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This smart bird feeder is the best way to birdwatch at home
You don’t need to be a serious ornithophile to appreciate daily visits from feathery friends.
Bird feeders are calming and thrilling at the same time, as you’re welcoming these avian acquaintances onto your property for a light snack, and in exchange, you can marvel at their coloring, grace, and song.
OK, so perhaps I do sound like an ornithophile, after all.
But I wasn’t one – until I installed Bird Buddy, that is.
This smart bird feeder includes a Wi-Fi-enabled camera to capture your visitors, and with AI (artificial intelligence) to identify and categorize each species, all displayed for you in a Bird Buddy companion app.
Specifically, the company sent me the Bird Buddy PRO Solar model to review, which includes an upgraded Nature Cam PRO camera and solar roof to charge up the camera’s internal battery (otherwise, you need to pop out the camera module and plug it in every now and then).
Compared to the original camera, the Nature Cam PRO can capture birds in 2K resolution (opposed to 1080p HD), with High Dynamic Range (HDR) for improved contrast and brightness, a slow-motion footage option, and the ability to snap 5-megapixel still photos.
While there were a couple of random issues with the experience – some of which were not tied to Bird Buddy at all – this high-tech bird feeder was overall a joy to use.
Birdwatching, or “birding” as I learned it’s also called, wasn’t on my bingo card as I entered my ‘50s, but here we are — and I’ll continue to do so long after this review is published.
So, what is Bird Buddy?
Originally a “crowd-funded” gadget on Indiegogo in 2020, Bird Buddy is the first mainstream “smart” bird feeder that takes photos and videos of birds in your backyard or front yard, and drops those images into the Bird Buddy app for iPhone or Android (so you'll need a smartphone or tablet in order to use it).
AI recognizes the birds and pairs the name of the species with the images, and so it’ll say “House Finch” or “Tufted titmouse” in your gallery, as examples. Save the photos and videos to your phone’s gallery, view them as Bird Buddy-generated “postcards” inside the app, or share your visitors with friends and family over text message, email, social media, and other ways. In fact, you can also share your live feed with other Bird Buddy owners via the app, if you like, and peek into other Bird Buddy cameras around the world, fostering a sense of community.
The company says more than 250,000 units have been shipped worldwide.
Called “Nature Intelligence,” a new AI-powered subscription option includes additional features: bird care tips; a “Name That Bird” option (which identifies a specific visitor, whom you can name “Fred” or “Julie” or what have you); detecting if birds are sick or injured; pet alerts (so you can receive alerts for when, say, cats, are detected at your feeder); and additional species recognition (bees, butterflies, raccoons, lizards, and squirrels).
Oh, those pesky squirrels. More on this shortly.
While not tested for this review, also included in this service is something called “Nature Connected Home,” which lets you stream bird song and chatter through Alexa-enabled smart speakers or smart displays, watch Bird Buddy Feeder live streams on a smart TV, and more.
These optional AI-enhanced extras cost $5.99, to start.
Along with its Smart Bird Feeder (PRO and regular), Bird Buddy will also launch two new products soon: a Smart Hummingbird Feeder and Smart Bird Bath, along with some accessories (like a perch extender for bigger birds, a suet ball holder, and more).
How to set up Bird Buddy
Setting up the Bird Buddy was fairly straightforward, first by removing all the components of the box and plugging the camera into my computer to charge up.
(While the Quick Start Guide says to plug it in for at least two hours, the camera was already charged, but it’s good practice to always charge up new tech you get.)
Bird Buddy comes with a USB-C charging cable but no plug for the wall, and so you need to plug it into a powered device’s USB-C port instead, such as on the side of a laptop, or use a USB-C plug/cube you already own to plug it into an AC plug for faster charging. Too bad Bird Buddy doesn’t include the plug for a charging cable, too.
While waiting for the Nature Cam camera to charge up, you’re encouraged to download the official Bird Buddy app from the App Store (for iOS) or Google Play (for Android). Actually, you can scan a QR code in the Quick Start Guide and you’ll be immediately taken to the app download page for your phone.
Once the app is downloaded and opened, you’ll need to create a free Bird Buddy account or choose to sign in with your Apple, Google, or Facebook ID. The app will then walk you through pairing the Bird Buddy camera with your phone, via Bluetooth. Even if you’re not tech savvy, it’s a breeze to follow along.
Note: In the app, under Settings, there’s also a “Bird Buddy Assembly and Mounting” section to follow along with, which houses instructions, photos, and videos, if needed.
Inserting the camera into the back of the Bird Buddy was easy enough, along with connecting a small cable from the camera to the solar roof (not all models have the solar roof option). A hanger is included if you don’t place it on a small table or on top of a pole (with a universal pole mount underneath the unit).
I chose to hang the Bird Buddy on a firm tree branch, via the small silver hanger.
How did it go?
Right off the bat I experienced two minor issues.
One is that since it requires Wi-Fi for Bird Buddy to operate – to send images of the birds to be analyzed and for you to access the feed on your phone – I had to move the Bird Buddy closer to my home as my wireless internet didn’t extend as far as I hoped. For an outdoor product, I’m sure this will be an issue for several people. You may want to invest in a “Mesh” system for your wireless internet, which requires you to plug a small “node” (puck) into the wall nearest to the Bird Buddy outside, to extend the Wi-Fi as far as possible.
Moving the Bird Buddy closer to my home did the trick, however.
The second issue? Squirrels. Lots of them. No matter what kind of feed I placed in the feeder, the only visitors to Bird Buddy, at first, were these pesky and fluffy-tailed rodents that ate everything. The app suggested worms, which may have worked to deter squirrels, sure, but the helpful folks at a nearby bird store (Wild Birds Unlimited) suggested a better solution: super spicy bird feed called Mr. Bird “Disco Inferno.”
Apparently, this spicy seed mix (mostly sunflower seeds, peanuts, raisins and dried cranberries) does not bother birds since they are biologically unable to feel the pepper’s “heat” in their mouths, a chemical called Capsaicin that can trigger pain receptors found in mammals, but not in birds – nor does it upset their digestive system.
Who knew?
The squirrels steered clear and the birds ate it up. Perfect.
After three days, a half dozen species visited my Bird Buddy, comprised mostly of Blue Jays, Black-Capped Chickadees, Northern Cardinals, and Dark-Eyed Junces.
What I liked about the Bird Buddy
Bird Buddy really worked, but there were a couple of small issues I’ll chirp about in a moment.
The Nature Cam captured birds, with plenty of sharable videos, and the quality of the images were great, too – not to mention the sounds, though it mostly was them crunching the spicy bird seed opposed to beautiful songs.
You can tap the triangle icon to play videos or press the small arrow to the right of the video to see still photos of the same visitor.
As I’m sure many Bird Buddy users do, I eagerly checked my app to see what was captured, saved my favorites to my phone’s Camera Roll, and sent a bunch of video clips to friends over WhatsApp, text, and email (yes, I’ve become “that” guy). To download and/or share images, simply tap the three dots near the top of the screen and then select Save, Edit, Share, or Download. As part of that optional subscription service, there’s also Name This Bird, Report a Sick or Injured Bird, and more.
I also enjoyed tapping the “Live” button in the app to see a real-time view of what the camera sees – even when not at home. Note: This requires a data plan with your mobile phone provider, unless you’re on someone’s free Wi-Fi network.
The Bird Buddy app accurately labeled the birds, but several times it said “Unrecognized” species (or referred to as “Mystery visitors” in the “Collection” area) when it was clearly, say, a Blue Jay or Northern Cardinal. But at least it didn’t mislabel a species.
Also worth noting is the solar roof worked well, as I never had to charge up the Nature Cam camera module. When it gets dark at night the camera goes to sleep until the following sunrise.
What I didn’t like about the Bird Buddy
Bird Buddy was easy to set up and use, and the app is mostly great. I love the personalized tips and fun facts that pop up when using the app. The BB TV tab lets you see other people’s Bird Buddy visitors. And it’s smooth to scroll through all your captured videos and photos.
But there are a couple of things you should know about.
Since it takes a couple of days for the app to upload images, recognize birds and populate your “Collection” area with postcards, you might not think the app is working. You should be notified to be patient for the system to start doing its thing. Instead, I googled my issue and found I wasn’t alone, as confirmed by a Reddit chat called “Is it normal for BirdBuddy to not take pictures when you first install it? : r/BirdBuddy.”
Many Bird Buddy users said you need to wait a couple of days — and they were right.
In other words, don’t give up and return Bird Buddy if you don’t get results right away.
To be fair, the app warns you it could take a few weeks before birds feel comfortable to eat at your feeder, but once you receive visitors, you may not think the camera and AI are working since you won’t get info for a day or two.
Another issue is the “Collection” tab, which is supposed to be automatically populated with postcards of your birds, divided by species (or name, if you named your favorite birds), but I only had a couple of bird galleries here. Instead, the main “Home” tab had all bird videos and photos in chronological order – just not organized by species or name. At least you can tap the “Filter” icon and select how you’d like to see your bird-brained visitors.
I also hoped I could be notified when Bird Buddy had a new visitor – you know, like when someone rings your video doorbell, as an example, and your phone will chime or vibrate — but even though I manually enabled notifications on my iPhone, I was never notified when birds visited. I had to open to the app to find out.
On a related note, one more issue is that while there’s a BirdBuddy.com website, it didn’t work when I logged in with my email address and password. This means you can’t see your bird images on a big screen. It would have been a nice touch to see my 2K videos on a computer, but as confirmed in the FAQ file, it’s only available on the app.
Is it worth it?
Yes!
Despite the above-mentioned issues – which thankfully didn’t mar the overall experience — Bird Buddy lives up to its promise of a “Smart Bird Feeder.”
It’s easy to set up and use, and the high-quality memories are fun to view and share. It’s exciting to see what new species you may find at your feeder day after day, and to watch videos captured by others around the world.
The optional subscription service adds even more tools, but it’s not mandatory, at least.
Bird Buddy also makes a great gift for those hard-to-buy-for people on your holiday list.
As someone who didn’t appreciate birds much before this gadget, I can understand why Bird Buddy is “flying” off store shelves.
This smart bird feeder includes a Wi-Fi-enabled camera to capture your visitors, and with AI (artificial intelligence) to identify and categorize each species, all displayed for you in a Bird Buddy companion app.
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