Droplet smart sprinkler takes aim at your plants
The Droplet sprinkler takes accurate aim at individual plants and positions itself to be the Roomba of the watering world.
The slow but steady robotic takeover of our homes is about to take another step forward -- out the door and into your yard. The Droplet is a robotic watering system that wants to make watering more efficient by aiming at specific plants, rather than indiscriminately watering everything in sight.
The Droplet device looks like someone crossed a Roomba with R2-D2. It doesn't move around like a Roomba, but sits in one spot and hooks up to your garden hose to aim a stream of water at each plant. It knows where to water, how much to water, and what pattern to water thanks to the advanced configuration options accessed through a tablet, smartphone, or computer.
It also tracks the weather and can intelligently choose not to water after a big rainstorm, or water a little less if it just sprinkled a bit. The gadget has a 30-foot range in any direction and can be set to water potted plants, trees, lawns, and even fill outside dog bowls.
Droplet is currently available for preorder on Amazon for $300. That's quite a bit more than a cheap sprinkler head you attach to the end of a hose, but it's plenty competitive compared to the installation of a full-on timed sprinkler or drip-irrigation system. Plus, you can tell everyone about your cool new robot gardener.
