The GHL Automatic Fish Feeder is coming!

[Vinny@GHLUSA]

You asked for it - here it is!​

We are pleased to announce the release of a long-awaited product.

One of the most frequent requests from our customers was an automatic feeder that works with our ProfiLux aquarium computer - and now it's here!

Highlights

For ProfiLux 4/Mini/Light

Extremely quiet and reliable

Operation via app, cloud and web interface

Flexible programming

Fill level warning notifies you when food is running low

More features

Several automatic feeders can be controlled independently by one ProfiLux 4

incl. large additional container

Food remains protected from moisture

Feed quantity can be regulated using 3 different inserts and adjustable feed cycles

Manual feeding possible

Flexible installation: horizontal or vertical clamp mounting on glass or frame or top mounting

Sales launch in December 2023 - prices and availability will be announced shortly.

 

[gbroadbridge]

Yes please - hopefully in AU

 

[TheHarold]

Very innovative, rewriting firmware for a $30 Chinese fish feeder.

Good news is even those without GHL can purchase an identical feeder on Aliexpress or Amazon.

 

[Gaël]

Very innovative, rewriting firmware for a $30 Chinese fish feeder.

Good news is even those without GHL can purchase an identical feeder on Aliexpress or Amazon.

If you buy your Chinese model, you won't have any integration with ProfiLux and the GHL ecosystem, nor any technical support or product follow-up.
The feeder offered by GHL is not a stand-alone product, but a ProfiLux peripheral.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

You asked for it - here it is!​

We are pleased to announce the release of a long-awaited product.

One of the most frequent requests from our customers was an automatic feeder that works with our ProfiLux aquarium computer - and now it's here!

Highlights

For ProfiLux 4/Mini/Light

Extremely quiet and reliable

Operation via app, cloud and web interface

Flexible programming

Fill level warning notifies you when food is running low

More features

Several automatic feeders can be controlled independently by one ProfiLux 4

incl. large additional container

Food remains protected from moisture

Feed quantity can be regulated using 3 different inserts and adjustable feed cycles

Manual feeding possible

Flexible installation: horizontal or vertical clamp mounting on glass or frame or top mounting

Sales launch in December 2023 - prices and availability will be announced shortly.

I'll be looking out for this!

 

[TheHarold]

If you buy your Chinese model, you won't have any integration with ProfiLux and the GHL ecosystem, nor any technical support or product follow-up.
The feeder offered by GHL is not a stand-alone product, but a ProfiLux peripheral.

I am pretty sure I can set the Profilux to go into a feed mode during certain times of day, and set up my $30 auto feeder to feed during that time. And I would get alerts (from the non-GHL app) when food is low.

Does the GHL integration add additional features, or is it just for the convenience of using one app?

 

[WhatCouldGoWrong71]

Considering the feedback I have read about the complexities of your interface and programming, while I have not seen it first hand I am waiting for the first comment about your first step in this auto fish feeder is how to raise the fish that will eventually be used for fish food

 

[areefer01]

I am pretty sure I can set the Profilux to go into a feed mode during certain times of day, and set up my $30 auto feeder to feed during that time. And I would get alerts (from the non-GHL app) when food is low.

Does the GHL integration add additional features, or is it just for the convenience of using one app?

But what if a fellow hobbyist just likes that convenience or brand? Should it matter to either of us?

 

[BeanAnimal]

Considering the feedback I have read about the complexities of your interface and programming, while I have not seen it first hand I am waiting for the first comment about your first step in this auto fish feeder is how to raise the fish that will eventually be used for fish food

I work in the technology field and have been an electronics hobbyist and software developer for 3+ decades.

The GHL documentation is certainly not the greatest in the world, but it is par for the course for a product such as this.

As for the complexities of the interface. The product allows for rather complex logic and an extremely high degree of flexibility.

While the programming interface has its flaws, most are simply a matter of aesthetics and the fact that user named parameters do not populate menus in favor of "Switch 1, Pump 1, Logic 1, etc." nomenclature.

So those two small nits aside, there is simply no "easy" way of presenting the flexibility and power of a product like this in a simple interface.

I think anybody here will tell you that I am far from an apologist for GHL, poor design or any vendor or their product. I Just fail to see the purpose of posting a barb toward a product that you admittedly have no experience or real knowledge of.

 

[BeanAnimal]

I am pretty sure I can set the Profilux to go into a feed mode during certain times of day, and set up my $30 auto feeder to feed during that time. And I would get alerts (from the non-GHL app) when food is low.

Does the GHL integration add additional features, or is it just for the convenience of using one app?

Okay - let's play Devil's advocate here.

GHL partners with Avast for a custom PLANK feeder. What does that look like. Avast feeders are ~$200 and arguably the most reliable feeders for our purposes. What shall Avast wholesale these for to GHL that will allow both Avast and GHL to be profitable? Moreover, what does the development of the mods and customizations cost?

Think about your answer:
We are not talking about margin on 100,009 units or eve 10,000 units. This is a NICHE product in a TINY hobby with a TINY TINY SUBSET OF THE HOBBY AS GHL USERS and an even smaller subset of those users that will be the GHL feeder, no matter the price. So, what? 500-1000 units the first year and then maybe 1/10 of that each follow on year. What does technical support cost? Warranty Support Cost? Marketing? Etc. What does the partnership, legal, etc. cost to just get this rolling, etc. Remember the margin has to cover ALL of it. I don't know about you, but selling 500 items at a $10 margin and then having to support said items and warrant them sure sounds like a losing business plan to me. Will you buy a $450 feeder?

Reality: The vast majority of participants in this hobby are absolutely clueless about the size of the demographic and what it costs to produce, sell and support a product over a short span, let alone making a real business out of it long term. No clue what these will sell for but I would assume $200 USD would be reasonable given the integration. Otherwise, it is not a sustainable endeavor. If it comes in less than that, say $125 - $150 to be inline with the competition and/or cheaper than the gold standard... then it makes sense.

Is $125-200 too much for you? It may very well be and the $30 model may do everything that you need or want. Value is assigned by the individual.

 

[Lbrdsoxfan]

Very innovative, rewriting firmware for a $30 Chinese fish feeder.

Good news is even those without GHL can purchase an identical feeder on Aliexpress or Amazon.

Same as what Neptune did, lol.

 

[Herbster]

Very innovative, rewriting firmware for a $30 Chinese fish feeder.

Good news is even those without GHL can purchase an identical feeder on Aliexpress or Amazon.

This post is a month old but I only just found it. As previous posters have mentioned, there is additional value in paying a GHL premium for this product (and it has extras too). I'll be one of the 1st to buy it and I'll also buy the Amazon one as I will use it for spare parts/backup if necessary!

 

[SoNap]

As initially announce, it should have been released in December 2024.

As we entered in the meantime 2024, what is the current status on this?

 

[Gaël]

As initially announce, it should have been released in December 2024.

As we entered in the meantime 2024, what is the current status on this?

A newsletter will be sent out as soon as there is any news on this subject.

 

[KStatefan]

A newsletter will be sent out as soon as there is any news on this subject.

I am sorry but GHL continues to miss the boat on new product launches. This thread was started November 6 with a product launch date of December 2023. Sixty days later you have no idea when the launch will be.

 

[Gaël]

Unfortunately, things don't always go according to plan.

 

[BeanAnimal]

Unfortunately, things don't always go according to plan.

Please don’t take this personally, as it is not meant to be directed toward any individual. In fact, I enjoy and appreciate the support and interactions that I have had with you, Vinny and Matthias.

I don’t know anything about GHL‘s overall roadmap, financial situation, team sizes, primary profit center or overall struggles or goals.
What I do know is that I own
1x Profilux 4
1x Maxi Doser
4x Doser 2.x
6x PB-6e
2x Mitras 7206
1x KH-Direcor
2x flow sensors
a small pile of probes, extra probes, Doser parts and several add-in cards.

My investment is very substantial, now well over $5000 dollars, and it is small compared to many.

I do know that this is turning into a love hate relationship with the product and given the feedback from GHL over the last year, combined with the numerous product delays, I am losing faith that there is ever going to be a real sea change.

With the focus on the industrial line, missed deadlines for re-branded product integrations (pumps, feeders, etc) and ION-D, I have to openly wonder when the much needed updates will (if ever) come to the aging platform itself. When does the P4 and its aging interface get attention and a much needed overhaul?

There is no display product (and I don't think a little 6" or whatever LCD is the answer)
The Control Center is, at best legacy software.
The dashboard is years overdue for a ground up overhaul.
The API is still not done.
There is no self hosted page/dash anymore.
There are various bug (or oddities) with several features.
Launch and delivery promises continue to be missed.
Missing logic items
friendly names instead of ordinal names
no power logging
hosting speed
etc.

Moreover, I hope that I am wrong, but I can’t image that the P4 is not growing long in the tooth with regard to CPU power/resources and many of the items listed

So It is not one item, but the sum total of items and no movement in sight, save reports of setbacks.

I love the hardware but feel heavily invested and extremely stuck and frustrated with the state of the software and fear lack of significant improvements for the foreseeable future.

Again, thank you for understanding that this is not personal but rather my thoughts as a customer invested in the GHL ecosystem.

 

[gbroadbridge]

Unfortunately, things don't always go according to plan.

Perhaps then, announcements should not be made until boxes are ready to be loaded onto trucks.

 

[KStatefan]

Unfortunately, things don't always go according to plan.

For GHL product release I do not think they ever do.

To release that they would be available Dec 2023 then in Jan 2024 have no idea sounds like there was not a plan.

I am a GHL user so this is from a customer not just a hater.

 

[SoNap]

Problem is that a couple of German companies have not understood that nowadays you sell by software and not primarly anymore by hardware.

Same problem for example with the German car industry not willing to understand couple of years ago that electric vehicles are the future and with this you need to put your focus also extensively on the software side (they put a lot of effort in the recent years on the software side but they could have started with all of this much earlier if you ask me and avoiding all the pain and pressure to get the needed software done).

Thinking that you have great hardware without providing nowadays appropriate software on top of is simply a bad approach and this has proven couple of times. Great hardware is the fundament, if you now also provide a good software stack on top of it you will be king. And GHL could be king if they simply understand that software should be also prioritized beside good hardware.

Just my two cents on all of this