Smart Pets: smart pet door

This Is The Best Pet Door Made To Date. There are pretty mixed reviews about this product so I’m going to try to clarify a few things. As other people have indicated, there are a couple different versions. The original version has a clear door with an extruded “range” knob whereas the newer version has a frosted door with a flush “sensitivity” knob. Some have complained about the older version. I received the newer version so can’t comment with that respect. There are actually 3 different versions, though. Lowe’s sells a version of this door which is “iris” compatible. This is a replica of the newer version of the door but can be distinguished by one additional “4th” blue LED as the leftmost indicator marked “link”. I lucked out and got the “Lowe’s” version of the door. As such, here is my review accordingly:This door is excellent. Some complain about range, intermittent ID recognition failure, magnet strength, binding, installation, etc., none of which I have noticed. If there is a range or recognition failure, it is probably caused by RF interference in the area. Mine works great and has not “forgotten” any of the 3 keys. After experimenting with a number of different pet doors, this is by far the best weatherized model I have had. It stops heavy winds and has no problems with binding or jamming. The rigid door makes a huge difference over the rubberized flaps. I ensured that the hole was square when I installed it, which is probably an issue for some. Correct installation is obviously a necessity. If the door is un-level or not squared appropriately, I can see a problem with binding. Mine is installed in an insulated steel door. Framing and mounting this through a wall would not be difficult, even without the tunneling kit sold separately. The doors frame is plastic so when the installation screws are installed, the door could easily skew if the hole, level, or square are incorrect. This would absolutely cause binding or jamming, as the door actually slides down into a channel to fully “lock” or secure. The door is pretty quiet, except for a rather loud “pop” when it lifts from the channel to unsecure. It scared the crap out of my Dingo for a few days but he got used to it quick. Now the two dogs and cat have learned that the “pop” means it’s time to push. Yeah…if you didn’t catch that…my 4lb. cat can easily open the large version of this door, but the wind does not stop it’s reset. Now that the functionality is explained, I’ll go into the Iris part.Just for entertainment, I got the matching “Iris” hub from Lowe’s which is a Zigbee and Z-Wave radio home automation controller. Not only does this allow you to switch from “Automatic” “Locked” and “Unlocked” modes from a smartphone or PC (locally or remotely), it monitors which animal (based on the collar transmitter) exits or enters. You can look at the “activity log” in the Iris app or website and see which animal went “in through the door” or “out through the door” and when. This is a pretty cool feature which has a ton of practical application, even if you don’t realize it at first. (ie. it’s now pretty simple to see if the kids actually let the dogs out). I should note that, although it is annotated nowhere in the documentation, I have determined that the internal radio for this door is Zigbee, not Z-Wave. If you purchase it with the intent of using it with a Z-Wave controller, it will NOT work. Lowe’s convolutes these systems with “Iris” by selling both Z-Wave and Zigbee devices and not bothering to tell you what product is which.There is a lot of room on the inside of the device also. I wanted to add an alarm sensor into the door and it was exceptionally easy to add a wireless reed switch based sensor inside the frame, using one of the built-in magnets as it’s motivator. They should build this ability into the door, but it would require too many different versions for compatibility, as there isn’t a single protocol for wireless alarm inter-compatibility. It was remarkably simple to add a Honeywell/Ademco 5800micra sensor.The door has now been running on a cheap set of 4 “D” batteries for 2-3 months and hasn’t dropped a bar on the “Iris” battery monitor. I would speculate that the version without the Iris transceiver has even longer battery life.I have a 50lb Dingo, 75lb Siberian Husky, and 4lb Siamese cat. None have a problem operating this door. It is solidly constructed, albeit all plastic, and reliable. If you get the correct version, install it correctly, and aren’t a complete and utter moron, I am confident (after my personal experiences) that you will be more than happy with the door. This door is well worth the $75, $100, or $229.00 (version dependent) that is spent on it. It looks clean and works great.

The product is dead on arrival… DO NOT BUY. After a lot of research… it appears the product has two different firmware versions. The first firmware versions arrives dead on arrival. There is no way to update the firmware over the internet or by phone. It won’t even connect to the app without the new firmware. PetCare will not replace the item because it is used. Also, PetCare says there is no way to tell whether the item has the old firmware or the new one without buying and testing it, so you’ll have to risk buying it to find out. In my case, it was the old version. I’ve spent far too much time on this already. PetCare should clearly label its firmware versions or have an over the air update or at least be able to connect to it via phone. I’m getting a refund but I have lost half a day researching this which I’m not getting paid for.

Great electronic dog door. I’m super impressed with the quality of this doggie door. This is an electronic smart automatic dog door, that is very well designed and constructed. It is clear that the designer used quality and premium material to construct this. The install was not so difficult, and the end result is that our dog is extremely happy with the new dog door. Our last one was catching and not opening as it should. This is a larger dog door, and they recommend it for weights less than 85 lbs. One thing I really love about this dog door is the mere fact you can assign up to 5 pets to access the door. This door can be used for Cats or Dogs. So I do appreciate that versatility. Below, I will outline some of the other features that led to me choosing this one over other similar ones on the market.*Design: Smart Design-3 mode locked/unlocked- Sensor- Assign to up 5 pets to access and use this door*Lock is sold separately – Batteries are NOT included (CR2032) Batteries*Dimensions for your reference: 3.1 x 17.13 x 24.8 with a weight of 8.78 lbsAll in all, I find that the designer did a great job with this dog smart door. The unit has worked as it should. I have found no issues of defects or damage to the unit. This has made a big difference in the daily life of our fur baby. I’m definitely glad that we took a chance on this dog door. It has been a very positive experience thus far. Therefore, based on these facts I do recommend this dog door to other consumers. Thanks for reading my review. I hope it has been informative and helpful. 🙂

Very happy. Had this door for a month and very happy with it! Sturdy, it shuts tight and is a good price! The key-fob took a little time to adjust so it didn’t randomly set the door off at further distances. (first battery died in 1 week. However, it lite up red when it was low, which was good to know before it failed) after we adjusted door setting, the battery seems good and at now over 3 weeks. Cats stay in and dog can go out when we are at work. It’s quiet. You do need a little knowledge of how to use power tools and how to cut into a metal house door. Seal it with silicone along the edges. Not 100 percent weather proof, air will blow through the cracks a little… I will insulating the inside half of the door with a foam cover and velcro to keep our cold winter air out at night.

Works but is very loud. Bought this to replace a non automatic pet safe door of similar dimensions. Installation was quick for the taskrabbit I hired to ensure the cut out was perfectly adjusted from the old door to the new door.Our two cats are scared of the noise. It’s loud and jarring. Also, needed to reposition their beds and toys farther from the door because it goes off all the time. The sensitivity is set to high. It does detect both cats and so far after one week we haven’t had any unwanted visitors. The delay from unlocked to locked is quite long. One cat has mastered it coming and going and hoping the other cat catches on soon.