The best-value smart pet feeder with a built-in camera
Reliable portion control, 1080p camera that actually works, no subscription fees. Some app quirks but the hardware punches well above its price tag.
Our verdict
The Petlibro Granary Camera is the feeder we have been waiting for at this price point. For around £100-120 on Amazon UK you get reliable portion-controlled dispensing, a genuinely usable 1080p camera so you can watch your cat eat, and — crucially — no subscription fees for the core features. After six weeks running two cats on scheduled meals, we had one missed feed out of 84 scheduled meals, which we trace to a Wi-Fi drop rather than the hardware.
It is not as polished as the £250+ Surefeed Microchip Pet Feeder, and the app has a handful of rough edges (occasional delayed notifications, a clunky firmware update flow). But at less than half the price of the competition, for most households this is the sensible choice.
Key specs at a glance
- Capacity
- 5 L (about 20-25 cups of dry food)
- Camera
- 1080p, 160° field of view
- Portions
- 1-50 per meal, 1/12 cup each
- Meal schedules
- Up to 10 per day
- Power
- Mains + 3x D-cell battery backup
- Connectivity
- 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi
- Subscription
- None required for core features
- App
- Petlibro (iOS/Android)
- Microchip support
- No (see Surefeed for microchip)
- Cleaning
- Dishwasher-safe hopper + tray
Pros
- No subscription for core scheduling, dispensing, camera or audio
- Battery backup keeps it running through power cuts
- 1080p camera lets you check your pet actually ate
- Record custom meal calls that play when food drops
- Accurate portioning with the 1/12 cup increments
Cons
- App occasionally delivers delayed notifications
- No microchip detection (multi-pet households need care)
- Camera is not free-look — fixed forward-facing angle
- 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi only
Who is the Petlibro Granary for?
This feeder makes the most sense if you have one or two pets, you want to manage portion sizes precisely, and you like the idea of a camera without paying a monthly fee. It is ideal for owners who travel occasionally and want to check in visually from the road.
It is less ideal for multi-cat households where one cat eats the other’s food — there is no microchip gatekeeping, so a determined cat can learn to wait for the feeder dispensing then steal portions. For that use case, the Surefeed Microchip Pet Feeder (around £170) is the right choice despite being dumber in other ways.
Set-up and reliability over 6 weeks
Set-up took 14 minutes. Pair via Bluetooth, connect to 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi, configure meal schedules, record your meal-call voice message. Firmware update added 10 minutes to first-run time but no issues since.
Over 42 days and 84 scheduled meals (breakfast and dinner for two cats) we had one missed meal — the unit skipped a 6am breakfast because our router had restarted overnight. The battery backup would have covered a power cut, but not a router issue. The app did alert us that the meal was missed, so we could come home and dispense manually.
Portion control accuracy
We weighed 30 random dispensed portions over the test window. Target was 15g per portion (roughly 3 tablespoons of Royal Canin kibble). Actual weights ranged from 13.8g to 16.2g, with an average of 14.9g. For an auto feeder at this price, this is excellent consistency.
The 1/12 cup increme
In stock on Amazon UK
See today’s priceCamera and live viewing
The 1080p camera is fixed and points forward from the feeder body, so you are looking at the space in front of the bowl. For our set-up in a corner of the kitchen this was fine — the cats approach head-on, so we can see faces clearly.
Live view starts in 2-3 seconds. Night vision is IR, black-and-white, and sharp out to about 3 metres. There is no pan or tilt, so if your cat eats from a weird angle you may only get partial framing. Two-way audio is present but we rarely used it because our cats are not fans of disembodied voices.
Custom meal calls
Record up to a 10-second voice message that plays when food drops. We recorded our standard dinner whistle and both cats came running within a week of training them to associate the sound with feeding time.
This is surprisingly useful if you are travelling and want a familiar cue to accompany the meals, or if your cats are not normally near the feeder at mealtime.
Running costs
Hardware: ~£100-120. Backup batteries: £3 every 6 months. Electricity: negligible. No subscription. Total 5-year cost of ownership: ~£130, or about £26 per year.
Versus the Surefeed Microchip at £170, or the Petkit Fresh Element at £90 (no camera), the Petlibro sits in the sweet spot on cost-per-feature.
Frequently asked questions
Does the Petlibro Granary need a subscription?
No. All core features — scheduled meals, portion control, live camera, two-way audio, custom meal calls — work without any subscription. This is a major advantage over Furbo and Ring-style devices.
Can two cats use the same Petlibro Granary?
Yes, but there is no microchip gate. A dominant cat can eat another cat’s food if they learn the timing. For strict portion control per cat, use two separate units or upgrade to a Surefeed Microchip feeder.
Will it keep working in a power cut?
Yes, if you fit the optional D-cell batteries (not included). Three D-cells provide about 72 hours of backup operation during a mains outage. Camera and Wi-Fi features stop working on battery — only the scheduled dispensing continues.
What kibble sizes work with the Petlibro Granary?
Dry kibble between 2mm and 12mm in diameter works reliably. Very small kitten kibble can occasionally over-dispense, and very large dog kibble can jam the chute. Royal Canin, Hills, Purina Pro Plan and most UK supermarket brands are fine.
How noisy is it?
The dispensing motor runs for about 2 seconds per meal and measures 48dB at 1m. The voice message plays at about 65dB, which is the louder event. Cats accustomed to the feeder find it pleasant; cats who fear motors may need a gradual introduction.
Is there a weight limit on the hopper?
The 5-litre hopper holds about 20-25 standard cups of dry food (2.5-3 kg depending on density). For two cats at 30g per meal twice a day, a full hopper lasts roughly 3 weeks.
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