalking that up to dumb luck with the manufacturing tolerances on our particular liner. It's the same current fabric one with the hard plastic ring. I'll request the new drum from them for comparison as suggested (thanks for that info!).
My hardware complaints:
The first issue we ran into was our cat likes to pee facing inside with her tail sticking out of the entrance. Some urine was landing on the lower lip and dripping down the front of the drum into the basin below. I made a fence out of ~3cm vinyl weather stripping and velcro tape which goes across the inside of the drum just above the lip of the entrance. It's been completely effective at resolving that pee issue and I haven't seen any urine outside the drum for months. I plan to make a 3D printable version to clip onto the lower lip and will post the design once it's completed.
There's a recently introduced "Continuous rotation" setting in the app that toggles whether the proximity sensor at the front is ignored during cleaning and leveling. I'm not sure if the sensor stays active during leveling when that setting is off. That setting helps in our case, because we have fabric curtains over the outside of the entrance (not the official ones that attach to the inside) to encourage the cat to stay inside when using it. The curtains tend to drape over the sensors when the entrance is facing down for leveling so the setting prevents the cycle from being interrupted by this.
We haven't been as lucky with the waste drawer design. The waste seems to pile up more quickly than in our LR 3. We only have one cat, but within the first 4 to 5 days after putting in a fresh waste bag, I get a dreaded bin full notification and have to pull the drawer out and shake it to get a particularly wide and flat clump to settle so the lid can close. Sometimes I have to shake the drawer before I can pull it out, to keep a clump from smashing into the front wall of the compartment.
The other main complaint is with the app:
The app only allows one mobile device to be signed into an account, which is mostly fine because you can share access to a litter box with other users who have their own accounts. Or it would be, except that the other accounts can't receive notifications from the litter box. I thought this was a bug at first, but after a long email exchange with support troubleshooting the issue, they finally confirmed with the technical team that notifications to other users sharing a device weren't yet supported. I had hoped this would be addressed in an update but it's been several months since then and the app has gone through one significant refresh without any changes to this functionality.
The other, more minor complaint with the app is that while the weight tracking in the litter box usage records seems pretty accurate, and it consistently recognises our cat by comparing the sensed weight to the weight we input in her profile, it doesn't automatically update our cat's profile for these small fluctuations. This is a shame because the profile can display a nice graph of weight changes over time, but these are all manually updated values.
Thank you and very interesting to read!
I too, have the pura max that has worked perfectly out of the box. I guess i got lucky. But i am looking to buy the litter robot 4.I am on the fence because of all the issues they are having.
@@LindaBardin as I said in this video, my two machines have been working perfectly since around October after niggling problems. It’s the best machine on the market in part because they have proper customer service, extended warranty and spare parts. 1 year warranty is not enough.
I would love to know why you switched from the litter robot 3 if you don’t mind sharing!
@@brittanymueller171 the main issues were the loud motor near our bedroom, weight sensor issues that kept it from detecting usage sometimes, and the pinch sensor frequently needing to be cleaned or adjusted.
I’ve absolutely loved this video series, I never thought I’d enjoy watching videos about litter boxes but I have to say, you pulled it off! 😊
I was surprised you had the leaking issues with the Pura X, I guess it goes to show how different everyone’s needs are
We’ve got the Pura X and two Burmese and we love ours, we even had a great experience with the PETKIT customer service who sent us a replacement outer shell/robot when ours encountered a fault well outside of the one year warranty
Thank you. Now that is interesting; where are you based?
This is the most informative and entertaining series.
Thank you so much for all the incredible amount of work you have done on this project.
Your Catio is an inspiration as well.
I love the oasis you have created for them.
This channel, as well as your expertise on camera gear, have become my go to for two of the most important aspects of my life.
Thank you so very much
There's a gift for making people smile. Thank you for sharing it.
Thanks a lot! I'm sure a lot of us were waiting for the last part to go for LR4 when it's on stock.
Thanks for the thorough and thoughtful comparisons. It's quelled a lot of my uncertainty over whether another litter machine would have been better.
I started with a Litter Robot 3 (the Litter Robot 4 was not yet announced at this time). My first impression was soured, because I received one with a dead-on-arrival Wi-Fi chip. Customer Service was good, and I was sent an entire replacement base quite quickly. The noise was annoying but not a deal breaker. After about 30 days of use, the machine just started smelling absolutely putrid, and no amount of cleaning would make it go away. I believe this issue is due to the waste drawer not having any sealing. I returned it without issue.
I've had the PetKit Pura Max for almost a year now, with two cats that have surprisingly good aim. (They both stick their head out the front when peeing and pooping.) The machine requires very little effort to maintain, aside from regular wipe downs and the occasional deep clean, and most importantly it contains the smell. Even so, I feel your review perfectly captures my concerns with the machine breaking down.
All-in-all, my impression is that Whisker is a good company with phenomenal customer service policies, but lacks the product development and manufacturing expertise to make truly reliable products. On the other hand, PetKit has solid product engineering and manufacturing, but basically no customer support. Having to make the choice between reliable and fixable is a dreadful dilemma, and feels a lot like buying a car.
When the Max eventually does break down, I will likely switch to the Litter Robot 4 (or Litter Robot 5 if the Max lasts long enough for that, hah). The dread of potentially being left with a $500 paperweight is quite powerful, and I was quite happy with the Litter Robot 3 aside from the noise and smell, which Whisker has addressed in the Litter Robot 4.
Darn it! I heard Part 3 was out, only to discover I had already watched Part 3, and it was Part 4 I was waiting for (or the individual reviews that will take its place). Good thing this were the first of your videos I watched. There are many, many more to go! And more to come! Many thanks!
Make sure you watch the others to see the good and bad of machines on the market! Some are shocking!!
감사합니다. I had no idea you paid for all of these machines for TH-cam except Leo!!!!!!! It/s not much but i hope this helps. I loved loved spending my last 3 hrs watching all of your self cleaning litter box review videos as they were so humorous and cinematic are very beautiful to watch! I have litter robot 3 and i think i am not going to change to anything else yet 😅! I think anyone looking to buy automatic litter boxes should watch your reviews videos😮
I loved this series even though I’m cat-free atm, so thank you! And I cannot wait for the catio series, I’ve been looking forward to that for a while 😊
Thanks for the series! Loved seeing your cats' experience with them
I can't tell you enough how much I appreciate the effort you put into this, I was considering several of these brands since the Litter Robot is insanely expensive In Canada ($1,000 for the base model 4 with no accessories or extended warranty) but frankly, after watching these it seems like that's the best purchase since there's the least amount of issues.
I have the two pura models, and prefer the original!
So very grateful to have found your channel, as I need to add a third!
Thank you! It comes down to your cat. If they use the X perfectly in the litter the X is better because it’s way easier to clean and looks nicer 🙂
Thank you and your kitties so much. I spent hours trying to find info on the models they had on sale for Prime Deals. Your wonderful videos and actual experience by Jimmy, Berta, and the rest helped me immensely. Instead of ordering the Pur Max Amazon had on sale for $409, I decided to get the Litter Robot 4. Best Buy actually had a starter bundle on sale with the LR4, litter mat, extra refills for bags and the filters for $799 and with my BB reward points u got it for $754. Thank you so much for your help. As a teacher I always try to do extensive research before making costly purchases. Hard to know anymore if reviews are honest, fake, or paid for. Knowing I could trust your reviews and the products were cat tested made this so much easier for me. I appreciate you so much. My oldest son has the LR 4 and has raved about it for the last 3 months, but it is a lot of money for me to spend on my cats. I have 4 in total, 3 senior boys and a brand new little girl kitty named Lily. Someone dumped Lily at our school and the vet said she was between 5 and 6 weeks old. I have become very attached to the little cutie. 4 cats is a lot of litter to scoop each day. The kitten is now only 8 weeks and is too small for the LR 4, but it will be amazing to get rid of the 3 litter boxes for my mail cats I scoop daily. We have a litter kicker here, so I will be looking for the extra guard like you designed. I am looking forward to watching your other content and I signed up to join the FB group. Again thank you for helping me. Your content is not only informative but it is humorous and so useful 😁
Thank you! You don’t need to buy the large fence as it comes with it now. :)
I love this series! You are amazing!
Thank you so much!
You make really great videos, and the content is presented in such a unique and fun way
Great job on another informative video. The production is top notch.
Ive been trying to find a good review on most of the branded available litter robot machines but yours are so exte sive! Thanks for all the hard work amd dedicatio
I love this series so much. I don’t even have a cat but I’m so invested
I so appreciate these videos! I am still undecided on a robotic litter box after watching your reviews. I am currently using 3 large storage bins as litter boxes, and it works very well. Extra room, deep litter, and I only need to scoop once a day. I do want the convenience of a robotic litter box, but not if they have so many flaws that require constant care and attention.
They don’t all have flaws. 🙂
Double thumb up for the whole series of the review! Unfortunately we still need to wait for the Litter Robot 4 available in my place
I love your channel, you are hilarious! Also your reviews are super helpful and the quality of your videos is top notch!
Thank you :)
Thank you for the series! That catbula looks like it’ll either beat the others by a mile or be a complete nightmare to work with haha. Either way I can’t wait to see more!
So detailed, funny, perfectly edited with music, voice-over and top graphics… unbelievable! This is a pro production, I guess it’s in your line of work 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
Thank you thank you from the US. You are amazing, creative and funny movie maker😂. I really enjoy your presentation. Lots of wisdom. Thanks
Great review. I did extensive research before settling on Whisker’s litter robot 3. A huge factor for me was the ability to purchase replacement parts for the unit which others didn’t offer. Also, it has the largest interior for my very large and tall kitty. She loves it and took to it right away. While no unit is perfect, I do find the Litter Robot is tried and true being the original automatic litter box.
Another great one. Thanks for the effort.
Thanks for the clip and I hope she's doing well!
this is great! im moving and going to upgrade and seeing these reviews is really helpful!
I was leaning towards Leo's Loo too but honestly now im leaning towards the litter robot 4
For the money, these machines should be waterproof sealed.
This is such a thorough review and is extremely helpful as I was curious about all of these brands. Thank you!
Eagerly awaiting your thoughts on Pet Snowy. Thanks for all you do!
I came here just for the reviews but they are so well made, I subbed.
i love your videos i was looking for reviews and now im watching these for fun
Thanks for the extensive review. I've determined the way my cats use the litter box, self cleaning boxes are not for me 😢 lol. Looking forward to your catio series.
Спасибо большое, это самые правдоподобные, подробные, лучшие обзоры автоматических туалетов для кошек! Удачи Вам и вашим хвостатым друзьям!
Very thorough reviews. Thank you so much for doing this. I guess this is yet another example of getting what you pay for.
I’m struggling with this as we all are, but I’m also reminded of the distant past.
My neighbor had a huge pile of sand which served the kids *and* the cats of the area. It was the site of huge artillery campaigns and spreading ranch/farmland, and the play continued over many days. We and the cats coexisted peacefully, and the kids were expert at scooping and tossing the clumps of sand. Nobody got sick, as I recall. Simpler times.
Thanks so much for this video. Very informative and also got a few chuckles out of me.
Incredible quality, thank you for such a detailed review! Your cats are adorable btw! Keep these videos coming, you are really talented! Would love to see cat toy reviews or scratch posts reviews, for example☺️☺️
Thank you, I have taken the plunge and got a LR4, you will have to get an affiliate link for the UK, so they can give you some commission for all your fantastic work.
Thank you! I don’t know why, but whisker won’t let the affiliate work for UK purchase.
Thank you so much for these informative and entertaining videos! I appreciate your thorough explanations and your cat's varied and comical testing. Looking forward to the future testing and any updates. As a geriatric cat owner of six myself I can say that for the most part I've been down the same road though not as numerous with my list. My choice of settling on the Popurx5 stems as much from a monetary decision any other but I am very happy with it. BUT I must add that I understand after receiving it that there could be severe dangers to kittens...and it's not the only one. It's concerning that there are not more warnings against letting kittens near many of these. For the record all of my cats are fully grown and by fully I mean mostly over 2 years old and over 15 pounds. Please , I know I should run them around the block more but alas I am unable to move about much myself. One thing I will say is the Popur is much heavier than expected and therefore a bit of a stretch for me to clean and it does indeed take a large space to be able to get behind and all around it. But after 2 months of using I am so happy with it. The odor is practically non-existent and it's pretty quiet. I cannot use the app at all but the settings it came with are perfect. I can understand why it would not be the best choice for everyone but I can't wait to see if they decide to upgrade it and fix a few issues. And I can't wait til you review the two new choices and for you to put out your catio video! What an amazing looking refuge for your family. Stay happy!
I love all the music you used in this!
Thanks! Music is super important to me.
We have a leo's loo and have been mostly happy with it. We had a pipe burst and flood the room it was in with 2 inches of water. This fried some of the electronics. I contacted the company about purchasing replacement electronics, and they sent them out for FREE! They were polite, and didn't make me go through a bunch of troubleshooting like most companies do. I had already isolated the problems and taken the litter box apart to identify the failed components.
My big complaint is the notifications from the app are an all or nothing thing. I only want notifications when the drawer is full, but I get a notification every time one of the 3 cats uses it. That's the big thing keeping me from buying a second one.
Also, for larger cats, they can't use it.
I've found putting a stool or a step in front of the unit makes them more likely to use it.
Been using the pura x for about a year now and it’s working wonders for me personally! Initially it was a bit of a struggle to find litter that worked well but once I did it was incredible.
That’s good. Fingers crossed you get no issues after the year warranty runs out.
@@OneManFiveCats Hopefully 😅
Same story here! After trying a few, I've found Rufus and Cocos bamboo charcoal to work sooo well with the Pura Max
Please share the litter you use! Been gifted a pura 🖤🖤 Id appreciate it
@@anndreavasquez5932 I use the Trouble & Trix Ultra Scoop superior odour control ocean breeze scent and it is genuinely incredible
Loved this series, super excited to see the catio episodes. I’ve had cats all my life and now have 2 new kittens who we want to be indoor cats so we need a catio
Thanks Matt, can’t wait to get that series going. There’s so much to cover and every episode covers a different aspect rather than the review after review of this series which has been repetitive to make and very challenging creatively! 🙃
I wish I had found your video earlier. I only found it as I was looking for troubleshooting with my Lavviebot. What a load of junk it is. If I had seen your very informative videos first I never would have bought it! Now because of your video I am through trying to get help repairing it (which they were not helpful anyway) and I am taking the damn thing to the tip this afternoon.
I think I might go with the litter robot 4 after all. Thank you for all of your effort!
Thank you! Yeah, despite trying so many, it kept coming back to the LR4. I still think they need to fix front leak issue without needing the large fence as the LR3 didn’t have this problem. Still at least that large fence works.
I got a Pura max from Amazon here in the UK, it’s great, I keep it in the living room next to the sofa because it’s so quiet and handles odours really well. Haven’t had any leaks but maybe my cat is just well behaved and does his business directly on the litter every time.
Glad it’s worked out for you! Fingers crossed it lasts past the year warranty!
Don’t forget that but about UK 2 year warranty rights if it does have issues!
@@OneManFiveCats I didn’t know about 2 years, cheers for the advice. Petkit keep messaging me on amazon asking me if there are any problems but there haven’t been any so it seems they’re putting effort into customer service… for now.
@@Ash-333 sadly will drop you after that year. Far too many examples I’ve seen and they said to me they wouldn’t be able to help me after my year.
This was so good! Finally someone did this. Commenting so the algorithm gods are in your favour
Thanks! I love your super informative reviews!
Thank you. 😊
Just ran across your channel tonight and loved this video! I plan to do a deep dive into the rest of your channel after some sleep. I'm particularly interested in the video you do where you take a look at the Snowy+ because I was just looking into that one but was stunned at the price-point. You are a very brave man to take on all those automated cat boxes on your own! It really looks like so much work! And after seeing your photos of the catio you built, I can't wait to see those videos! Thanks for sharing your entertaining work here. 😃
Thank you! Yes I totally regret starting this. The time it’s taken is ludicrous, if they all worked perfectly it would have been easy. The Snow+ is a good one but also with issues. My review is late as I am on my third machine now. 😵💫
Enjoy my other videos, not just the reviews as the documentaries are my favourites. 🙂
@@OneManFiveCats Will do!😁
I appreciate your detailed review. I have the litter robot 4 ordered for our new kitten!
Hi! Just watched your self cleaning litter box. I had already purchased the Popur litter boxes. I still like it BUT to your safety point, one of my foster kittens did get trapped in the box behind the scooper gate. I was able to get him out but it was tough & he was so scared. I am just thankful I was awake at the time he got himself scooped up & I heard him crying!
That really upsets me. Something awful is going to happen and it will be Popur’s fault. They don’t love cats clearly. 😞
Where exactly did he get trapped?
Omg. So scary!
You deserve your own show on Animal Planet ❤
Great video as always. Your cat's quality assurance work should be the standard. Our new cat is against covered litter boxes at this time so we need to work on that first.
Switched to the pura max from the litter box 3 last year. It’s been great so far. I especially like the smaller form factor. Definitely can be better - but overall good.
I would love to know why you switched from the litter robot 3 if you don’t mind sharing!
Man you are pro. Please create the litterbox that works!
Can’t wait to see you cover the new Pet Snowy! Especially because I cannot use clay litter. So would love to use tofu litter but couldn’t do it for LR!
There is some slight shame on my behalf as I have been refring to you as the Cat Man and his 5/6 cats. Nice to meet you Philip XD Thank you for testing these litter robots and being an absolute eloquent dream in describing them! I feel a little superficial as I loved the one that was pink because... it's pink. The 1st one you reviewed with the plumbing is in my opinion the best but if the cats don't take to it. especially when the poop gets a wash and dry ass well. That was kinda funny. I have ordered one I saw as an add and am still waiting for it to be delivered, just out of curiosity! However, I think some saving up and doing overtime will be the answer for me. #KittyGoals! Btw set the 1st one up for auction!
Super thorough, helpful and funny, thanks! I think my solution for now is to try and fix my 4+ year old LR3 that keeps getting stuck upside down, and eventually probably buy an LR4. I was interested in the Popur as I was sick of ours not even being a dumb tray when it was stuck but no tray at all forcing toileting happening in all sorts of places! But now I think learning how to replace bits myself is definitely preferable! Thanks again.
I don't have a cat but i like the litter box videos :D
Time to get a cat! 😂😊
How do I find myself... Yet again... Watching and *enjoying* a 40 min video on cat poop 😅
Because I make them entertaining! 🤓
Thank you Sooo much for sharing these videos !!!! I can't tell you how much this has meant to me! 🥰 I have just now learned about self cleaning boxes and I have 6 cats; so I am eager to get 1 as I'm so tired of cleaning & changing the 1 huge box I have every other day. Seeing what can happen to a cat with some of these robot boxes and their unsafe features is a nightmare! 😱 I am appalled. Again, thank you for all your hard work with these helpful videos. 💜 you've saved me money and saved my cats from danger. Bless you! 🥰🙏
Unrelated, Litter Robot actually builds their machines near me, which is pretty neat!
Great series! Very interesting! Thank you!
I think all your hard work (and of course, the dedicated cats!) simply shows me I can't afford these machines. The risk of not being able to fix breakdowns is my dealbreaker. Even with a 2 year warranty, that's £200-400/YEAR on a cat litter box for 3 cats, assuming faults will inevitably arise and I will be stuck with an intriguing smelling plastic ornament at some point. Not good enough. Perhaps with time, there will be more developments and more sense of security when shelling out so much money. By contrast I spent £600 on a washer/dryer about 4 years ago - the control dial is starting to go wonky, but it's a well known brand (coughHoovercough), and I know I can get any number of local engineers at varying costs to come fix it with proprietary replacement parts, at a fraction of the cost of buying a new machine. I'm disappointed, I honestly thought at the beginning of your reviews I would find an option that would suit me, but I am enormously grateful for your honesty (and investment), which has possibly prevented me from making a grave error. You're a star Philip, you really are!
Litter Robot does offer mechanical and electrical parts for their machines. I believe at this point they are the only manufacturer that does so.
I gave up waiting for the LR4 to come to the UK and got the PuraMax. Luckily I have compatible cats so no issues. One cat likes it so much she’ll come in from outside, use it, then go back outside. 🤔
Hahahaha so funny! 😂
Thank you for an informative, detailed video
Thank you for the time and effort you put into these in-depth reviews! So very helpful. Do you have an ETA for the Pet Snowy SNOW+ review video?
Thank you so much for all the work you put in (and your panel offcourse)! Cant wait for the catio series as I want to make something similair
Thanks so much for the very detailed reviews for these machines! Subbed for the effort!
I've always scoffed when I saw the prices of the self cleaning litter boxes. But seeing your (very thurough) reviews, I am now thinking of saving up to buy one for my two hellions
Make sure you watch the latest video!
@@OneManFiveCatsdoing so now! :) also subscribed. Thank you for your and your kitties hard work ;)
Thanks for doing such a long term review!
Got the pura max 2 weeks ago, can confirm it helps abit with leaking also you gotta admire them actually acting in a timely manner when it comes to improvements. From what i've seen from litter robots i think i might stay with petkit specially when im in the EU and can get most of their products from amazon often with alot of discounts. Thanks for all the testing of the robots, have helped me while looking into a robot before purchase! Also mine did come with the litter remover in the package and i could easily clean the whole drum with 2 wet wipes, seems like my litter barely sticks to any part of the drum. Also i have 2 year part warrenty from amazon which i feel like is fine for the price, could use a extension but i can live with 2 years.
Are you sure about timely? They said to me they had reports about the leaking from the start. Took over a year to bring out a new drum which only half fixes it! :)
@@OneManFiveCats Probably not the right word to use i suppose, but then again you see alot of crowd funded machines stay as is from release. The fact that they also ship with the plastic fence cover for litter removal now aswell is also something , i definitely feel like they are abit more active when it comes to the other companies or at the very least a close competitor to litter robot in my experience. Also got mine for 500 pounds with that 2 year part warranty so that was also a big factor i feel like, whilst also looking abit more slick in a modern home but the community of petkit is mostly chinese. But i do envy that litter robot has alot more control over SoMe's and they answer on reddit posts aswell when issues arise.
@@ziiked7199 what two year part warranty? I have not seen them offer anything other than a year and you got it for £500 too?where?
@@OneManFiveCats German Amazon, live in Denmark
@@ziiked7199 any chance of a link as Petkit said they don’t offer any two year warranties anywhere to me.
Very helpful and thorough. Thank you!
Thank you so much, I just nearly going to buy Popur, but luckily I watched your series, then changed my mind. It seems non of the machines are suitable for my cat so I will continue to follow you for any other recommendation 👍
Literally screamed when I saw the notification!
This review has been so helpful, both in finding a new litter box and why our old Litter robot 3 was starting to wear on me.
Your video showed why some of it actually happens and that it happens on ALL the litter robots and has to do with where my cat pees.
On top of that i have managed to figure out that part of our "up and out peeing cat problem" is that he is a diabetic cat and will have a much stickier pee, increasing the "litter stuck to the wall" situation ten fold.
With your review in mind i grabbed a new version 4, choosing it for easier clean-ability, quietness and the much improved drawer.
April 6th i hope to receive the version 4, i don't know if the fence comes with it, i will reply here when it arrives with the answer.
Some minor background info:
Personal experience with their 2 year warranty here in The Netherlands is that replacement of the base is very common (i had 3 and have been using the old ones to refurbish the last base after the warranty expired), even after the 1 year mark.
Electronics failing in the litter robot 3 is a common problem due to the use of badly designed sensors that cannot deal with litter dust or splatters.
The biggest electronics issue is that is the drawer full sensor fails which means the pinch detection fails and the bonnet detection fails as they are all going through the same chain.
But to be honest, after 3.5 years i am just done with the 3. 40 to 50 error messages a day and several parts replacements later it is just starting to aggravate me.
Hi Vincent, thank you.
The EU two year warranty was not in reference to Whisker, as they won’t be like this. It’s for the Petkit type machines made in China.
Your machine won’t have the large fence yet as they are still making them. I will get my production ones in two weeks. Join the Facebook group if you can as I will be updating people there.
Once the large fence is available then you will need to contact them to send it to you. Robotshop should also send it to you free of charge, you won’t be able to ask for it any sooner.
For the LR3 are new, better DFI sensors avaivable. i got them under warranty from Robot shop.
@@leggy5294 Unfortunately i was outside of warranty this time :( But you are correct, they have better ones these days.
Indeed did not get the large fence, for my cats, the small fence seems to work.
First month of use on the LR4, my specific case remarks, based on a diabetic cat and the specific issues that offers.:
Good:
- Quiet, even quieter then you think.
- Well sealed dome (except for the front, which is what the larger fence comes out for), especially nice is that empty actually empties the dome, vs the LR3 that would keep a cup of litter in reserve because of sealing issues inside the dome.
- Really easy to clean, partly because it truly empties, partly because of the huge open front.
- Much better drawer design, easy to put a bag in, holds much more waste. Had no trouble finding a fitting cheap garbage bag. Using the LR bags is no doubt perfect as well.
- Dome Lining is fantastic, it does not hold on to clumps like the LR3 lining, clumps actually come loose on cycle. It is also less stiff (even the new LR3 lining i got last year) making it much more reliable in falling down to dislodge clumps.
- Inside of the dome is much less (then LR3) sticky to clumps as a result it stays much much cleaner with a diabetic high peeing cat
- weight sensor very accurate, vet confirmed. This was quite a surprise.
Bad:
- Step rubber is fold able like the LR3 one, litter will get in there, get stuck, get wet and becomes gunky. Old dish brush may help, but some litter is a pain to remove
- Under the step is a section with various compartments that can collect litter and if by accident it gets wet you will have a lot of trouble removing it
Is the LR4 perfect... probably not, if only because the app doesn't have (not yet at least) cat profiles so you can track individual weight. But is that a bonus or a needed feature on a litter robot, in my book it would be a bonus.
That said, for a litter robot, disregarding the app and the bonus features; It does the job really well. Unobtrusive in sound, stays clean easily, easy to clean, no weird errors or bugs, no weird leaking.
All i would love is a softer rubber step so you can fold it to get litter out and maybe have the part it lies on with less compartments. But i don't think either issue should be a deal breaker.
Obviously, use my mini review here in conjunction with the excellent review videos by @One Man Five Cats as my review without his is rather incomplete.
After watching all your videos about the self-cleaning litter box, I found I was wrong. Because I like the design of Popur x 5 at the beginning. But it does exit the BIG problem, so I may consider other types. Thanks a lot. BTW I like your cats, especially Jimmy! Thanks again for making this awesome video!
Hi Jimmy, thank you so much for making this video. It is incredibly helpful and I believe a lot of the pain-points on the products you pointed out are very relatable to other cat owners across the globe.
I will tell Jimmy! 😂
Very informative reviews, thank you!
I was looking at buying a self-cleaning litter box as we have just moved house with 4 cats, and it's been quite stressful. But after watching all three parts, I think I'll stick to teaching mine how to use a litter kwitter :D
There’s a fourth part and now a fifth part! 😂
popur x5 looks really good and checks many boxes
but the safety issue is really sad
wish it was safe