SummaryThe RainPoint Bluetooth Smart Sprinkler Timer is an excellent solution for managing your garden's watering needs through a convenient app interface. It's particularly useful for those with hard-to-reach taps, allowing control via both a mobile app and Alexa. While the overall experience is positive, some improvements could enhance usability, especially in connecting to Alexa.The GoodUser-Friendly App Interface: The app is intuitive and easy to navigate, making it simple to control the sprinkler timer remotely.Easy Installation: Both the hub and the device are straightforward to set up, with clear instructions provided.Remote Control: The ability to turn the sprinkler or tap on and off through the app or Alexa adds significant convenience. Watering schedule feature is pretty neat and you can do on demand watering remotely as well. We live in a very dry area, based on the temp I am able to turn on the sprinkler remotely.The BadAlexa Connection Issues: Connecting the device to Alexa is not straightforward, which may cause frustration for some users.Areas for ImprovementAlexa Connection Instructions: The organization should provide more comprehensive instructions for connecting the device to Alexa, including detailed steps for manual connection or auto-scan methods.

I’ve been using a manual Rainpoint sprinkler timer for the past year and really like it, but I've been wanting to get a wifi-based timer for added convenience. Since this timer is controlled through an app, I can easily add, edit, and turn off plans anytime, anywhere. I no longer worry about wasting water on rainy days when I’m traveling. I’ve used this timer for close to two weeks and I’m liking it so far, though the app could use some improvements. I've included several screenshots of the app to give you an idea of the range of settings you can choose from. Detailed review below.WATERING MODES:There are two modes: Irrigation mode for watering once every x days, and interval mode for watering multiple times in a single day.Pros:-Irrigation mode offers many scheduling options, like specific weekdays, recurring frequencies, and a specific start date.-Interval mode does all the above and allows precise control down to the second. It has a setting to stop the timer for the rest of the day after a certain period and restart at the scheduled time the next day. This is very convenient since I don’t want the sprinkler to go off at night, and there’s no need to manually turn the plan on and off.-The timer has a physical button for manual watering, which is handy when I don’t have my phone on me when I'm working in the yard and want to turn on the water once or test a different sprinkler position.Cons:-Interval mode: The utmost interval time is 1 hour, so you can’t water every 2 hours, 4 hours, etc. This is a surprising limitation since my manual Rainpoint manual timer has more options here. A workaround is setting up multiple irrigation plans, but you're limited to six plans, which might not be enough.-You can’t set different interval parameters for each plan. For example, if I set a plan to water for 10 minutes every 30 minutes, I can’t set up another plan to water for 5 minutes every hour. Changing parameters in one plan changes them for all plans.-The app doesn’t allow overlapping plans, even if a conflicting plan is turned off. You need to delete the conflicting plan first.--------------SET UP:Pros:Connecting the hub and timer to the app (Rainpoint Smart+) is easy, with the app guiding you through the entire setup process.Cons:The timer’s longer body made it difficult to attach the water hose after connecting it to my faucet. I had to remove the timer, attach the hose first, and then screw the timer back onto the faucet. It also uses more batteries compared to my other timers (four AA batteries).-----------------OTHER:Pros:-Comes with an additional filter and a small roll of thread tape.-The app has a calendar feature that shows the days your timer is scheduled to go off, making it easier to keep track.-Friendly and responsive customer service. I've contacted them via email before, and they respond to my questions the next day and are receptive to feedback and suggestions. It's also neat that they offer their customers a chance to test out new products for free.Cons:-The app's location/forecast feature is broken. It’s supposed to let you set your location and check the weather forecast to skip watering schedules when it rains, but the map doesn’t load when I attempt to set my location.-The text on the app is a bit small, especially on the plans page.With some feature updates to the app, this product would easily be a 5/5 for me and I would get more timers for my yard!

The good:- My wife normally questions pricey smart home products, but she quickly realized how much of a convenience this unit is over manually opening the valve (especially with trying to grow new grass, flowers, plants, herbs, veggies etc.) while we are out of town, not to mention being able to check forecasts and delay timing as well as changing the time or duration of the waterings. It is much easier doing these actions on a smart device than it is on a standard mechanical timer- App interface is clean, robust and easy to use. I love the (very) detailed weather info tab- Plans are easy to schedule and the app can accommodate multiple watering plans. I use the plan feature to set start times and duration so that my different zones can run one after another and not simultaneously (this way each sprinkler can get the maximum water pressure to cover as much lawn area as possible- Whether running a planned irrigation schedule or a manual cycle, there is no delay. As soon as you confirm the action, the valve opens and it will water for it’s set duration- Very cool that it can integrate with alexa, but I have two young kids at home and don’t need my water bill this summer through the roof if they learn that she can control the sprinklers- Color of unit blends in nicely with landscaping- Unit is very robust and seems well made- Hub and timer paired quickly and easily with my home’s wifi- Although the unit is not cheap, the pricing is much better than more well known automated lawn sprinklers out thereThe bad:- It took a while to get the water to flow through the valve. 25+ cycles on/off through the unit’s button as directed in the manual & quickstart guide, and a customer support email did the trick. It seems the valve can get “stuck” during shipping? I suspect this might lead to some returns if other people have the same issue but keep cycling it on and off and once it clicks open it works great- I have two other rainpoint wifi timers (their products are so-far excellent) and they use a different hub and the rainpoint tuya app. This unit uses a smaller hub which unfortunately will not work with the hub/app I already have, so now I have two hubs, and two separate rainpoint apps to control my sprinkler timers. (Not horrible, but a minor inconvenience; Who needs another app to clutter their smartphone when us types already likely have many others to deal with)Some other thoughts:- The unit is pretty heavy. I added a garden hose coiled spring protector to ensure it would not break the unit or put undue pressure on my outdoor spigot if someone bumped into it- It would be nice if rainpoint made a user accessible housing that the unit could fit inside which could be mounted but mainly used to protect it from constant UV, water and weather- I would absolutely recommend this 1-zone timer to anyone looking to add smart control capabilities to their home. I like this unit so much in fact that I also purchased another 1-zone and a 2-zone timer for my other outdoor spigots, and so far have been 100% satisfied. Truly happy with this purchase- I will definitely be removing them well before winter frosts and hoping it gives me many great years of use