I previously did a review of Petkit Smart Pet Feeder which is a good device but the new version, the Petkit Mini Smart Feeder is smaller and specially designed for cats. The new Petkit Mini feeder allows you to feed your cat smaller portions at a time which is a great feature because cats usually overeat and in some cases, it’s better to feed them several small portions throughout the day. So I decided to make a review of this product and see if it has the same quality that the larger unit.
Key features of Petkit Mini Feeder
- Wi-Fi-powered feeder you can control and program from anywhere
- Manual feedings to feed your cat extra meals
- Food capacity: 3.3 lbs dry food (1.5 k)
- Feeding capacity up to 10 meals per day
- Portion size range: From 5 g, up to 100 g at a time.
- The programmed feeding schedule will repeat every day
- Anti-jamming technology ensures reliable food dispensing
- Silicone sealing ring on food gate keeps food sealed.
- Desiccant bag on lid keeps food fresh and free of moisture
- Removable magnetic tray, easy to pull or put back on.
- Backup battery in case of power loss (4 x AA size, not included)
- Can be fully disassembled to clean
- Material: High Impact Polystyrene
- Low energy consumption (3 kilowatt-hour/mo)
- Dimensions: 6.7” x 6.7” x 12.4”
- Weight: 2.5 kg
Tech Specifications
Apple or Android smartphone
Requires a wireless router 2.4GHz [802.11b/g/n])
Power Adapter: Input: 110-240v ~ 50-60hz; Output: 6V=1000mA.
Feeder’s Footprint: 0.054 m2
How it works
As the Petkit Mini is a Wi-Fi-enabled device you need to download the App to create an account, bind the feeder with the App and then connect the device to your home Wi-Fi network (2.4GHz router). All the programming is done on the App.
Petkit Mini features an anti-sticking technology based on the bionics principle. The food-grade silicone mixing blade, oscillating bar, and internal spring allow the flexibility needed for the kibble to pass through without getting stuck. The feeder works with a wide range of kibble sizes up to 12 mm in diameter. Rounded kibble shape is ideal for better accuracy.
When it’s time to dispense, the food gate’s lid opens allowing the food to drop onto the tray and then moves back into position, covering the food gate. This makes this feeder paws-proof. The food gate’s lid has a sort of spring-loaded latch on the inside that can’t be pulled unless you lift the lid off. Also, in order to lift the lid, a button needs to be pressed in a way that only human hands can do it.
The Petkit’s lid features a compartment on the inside that holds a silica desiccant bag that keeps the food fresh. This silica bag needs to be replaced every 30 days.
Video How Petkit Mini works
How to Program it
The feeder can be programmed to dispense up to 10 meals per day, each portion can be set from a minimum of 5g up to 100g at a time. The feeder works with 5g increments. The feeding schedule must be programmed on the phone, using the free downloading Petkit App.
You just need to program your cat feeding schedule once and it will repeat every day. The timer is a 24-hour so you can’t program days of the week individually. If you want to feed your cat differently a specific day of the week or on the weekend, you need to change the feeding schedule the day before. The good thing is that you can do this from anywhere, on your phone.
What I like about the Petkit App
—You have a good control of the feeder’s operation due to several notifications. Simply go to “Notifications” on your App and it will show up the following:
- Low-food notification. You won’t have to worry about when it’s time to refill the feeder.
- Desiccant replacement notification. It will let you know in advance when you need to replace the silica bag.
- Low-battery notification. The main source power of the feeder is the Adapter but if you use a battery backup in case of a power outage you can check the battery life on your App.
—The App can determine the best and healthiest food portion of your cat. You just need to enter its breed, age, weight, and activity level.
—You can control multiple devices under one Petkit account. That’s great.
What I like about the Petkit Mini Feeder
- The unit is quiet when operating
- Minimalist design and pure white color match any decor (It makes a beautiful set with Petkit Eversweet water fountain).
- It provides accuracy in portions, very important if you have a cat on a diet.
- Ability to dispense very small portions of food (minimum 1/20 cup/5g). Great to feed a cat several times throughout the day, especially if you have a cat that eats too fast.
- Anti-jam technology, no worries about the food getting stuck
- Once programmed, even if the feeder if offline it will keep dispensing.
- Dual power AC/DC adapter and batteries ensure operation no matter what.
- All the pieces of the feeder can be detach, including the mixing blade.
- You can trigger manual feedings from your phone. Good if you want to indulge your kitty with extra snacks.
- Small silica bag on the lid protects the food from moisture. Excellent if you use cat food without preservatives.
- Removable magnetic tray for easy cleaning. Easy to put it back on since the magnet directs where it goes.
- Non-skid rubber pads on the bottom of feeder provides stability.
- Battery compartment secured with screws, so batteries don’t fall off.
- Good customer service.
What I didn’t like about the feeder
- No stainless steel bowl
- Only connects with 2.4GHz network
- Hard to get the feeder connected to Wi-Fi
My final thoughts about Petkit Mini Cat Feeder
Petkit Mini Smart feeder is a good option for cats that are food-driven and prone to break into an automatic feeder. The food gate lid protects the food from the cat’s paws and it’s impossible to defeat. The only way a cat could defeat this feeder is if it’s smart enough to figure out that pushing the manual feeding button will release food. This is highly unlikely to occur.
The drawback of this unit is the fact that is hard to connect with the Wi-Fi network but the customer service it’s really helpful and once it gets connected it works flawlessly.
I recommend Petkit Mini Smart Feeder for:
- Cats on a diet
- Cats that eat dry food without preservatives
x I don’t recommend it:
- In case you want to prevent feline chin acne
- If you only use 5G network
Do you know if the feeder will still work if the wifi gets disconnected and I’m away on an overnite trip? Also what did u mean it doesnt help with chin acne…does stainless help with that?
Hello Sarah, you only need internet to program the feeding schedule or change any settings of the feeder. Once the feeding schedule is programmed you only need electricity or batteries for the feeder to operate. This particular model, suitable for cats, has a plastic food tray, not stainless steel.
Hi
Will the feeder permit me to use my phone remotely to feed the cat if i choose to not set a schedule and want to give a snack or feed my pet and the electricity goes out?in other words does the battery back up keep the device connected to wifi if power fails ? Or does the battery back up operate only to save automatic scheduled meals ? Does the device reconnect to wifi automatically ?
Hello Vivian, you need internet to program the feeder on your phone. The battery backup ensures the feeder will keep dispensing food according to the programmed settings.
So if the power goes out, you can’t control it from your phone (understandable since no power = no wifi) the battery backup… How long does it last? We sometimes are away from the house for a few days and we bring our cats to a pet resort, so I would like to know how long the backup batteries would last if it can’t be plugged in.
Hello Joe, the feeder works with 4 AA size batteries so it will last at least for a couple of months.
I’d also like to know if the device is able to reconnect to wifi automatically, after a wifi failure. I understand it sticks to the preset schedule, but does it reconnect automatically? It’s important for when you are away for more days and would like to review/edit the schedule or manually feed the cat a few times. Thanks!
Hey, I prefer the stainless steel bowl… Is it possible to remove the bowl that comes with this unit and use my own bowl?
Hello Joe, yes you can remove the tray, it is attached only by a magnet. Have a great day!
Is thebigger Version usable with 5g? And the smaller only with 4g ?
Hello Sina, both devices need to be connected with 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi network. The Mini Feeder doesn’t work with 5G network. The larger version may work with 5G if your router allows it.
Our cat Ricky (who was never meant to be very clever but a really good friend) figured out how the manual feeding button works. After one week of usage of the mini feeder in which I never used the button in his presence. Yesterday evening he gave himself a snack 6 times on after the other and was pleased to figure out, that the manual button can be deactivated..
Your cat is amazingly smart lol. Happy you could block the feeding button.
Just got the feeder, works great! I am going on a cruise and will cross times zones… how will this affect the feeder and wanting her schedule to stay on eastern time zone?
Hi Kelli, if you have issues with timezone I suggest you to send an email to [email protected] and they will help you. I must mention that once you program the feeder with a schedule, this will repeat everyday even if the Wi-Fi gets disconnected, which means, the feeder retains the programming in its memory.
Hi. I bought this feeder, but I can’t connected it to my phone. My feeder didn’t connect to my home Wi-Fi which have 2.4GHz network. Please tell how you connected your feeder.
Hello Denys, connecting the feeder to the phone and to the Wifi can be a pain, did you make sure your phone is using the wifi network? If you can’t get it connected, you can contact their customer service at [email protected]. They will walk you through it to get it connected. Hope that helps!
I can not get this product to pair with my WiFi system and can not find any info concerning tech support to get help. Where do I get help for this product?????
Hello Ted, send an email to [email protected]. They will give you the instructions on what to do.
Is this feeder shake proof? I had a previous automatic feeder and my cat figured out if you hit the feeder hard enough, food will fall out. Does that happen with this?
Hello Hashem, this feeder has a lid on the food gate, covering it so cats can’t get kibble by hitting the unit. Also, the lid is attached internally by a spring-loaded latch so it can’t be pulled off by the cat’s paws. However, be aware that this feeder has WiFi connection issues with some users, somehow the App doesn’t work for everybody.