A note from Bird Buddy about a few of the things I mentioned in the video. "The battery longevity is definitely something we're working on updating and it should be fixed within a few upcoming updates. Our AI is constantly learning and improving. As you mentioned in the video as well, our goal is educating people on bird species, and an important aspect of that is getting as much as possible right. If the system isn't completely sure, it will ask in order to educate itself for further sightings!" If you want to order Bird Buddy, using our link is much appreciated! :) As Amazon Associates we do earn from qualifying purchases made through our affiliate link below! amzn.to/4feVaJ3
We’ve had our for some time, when in doubt ask the them to identify. They usually get back to you in 24-48 hrs. Also make sure you download the new firmware when it’s available as they upgrade the app. Also, we bought an outdoor water rated plug that allows us to connect a usb c cable from it to the BB. This keeps the battery at 99% even in our CO winters. Happy birding
Watching you set it up I was like "wait he didn't pair it yet? it's gunna take forever" (I finally got the one I bought for my mom's working last weekend after some back and forth (and this is replacement one, the first one froze mid-firmware update :x) That said, still looking forward to its use! Glad to see a video like this, thanks!
Was one of the first kickstarter backers but we got it in October and didn't want to put that battery through a hatsh Manitoba winter 🥶 Getting er set up today! Went out and got a pole system from wild birds unlimited. Just waiting for the camera to charge now... 😴
eastern gray squirrels are extremly annoying. Sometimes it feels like they're a plage. I try to keep them off the feeder with baffles and hot pepper. Helps also pretty well against raccoons. Thanks for the video, have a great weekend :)
I’m still learning! It’s in a temporary spot but I couldn’t wait ANY LONGER! 😁 The squirrels learned how to jump from a metal palm tree on my back deck but as long as I keep seed and water at the usual spot it’s working! It’s hanging from a chain in the middle of our gazebo. Fun how sometimes it spins! I got the suet ball and just used the bottom half to put an orange piece in it. 💛🙌💛 It’s awesome! Male and female Cardinals, Rose breasted gross beaks, Baltimore Oriole, house finch, purple finch, SQUIRREL 😂, and lots of American Gold finches and others💞 awesome Christmas gift from my daughter! But... my phone and iPad are too full or old to download the app. Unless I get a new phone or iPad I have to watch from daughters phone. But it’s working very well!!! The solar panel was ready to go! Staying charged even with some cloudy days here in Southwest Michigan! Yes, I recommend it!!!
Now I want a camera to see what is going on around my bird buddy! 😂 the finches above and the different birds on the gazebo and palm tree leaves waiting for their turn is so much fun out my kitchen window. 💛💛💛
Thank you for the tips. I live in (the litteral) jungle of Palawan. Birds here keep a distance from humans, so I've been looking for something that would allow me to take photos like this. I see they have a PRO version that has a solar power roof and additional accessories.
Thank you! After watching this I've decided I will DEFINITELY wait till more sun and warmer temps. If I just put it out to test I'll get too frustrated with the squirrels! I realize I need to invest in a proper squirrel proof mount pole. At this time I am feeding more squirrels, chipmunks on my back deck area! I'm in southwest Michigan and ready for spring! I think...I saw my first Yellow Bellied sapsucker with my binoculars! In a tree out my kitchen window! Cool 😊 just passing through resting up high in the tree, but cool.
Very interesting! I saw it suggested buntings, golden-crowned kinglets, and pine warblers. Not sure if the bunting and warbler would be up in Wisconsin in the winter! Congrats on 10k!
Squirrels can not climb a 4” pvc pipe post, and they can’t jump to 5ft from the ground so place the feeder on a 5ft+ pvc post that is in a place where squirrels can’t jump onto the feeder from a limb or or other high location.
I like the graphics on the message when you get a bird and the photos are good quality. I think I would enjoy it, but I have trouble with bird feeders getting torn up by squirrels, etc., so I would need to find a safe spot for it.
Nice review. I Started out with a Bird Photo Booth about 6 years ago. Over time, I have had to modify it and now I use it with a different action cam than the original and love the pictures I get. I am spoiled to my setup and the photo quality. I don't think I would enjoy the Bird Buddy, but I think it would be good for more causal birdwatching :) I also use Birdsy video cameras and they do bird identification and have very good video quality. Their AI is still in need of some work. It's interesting to see all of the new products coming out these days. Birdwatching with cameras has changed my life! :D
Nice! The market really has blown up with different products. Ryan and I were talking about what makes a good AI. If it misses even one bird and identifies it wrong is it bad? Does it have a certain grace % or birds to ID wrong?
@@BadgerlandBirding I know that when you add a bird it should be teaching the AI more information about that bird. The camera I am using is fairly good but I think it needs a lot more training. I would say it's roughly 50%, it will often just say "wildlife" when it records the birds. I like the Merlin Bird app that identifies sounds because I think that is very accurate, not 100% but it's pretty good, which helps greatly for identifying birds by sound only! That has been a great tool so far!
@@BadgerlandBirding Oh and I wanted to share a tip for squirrels and feeder setup. I have had good results with an approximately 5' pole and a raccoon baffle under it. The other trick is to keep the feeder at least 10 feet away from anything squirrels can jump from. It's easy to underestimate the distance they can jump! I also toss food on the ground to try to keep them busy for a while :)
I just received mine, it's doing the firmware update now, I didn't realize it wasn't charging using my phone charger so changed chargers and its working now and the update stopped giving me errors.
A wood 2 x 4 holding the bird buddy is y for squirrels. You need it to be placed away from trees so the squirrel cannot jump to and you need a metal pole stand which squirrels cannot climb.
Thanks for the video! I ordered two yesterday (They ship it to even South Korea!). I wonder if the feeder and my phone need to be on the same network to work. Can I get photos and alarms when I use my phone by cellular data far from the wifi?
Removing the photo cover of birds saved is difficult. Needs to be user friendly. Why do I have to select a new photo cover which I still can’t do. Just let me delete what I choose to delete
SETUP NOTE: Ours works great AFTER reading instructions - Duh. Our 2023 version is NOT compatible with 5ghz wifi. You must be sure your WiFi either runs at 2.4ghz only, or exposes TWO WiFi SSID hotspot (one for 5ghz and one for 2.4ghz). Something like "MyWifiRouter-2g" and "MyWifiRouter-5g". Select the 2.4g version during first setup or BirdBuddy will behave flaky. Live Camera test view will keep failing and falsely report a poor wifi signal. If you incorrectly attached it to a 5ghz Wifi, you must go thru the "Delete/Factory Reset" process and re-add the Bird Buddy selecting a 2ghz Wifi. Some routers will need additional setup to expose a dedicated 2.4 SSID/Wifi.
I read that if you put hot pepper in with your bird seed, the squirrels will not eat it, but birds will because birds to not have taste buds. I have no idea if it is true.
To complicated for me. I am happy with my window bird feeders and recording the bird and squirrel action with my Sony CX-405 camera on a tripod for hours and hours.
Great bit of kit, I wouldn't buy that particular model because of the rainbow and menu thing, why it can't just put the pictures in one group with a date & time stamp would be quicker also, a certain group have taken ownership of the 🌈 and I'm sick of seeing it knowing what it represents. They really ram it down our throats. Sick. Great vlog thou 😂
For a second I thought this is going to be a squirrel 🐿feeder . Maybe you could take another rope tie it to the bird feeder then rope it off the tree to pull it away from the rail 🤷
Based on the comments and lack of instructions that come with the product I fear this is going to be a problematic setup and experience with a product that uses well established technology. Can’t understand why there are so many caveats to setting up
I just got this bird feeder and thought it was a great present. Unfortunately it is a SCAM. The gift was for my wife and I and the app does not allow two people in the same house to use the live feed camera without paying $90 per year!
Absolutely agree there’s no way to contact them. There’s nowhere to leave a review they make it impossible to get in touch with them and they do not return your email. This place is a joke and it’s overpriced. Find a Camera any camera but this one by bird buddy…
Total scam. Feeder is within 10 feet with strong Wi-Fi. Drops constantly. Really disappointed my parents. You can tell that this company came up with a great idea, spent tons of money on marketing, yet put nothing into building a working product. I’m sure the company owners are already on a beach somewhere, toasting the “idiots” who made them rich. They got me. We’ll played.
Do not buy this. The solar roof did not work. Customer service is horrible and refused to send new solar roof or let me return for a refund. Absolutely horrible product and company.
Garbage. Terrible customer service and support. Ours lasted less than 6 months. Now BB wants me to videotape the unit not accepting a charge. Additionally, do not get the solar panel. It does not keep the camera charged. It's total garbage.
False. There’s tons of people enjoying smart bird feeders. Prices range from affordable to more expensive, materials vary from plastic to metal but they allow people a unique look into their backyard wildlife that they don’t normally get. We need more people appreciating nature and wildlife.
Not false at all. The app is not operationally up to par. Notification process doesn't work half the time.customer service wait times have been over hour on hold on both my calls.The product itself is well built but the app is not that great. This has nothing to do with enjoying nature so don't understand that statement.
A note from Bird Buddy about a few of the things I mentioned in the video.
"The battery longevity is definitely something we're working on updating and it should be fixed within a few upcoming updates.
Our AI is constantly learning and improving. As you mentioned in the video as well, our goal is educating people on bird species, and an important aspect of that is getting as much as possible right. If the system isn't completely sure, it will ask in order to educate itself for further sightings!"
If you want to order Bird Buddy, using our link is much appreciated! :) As Amazon Associates we do earn from qualifying purchases made through our affiliate link below!
amzn.to/4feVaJ3
Great review! I liked how you worked through the squirrel problems, and your bird knowledge is terrific!
Thank you!
We’ve had our for some time, when in doubt ask the them to identify. They usually get back to you in 24-48 hrs. Also make sure you download the new firmware when it’s available as they upgrade the app. Also, we bought an outdoor water rated plug that allows us to connect a usb c cable from it to the BB. This keeps the battery at 99% even in our CO winters. Happy birding
Watching you set it up I was like "wait he didn't pair it yet? it's gunna take forever" (I finally got the one I bought for my mom's working last weekend after some back and forth (and this is replacement one, the first one froze mid-firmware update :x) That said, still looking forward to its use! Glad to see a video like this, thanks!
Haha yeah, the battery charging and the pairing are the things that always take longer than expected for me
Was one of the first kickstarter backers but we got it in October and didn't want to put that battery through a hatsh Manitoba winter 🥶
Getting er set up today! Went out and got a pole system from wild birds unlimited. Just waiting for the camera to charge now... 😴
eastern gray squirrels are extremly annoying. Sometimes it feels like they're a plage. I try to keep them off the feeder with baffles and hot pepper. Helps also pretty well against raccoons.
Thanks for the video, have a great weekend :)
I’m still learning! It’s in a temporary spot but I couldn’t wait ANY LONGER! 😁 The squirrels learned how to jump from a metal palm tree on my back deck but as long as I keep seed and water at the usual spot it’s working! It’s hanging from a chain in the middle of our gazebo. Fun how sometimes it spins! I got the suet ball and just used the bottom half to put an orange piece in it. 💛🙌💛 It’s awesome! Male and female Cardinals, Rose breasted gross beaks, Baltimore Oriole, house finch, purple finch, SQUIRREL 😂, and lots of American Gold finches and others💞 awesome Christmas gift from my daughter! But... my phone and iPad are too full or old to download the app. Unless I get a new phone or iPad I have to watch from daughters phone. But it’s working very well!!! The solar panel was ready to go! Staying charged even with some cloudy days here in Southwest Michigan! Yes, I recommend it!!!
Now I want a camera to see what is going on around my bird buddy! 😂 the finches above and the different birds on the gazebo and palm tree leaves waiting for their turn is so much fun out my kitchen window. 💛💛💛
Thank you for the tips.
I live in (the litteral) jungle of Palawan.
Birds here keep a distance from humans, so I've been looking for something that would allow me to take photos like this.
I see they have a PRO version that has a solar power roof and additional accessories.
Enjoying your reviews, interesting that you get almost exactly the same birds I get in NH
Also having tons of issues getting the camera to pair. Tech support is terrible
Thank you! After watching this I've decided I will DEFINITELY wait till more sun and warmer temps. If I just put it out to test I'll get too frustrated with the squirrels! I realize I need to invest in a proper squirrel proof mount pole. At this time I am feeding more squirrels, chipmunks on my back deck area! I'm in southwest Michigan and ready for spring! I think...I saw my first Yellow Bellied sapsucker with my binoculars! In a tree out my kitchen window! Cool 😊 just passing through resting up high in the tree, but cool.
Very interesting! I saw it suggested buntings, golden-crowned kinglets, and pine warblers. Not sure if the bunting and warbler would be up in Wisconsin in the winter! Congrats on 10k!
Squirrels can not climb a 4” pvc pipe post, and they can’t jump to 5ft from the ground so place the feeder on a 5ft+ pvc post that is in a place where squirrels can’t jump onto the feeder from a limb or or other high location.
I like the graphics on the message when you get a bird and the photos are good quality. I think I would enjoy it, but I have trouble with bird feeders getting torn up by squirrels, etc., so I would need to find a safe spot for it.
Great review, I'll be ordering one through your link!
Nice review. I Started out with a Bird Photo Booth about 6 years ago. Over time, I have had to modify it and now I use it with a different action cam than the original and love the pictures I get. I am spoiled to my setup and the photo quality. I don't think I would enjoy the Bird Buddy, but I think it would be good for more causal birdwatching :) I also use Birdsy video cameras and they do bird identification and have very good video quality. Their AI is still in need of some work. It's interesting to see all of the new products coming out these days. Birdwatching with cameras has changed my life! :D
Nice! The market really has blown up with different products. Ryan and I were talking about what makes a good AI. If it misses even one bird and identifies it wrong is it bad? Does it have a certain grace % or birds to ID wrong?
@@BadgerlandBirding I know that when you add a bird it should be teaching the AI more information about that bird. The camera I am using is fairly good but I think it needs a lot more training. I would say it's roughly 50%, it will often just say "wildlife" when it records the birds. I like the Merlin Bird app that identifies sounds because I think that is very accurate, not 100% but it's pretty good, which helps greatly for identifying birds by sound only! That has been a great tool so far!
@@BadgerlandBirding Oh and I wanted to share a tip for squirrels and feeder setup. I have had good results with an approximately 5' pole and a raccoon baffle under it. The other trick is to keep the feeder at least 10 feet away from anything squirrels can jump from. It's easy to underestimate the distance they can jump! I also toss food on the ground to try to keep them busy for a while :)
I just received mine, it's doing the firmware update now, I didn't realize it wasn't charging using my phone charger so changed chargers and its working now and the update stopped giving me errors.
That’s good!
Where did you get that white mount you attached to the board at the beginning? (hope you don't say it was in the box, cuz I didn't get one.)
Congratulations on hitting 10K subs 🎉🥳
Love my bird buddy!
A wood 2 x 4 holding the bird buddy is y for squirrels. You need it to be placed away from trees so the squirrel cannot jump to and you need a metal pole stand which squirrels cannot climb.
@@Kittyququmber yes, I normally don’t squirrel proof when I’m testing products because I switch them out so often.
Excellent review! Sub and Like added. I’m going to pick up one for my daughter.
Awesome, thanks! Please consider using our affiliate link in the description!
Do you leave it on livestream all the time or just in the on position?
This took me days and many frustrating hours to set up and pair. I am tech savvy and good internet.
congrats o 10k guys
This was fun. Squirrels usually get to my feeders.
Can you send postcards to someone else? Can you exit the postcard without identifying the bird and then go back?
Awesome vid!!!! Stellar review. What are the actual camera specs? 😃
Camera 5 megapixel Photos and 720p HD Live Stream Video.
Nice review! I like this smart feeder, and it seems like the company is interested in ongoing improvement.
10k subs let's go! 💪
I want to get this but I have no idea what kind of bird it will be. Is there a way to know what kind of bird ill get?
This is really cool. Sadly, all I would get are pigeons. Would love one for our, but we do not have Wi-Fi there. It is our decompression place.
you mentioned a solar roof in your video, there was no solar roof in my box. Is it something I purchase separetly?
Some packages come with the solar roof and some don’t. I believe you can purchase it from Bird Buddy separately
It's a little expensive for now, but I do plan to get it. If your partner link works at that time, I'll be sure to order through it.
Really cool Feeder. Greets Stefan
Thanks for the video! I ordered two yesterday (They ship it to even South Korea!). I wonder if the feeder and my phone need to be on the same network to work. Can I get photos and alarms when I use my phone by cellular data far from the wifi?
Can’t answer your question, unfortunately. Question for you: Is its AI trained for Eurasian species?
Removing the photo cover of birds saved is difficult. Needs to be user friendly. Why do I have to select a new photo cover which I still can’t do. Just let me delete what I choose to delete
SETUP NOTE: Ours works great AFTER reading instructions - Duh. Our 2023 version is NOT compatible with 5ghz wifi. You must be sure your WiFi either runs at 2.4ghz only, or exposes TWO WiFi SSID hotspot (one for 5ghz and one for 2.4ghz). Something like "MyWifiRouter-2g" and "MyWifiRouter-5g". Select the 2.4g version during first setup or BirdBuddy will behave flaky. Live Camera test view will keep failing and falsely report a poor wifi signal. If you incorrectly attached it to a 5ghz Wifi, you must go thru the "Delete/Factory Reset" process and re-add the Bird Buddy selecting a 2ghz Wifi. Some routers will need additional setup to expose a dedicated 2.4 SSID/Wifi.
Thank you for this helpful info l! I’ve been struggling to pair mine
I read that if you put hot pepper in with your bird seed, the squirrels will not eat it, but birds will because birds to not have taste buds. I have no idea if it is true.
Maybe you should test it first and come back and tell us if it’s true.
The animations in the App makes progress slow when you have many photos.
It definitely does
How long will it be in "preorder"?
It’s out now!
I know you probably just had a brain fart, but it did say it can't create postcards when using the livestream feature.
To complicated for me. I am happy with my window bird feeders and recording the bird and squirrel action with my Sony CX-405 camera on a tripod for hours and hours.
Remember bird watching goes both ways
👀
Great bit of kit, I wouldn't buy that particular model because of the rainbow and menu thing, why it can't just put the pictures in one group with a date & time stamp would be quicker also, a certain group have taken ownership of the 🌈 and I'm sick of seeing it knowing what it represents. They really ram it down our throats. Sick. Great vlog thou 😂
For a second I thought this is going to be a squirrel 🐿feeder . Maybe you could take another rope tie it to the bird feeder then rope it off the tree to pull it away from the rail 🤷
Based on the comments and lack of instructions that come with the product I fear this is going to be a problematic setup and experience with a product that uses well established technology. Can’t understand why there are so many caveats to setting up
What do you mean?
👍👍👍
hello😃
Hi! 👋
I just got this bird feeder and thought it was a great present. Unfortunately it is a SCAM. The gift was for my wife and I and the app does not allow two people in the same house to use the live feed camera without paying $90 per year!
It’s not a scam. You have to share your main feed with other people to watch. I believe you can share it with up to 3 people on the free plan
I have had the worst experience in my life with this company. On all levels they are a fail. Proceed w caution!
Same and birds are coming quickly but no picture 😢 I don’t understand why?
Absolutely agree there’s no way to contact them. There’s nowhere to leave a review they make it impossible to get in touch with them and they do not return your email. This place is a joke and it’s overpriced. Find a Camera any camera but this one by bird buddy…
@@christineo6845 Ive emailed them the past few days with good replies.
Could you explain why you had such a bad experience with them? If it was “the worst experience in your life” then I’m sure it must be pretty bad.
Total scam. Feeder is within 10 feet with strong Wi-Fi. Drops constantly. Really disappointed my parents. You can tell that this company came up with a great idea, spent tons of money on marketing, yet put nothing into building a working product. I’m sure the company owners are already on a beach somewhere, toasting the “idiots” who made them rich. They got me. We’ll played.
Get rid of that generic bird seed because it's junk. Use safflower and no squirrels. Safflower will eliminate 99% of any squirrel issues.
Do not buy this. The solar roof did not work. Customer service is horrible and refused to send new solar roof or let me return for a refund. Absolutely horrible product and company.
Garbage. Terrible customer service and support. Ours lasted less than 6 months. Now BB wants me to videotape the unit not accepting a charge. Additionally, do not get the solar panel. It does not keep the camera charged. It's total garbage.
My advice. Stay as far away from this overpriced poorly operational novelty as you can. Ripoff only our affluent society would buy.
False. There’s tons of people enjoying smart bird feeders. Prices range from affordable to more expensive, materials vary from plastic to metal but they allow people a unique look into their backyard wildlife that they don’t normally get. We need more people appreciating nature and wildlife.
Not false at all. The app is not operationally up to par. Notification process doesn't work half the time.customer service wait times have been over hour on hold on both my calls.The product itself is well built but the app is not that great. This has nothing to do with enjoying nature so don't understand that statement.
.@BadgerlandBirding Stories Channel Movie in Year Tuesday October 31,2023.😐.