SETTING UP

How to set up your feeder and the app

Setting it up, step by step

1. 1

   Assemble the feeder and power it on

   Slot the grain bucket into the body and turn the locks on each side to fasten it. Slide the feeding tray in from the bottom. Drop the desiccant pack into the drying box on the top cover, then fit the cover on. The cover catch releases when you pull both sides at once. Plug the USB-C cable into the socket underneath and into the mains, then rotate the lens down so it looks at the tray.

   Fit the 4 AA backup batteries before you ever unplug the mains. Pull the power with no batteries in and the feeder loses the time, which throws your schedule out.

2. 2

   Download Pet Zero and make an account

   Search for Pet Zero in the App Store and install it. Register a new account or log in to an existing one, and choose the correct country or area when you register. Sharing the feeder with a second phone later only works if both accounts are registered in the same country or area.

3. 3

   Put the feeder into pairing mode

   Give it about a minute to boot, then look at the light on the front. Flashing red means it is ready to be paired. If it is showing anything else, press and hold the config button for five seconds until you hear a beep, and it will start flashing red a few seconds later.

   Turn Bluetooth on in your phone settings before you open the app. It is what lets the app find the feeder on its own.

4. 4

   Add the feeder in the app

   Tap Add Device, or the plus icon, and allow the permissions the app asks for. Your phone will pick the feeder up over Bluetooth automatically and offer to add it. Tap Add.

   Nothing found? You can pair by QR code instead, where the feeder reads a code off your phone screen from about 20 to 30cm away, or by AP mode, where you briefly join the feeder's own network starting SmartLife-. Both are in the same Add Device menu.

5. 5

   Connect it to your Wi-Fi

   Your network name fills itself in. Type the password, mind the capital letters, and tap Next. Both 2.4GHz and 5GHz work. The light flashes green while it connects and goes solid green once it is on. Tap Done and the app opens the live camera view.

   It needs WPA or WPA2 security, not WEP or WPA3. It connects over the 802.11 b/g/n and a/n standards, not the newer ac and ax ones. Turn off MAC address filtering and wireless device isolation on your router, and connect to the router directly rather than through a repeater.

6. 6

   Check the time zone

   Open the three dots menu, then Device Information, and check the time zone matches your phone's. Get this wrong and meals land at the wrong hour. If it is off, remove the feeder in the app and add it again, and it will pick the right one up.

7. 7

   Set the feeding schedule

   Tap Schedule, then Add. Choose the time, which days of the week it repeats on, and how many portions to drop. Save it, and repeat for each meal. You can store up to 15 meals, switch any of them off with its toggle, or press and hold one to delete it.

8. 8

   Record your call to dinner

   On the manual feed page, tap Feeding audio and start talking near the microphone on the feeder, then tap it again to stop, or wait ten seconds and it stops on its own. The closer you are to the microphone, the louder it records. By default the recording plays three times during feeding, and only when the feeder is on mains power.

What the light on the feeder means

Solid blue	Starting up. Give it a minute.
Flashing red	Waiting to be set up on Wi-Fi. This is the state you want when pairing.
Solid red	It has your Wi-Fi details and is trying to connect. If it stays red, the connection failed.
Flashing green	Connecting to your Wi-Fi now.
Solid green	Connected to your Wi-Fi network. This light can be turned off in the settings.
Flashing blue	Food has been dispensed and is still sitting in the tray, so your cat hasn't come to eat yet.

Using it day to day

If something isn't working

It won't connect to my Wi-Fi

Check the password's capital letters, make sure your router uses WPA or WPA2 rather than WEP or WPA3, and turn off MAC address filtering and wireless device isolation. The feeder may not work through a wireless repeater, so try connecting to the router directly. If it still fails, add the feeder using AP mode instead of QR code or automatic mode.

It is feeding at the wrong time

The time zone on the feeder doesn't match yours. Open the three dots menu, then Device Information, to check. If it is wrong, remove the feeder in the app and add it again with your phone set to the right time zone.

It keeps telling me food is stuck in the tray

The feeder waits ten minutes after a meal for your cat to come and eat. If the bowl is still full at that point, it sends the alert, and you will get it even if your cat turns up at minute eleven. If the bowl really is empty, check the food slot for a kibble wedged in it and clear it out.

The video is black or frozen

This depends on the network. It happens when the feeder's Wi-Fi signal is poor or your phone is on an unstable network. Connecting the feeder to a 5GHz Wi-Fi network is a good choice, and you can switch to a lower resolution in the app.

What happens in a power cut?

The AA batteries take over and scheduled meals still dispense on time. The feeder goes into sleep mode though, so the Wi-Fi drops, the indicator light goes out, the camera and app controls are unavailable, and the recorded feeding call won't play until mains power is back.

Can I record footage to an SD card?

No. This model does not support the Micro-SD card function. You can still take a snapshot or record to your phone from the live video.

How do I start again from scratch?

With the feeder running on mains power and fully booted, press and hold the config button for five seconds until you hear the prompt. That restores factory settings and you can pair it again from step three. Removing the device in the app does the same thing.

Should I use rechargeable AA batteries?

The manufacturer doesn't recommend them. Rechargeable batteries can cause the feeder to report the power level inaccurately.