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A treat dispensing pet cam may seem like a very niche product but it isn’t even the first I have reviewed, back in April last year I reviewed the Petzi treat cam. Today I am reviewing the Furbo Dog Camera, and looking at Amazon these 2 are the only products currently available offering this niche function. The Furbo is priced at £224 in comparison to the Petzi at £135, which is quite a large difference.
The specification of the Furbo includes:
- Fun Treat Tossing: Toss a treat to your dog through the free Furbo iOS/Android app. Fill up to 30 pieces of your dog’s favourite snack and play a game of fetch from anywhere!
- HD Camera & Night Vision: Discover your pet’s secret life when you’re not at home. With 720p HD video streaming, a 120° wide-angle view and night vision, Furbo lets you see your entire room, day or night.
- Two Way Chat: Hear and comfort your dogs just like you are right there with them. Furbo has built-in microphone and speakers so you can talk and listen to your pets clearly.
- Barking Alert: Delivers push notifications to your smartphone when your dogs bark so you can soothe them in real time. Furbo has intelligent sensors that automatically detects barking.
My initial impression is that that Furbo is far better made and more attractive, it doesn’t look like a cheap price of electronics and can fit in with your household decorating fairly well.
The set-up is about as simple as the Petzi and pretty much any CCTV camera we have reviewed recently. The app is the best app in the world but it is better than the Petzi. There are no physical buttons on the camera and everything is done remotely via the app.
The camera has a resolution of 720 pixels and comes with IR for night mode. It also has a microphone and speaker built in. This all allows you to monitor and interact with your dog. I found the camera to be much better quality than the Petzi, but as you might expect it is not high end CCTV quality. More than acceptable, though. The IR functionality does work well too, so monitoring your dog during the night is decent.
One feature that really stood out to me was the bark alert feature, this is not included on the Petzi, and it is a genuinely useful feature. I get quite paranoid of my dog barking all day, which he doesn’t, but it annoys me when neighbour’s dogs do. With this, I can monitor how bad he barks during the day, and when he does I can try and distract him with treats. It isn’t perfect, though, it does throw out a few false alarms, but you can change the sensitivity or switch it off.
The treat dispensing part works just as you would hope, it shoots out treats on demand. I didn’t actually use it too much after the first day or so of playing around, though I did occasionally use it to distract my dog when he was barking, but I did this as little as possible to avoid reinforcing the behaviour.
I work from home so my dog is not left alone for long, and he doesn’t appear to suffer from separation anxiety but I can certainly see the benefit of this device if this happens to your dog.
Overall, this is a great little device that does exactly what you want it to. It does it much better than the Petzi, so I guess it justifies the cost. For me, £224 is a lot of money to spend on something like this, but I am at home a lot, so it is a bit redundant in the first place. If you are aware for several hours at a time and perhaps have issues with separation anxiety and/or barking then this is a worthwhile investment.
You can buy the Furbo today from Amazon here for £224
I am James, a UK-based tech enthusiast and the Editor and Owner of Mighty Gadget, which I’ve proudly run since 2007. Passionate about all things technology, my expertise spans from computers and networking to mobile, wearables, and smart home devices.
As a fitness fanatic who loves running and cycling, I also have a keen interest in fitness-related technology, and I take every opportunity to cover this niche on my blog. My diverse interests allow me to bring a unique perspective to tech blogging, merging lifestyle, fitness, and the latest tech trends.
In my academic pursuits, I earned a BSc in Information Systems Design from UCLAN, before advancing my learning with a Master’s Degree in Computing. This advanced study also included Cisco CCNA accreditation, further demonstrating my commitment to understanding and staying ahead of the technology curve.
I’m proud to share that Vuelio has consistently ranked Mighty Gadget as one of the top technology blogs in the UK. With my dedication to technology and drive to share my insights, I aim to continue providing my readers with engaging and informative content.
