Review: Bird Buddy Pro

Picture IT: you just bought a smart bird feeder. You've been wanting one for ages, and you can't wait to set it up. You open the box, download the app, and … what's this? Subscribe for $90 a year to save photos and see videos? You're incredulous. Why did I just pay four times the price of a standard bird feeder if I can't even record video or save pictures?

It's a little-known but irritating fact in the world of smart bird feeders that most of them are not fully usable without buying an additional subscription. I've tested more than 10 smart feeders in the past year alone, and only a couple of them have provided more than still photos without a monthly or annual fee on top of the purchase price. The most user-friendly of these is Bird Buddy's new Pro model, released in October 2024. (A hummingbird feeder version of the Pro, which I'm currently testing, will be available to ship in June.)

Bird Buddy's first-gen model was actually the world's first-ever smart bird feeder, launched on Kickstarter in 2020. We reviewed this OG version in 2023 (8/10, WIRED Recommends), wherein former WIRED reviewer Medea Giordano bestowed high marks for its cute birdhouse looks, quality AI recognition, and helpful app. This original Bird Buddy is being phased out in favor of the new Pro.

The IP67 waterproof plastic casing is the same, but the Pro sports an updated HDR camera with a smaller sensor size, wider focus range and field of view, 2K HDR video with slow-motion capability, and high-fidelity microphone. It runs on 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi only, and like the original, there's an optional built-in solar roof for $30 more. If you have the original Bird Buddy casing, you can buy the upgraded camera by itself for $129.

The Good Seed

I've had the Pro hanging from a shepherd's hook in my yard for four months now, alongside feeders from several other brands. It's held up to our Pacific Northwest winter well, enduring snow, hail, and near-daily harassment from squirrels—as well as upward of 20 inches of rain, according to my Tempest weather station—without any notable malfunctions. Other smart feeders in testing have sustained chewing damage from squirrels, but the Bird Buddy's thick plastic has proven an effective deterrent.

I appreciate the feeder's simple, solid construction and the fact it comes out of the box fully assembled, making it a great pick for elderly family members or those who don't want or aren't able to put a pile of plastic parts together. However, Bird Buddy's most standout feature by far is its app.

The home page consists of a list of “postcards” taken by the camera. Each postcard allows you to scroll through multiple high-quality photos and a video with sound, which ranges in length from a few seconds to up to two minutes depending on what a bird might be doing. Sometimes the algorithm might also decide to send a video in slow-motion, but that only happened once, when a Steller's jay spent an inordinate amount of time rummaging for a sunflower seed.

The AI identification runs along the top (I've found it to only be wrong occasionally, but my yard doesn't get an especially huge variety of birds), and the postcard's bottom has options to send, save, or edit, along with the occasional fact about the identified bird. The app sends a recap of the end of each day including the number of visits and number of different birds.

There's also a tab for a collection of your favorite saved photos, as well as a live-view button and “BB TV,” which shows select clips from other Bird Buddy users' feeds. (I've found its selection doesn't change often.) Cleaning reminders are also a bonus, and perhaps most useful of all, the app has the ability to filter out visitors you'd rather not have in your postcard feed, such as squirrels or the same junco that shows up every 15 minutes.

Users can also choose a “curated experience” option, which relies on an AI algorithm to display only the “most interesting” captured photos and videos. Somewhat disappointingly, however, I've found that regardless of the settings, the sensor doesn't seem to capture every bird that visits, even when all filters are turned off and the feed is set to “show all.”

This problem seems to have gotten worse over time—even on mornings after a fresh seed refill, the camera often captures only one postcard, while I can look out the window and see dozens of birds on the feeder over the course of several hours. Online comments indicate this is a somewhat regular occurrence with the Bird Buddy, though angling it where there's more or less light has helped in some cases (not mine).

Granted, I appreciate that I don't have to wade through 100 snapshots of one sparrow or a random squirrel butt, as is the case with other feeders. But I would like at least a record of every bird that visited, not just the ones the sensor or algorithm deems worthy. Hopefully this is an app-related issue Bird Buddy can refine in future updates.

Bright Ideas

The model I have sports the optional built-in solar roof, which I highly recommend. (If you have the original Bird Buddy or the non-solar Pro version, you can buy the roof separately for $79.) Not only does this mean the feeder can charge outside indefinitely and not require two separate mounts attached by a cord (which is at risk for rodents to chew), but this allows for it to be placed on a shepherd's hook or pole. These are the preferred mounting scenarios, as they make it easiest to abide by the 5-7-9 rule recommended by experts to deter squirrels and other nuisance animals: 5 feet off the ground, 7 feet away from structures, and 9 feet from overhanging branches.

Though I have not needed to bring the Bird Buddy in to charge in its four months outdoors, its battery has come perilously close to running out during especially overcast weeks—closer than any of my other feeders. The Pro will no longer take postcards once its charge dwindles to 12 percent, an unfortunate milestone the feeder did hit on one occasion.

The app has customizable power modes that reduce the number of postcards sent to save battery life, but I got so few postcards to begin with that I did not try this. Also of note is that I put the feeder up in December, and by early April I noticed that one corner of the solar panel had started to lift. It's slight, and it hasn't affected performance, but water has been able to get behind it, so it will require some glue.

Like most smart feeders’ reservoirs, the Bird Buddy Pro holds 4 cups of seed. However, to fill the feeder, users must pour the seed into a 2-inch triangular hatch in the back. Bird Buddy helpfully comes with an angled seed cup for this purpose, but it's still such an awkward angle for pouring that a mess is inevitable. I wish the roof opened up for filling, as is the case on all other feeders.

If you live in a region of birds with varying dietary needs, the Bird Buddy also has also one of the best feeder accessory setups of any smart feeder. Two small threaded holes on either end of the perch can accept Bird Buddy-branded accessories, including a suet ball ($19) and a nutrition set ($40) that includes a holder for fruit, jam, or a little gravity waterer. For those so inclined, there's also a host of decorative aftermarket accessories like welcome mats, picket fences, and custom perch extenders.

If you do want to shell out for a Bird Buddy Premium subscription ($7.50 a month or $90 a year), you'll gain higher bitrate video, plus the ability to give specific birds names, share your livestream with invited guests, get unlimited cloud storage, and receive real-time alerts on birds that may be sick or injured. But again, I have had full enjoyment of the Bird Buddy without this, so it's essentially gilding the lily. There is a weeklong free trial through the app if you decide you want to see what the subscription thing is all about.