Just in time for Spring. A review of the Blossom 8 Smart Watering Controller.
A few years ago, I wanted to replace the water controller for my lawn's sprinkler system. To my surprise, I found even the most basic controller was too expensive to justify replacing my failing system. Then came along Blossom. I found Blossom's original Smart Watering Controller was not only smarter than traditional controllers but also competitively priced. So in 2015, I bought the Blossom, installed it, and smartly watered my lawn all summer long. To date, it is one of the best investments I've made when it comes to lawn care.
This year Blossom is introducing its new, eight-zone Blossom 8 Smart Watering Controller. Featuring Wi-Fi connectivity and a sleek, slim, low-profile design, Blossom 8 is a highly reliable, simple, cost-effective solution that takes the guesswork out of controlling your sprinklers and simplifies your life. Blossom is continuing its efforts in changing the way we water our lawns. They're doing this by moving away from conventional watering controllers that don’t take actual water needs to a smart system that waters based on vegetation type and rainfall numbers into account.
Tapping into the power of cloud computing, Blossom 8 self-programs existing sprinklers based on local forecast and daily data from thousands of weather stations and satellites – combined with user feedback – to create the ideal watering schedule. Blossom’s technology helps ensure that each section of a yard is specifically watered based on layout and vegetation.
Easy to Install and Operate
The Blossom 8 is just as easy to install and operate as its bigger sibling. As I mentioned last year, I'm not much of a handyman, yet I found installing a Blossom sprinkler system is pretty darn easy. The easy installation process takes less than half an hour if you're simply retrofitting your existing sprinkler controller. If you can read instructions and work a screw driver...you should be able to master this install too.
Users, no matter where they are, can control Blossom 8 from their iOS or Android smartphone or tablet and stay connected to their yard. During those busy summer months, you quickly realize the benefits in Blossom 8's ability to build a smart watering schedule via Wi-Fi connectivity and then do everything on its own. Built on the belief that Internet of Things (IoT) technology should make life easier instead of more complicated, Blossom claims the Blossom 8 allows users to truly "set it and forget it".
Blossom 8 versus Blossom
While the original 12-zone indoor/outdoor Blossom smart watering controller remains available, the new Blossom 8 give customers with less demanding yards and tighter budgets access to the same IoT revolution for your home and yard that others have discovered. Blossom 8 was designed to be ideal for the typical yard’s diverse ecosystem of grass, trees and plants. It makes a proven, tested technology accessible to everyone – at an affordable price.
The Blossom 8 is very similar to my original Blossom but there are differences. Besides the 8-zones instead of 12-zones, the new controller does need to remain indoors (such as your garage or basement instead of outside). The new controller also relies solely on your home's current Wi-Fi coverage as opposed to providing the optional Powerline extender. The Powerline is a "Blossom bridge" that for the original Blossom allows you to extend the placement of the controller beyond your Wi-Fi's normal range.
Right now you might be wondering with these tradeoffs whether you should purchase the more expensive 12-zone Blossom. For the typical home, the Blossom 8 should be more than enough to meet your needs. While I have the more expensive Blossom, the Blossom 8 would meet all my needs. My Blossom is mounted inside my garage and the included Powerline is sitting unused on my workbench since my current Wi-Fi coverage is sufficient rendering the extender unnecessary.
Blossom 8 has an extremely user-friendly interface, is aesthetically pleasing and is designed to be placed indoors. Surprisingly enough, it doesn't cost much more than a conventional 8-station sprinkler controller and is priced lower than any other smart controller available today. With an MSRP of $129, Blossom 8 can pay for itself in water cost savings in less than one year. Once installed, Blossom customers can save up to 30 percent on future water bills.
Blossom 8 is currently available for at Amazon. The original 12-zone Blossom remain available at a MSRP of $199.
Author's Note: In the Fall of 2021 the Blossom Smart Controller was no longer supported. Since then, I have purchased the Rachio 3rd Generation Smart Sprinkler Controller (Affiliate Link) and am now using it at my home.