WANT!!!

Boosting this quality contribution up in the Hot Listing - declared quality by lurgee.

It's a fun toy, but not actually a practical solution to any of the problems they list.

Mostly correct, but it is a solution to taking control of your own food production methods without using the time it takes to do so normally (and trust me, it takes a LOT of your time, more than most people have to spare). Also, for those not able to farm because of their physical conditions, this could allow them to have the garden they choose and enjoy fresh vegetables they would otherwise not have access to.

That said, if you start off by spending $3000 (on sale) for your "farmer", on top of the normal costs to put together and farm a garden, it's going to take quite a while to pay for itself. A neighborhood kid working for $10 an hour would probably be a better long term investment, and also probably wouldn't require repairs or replacement in a few years.
If I could build it all myself for 1/3 the cost, or got it as a gift, I could put it together with my existing garden and make it pay off in a year (if I count my time as valuable, which I don't). At full price, I doubt it would last long enough to pay off ever.

Surrender your knowledge and control over food production, in your own backyard. 3D print your garden. This could easily be a parody, and they should really change the music.

A micro-machine is the solution to macro-machines. I see it breaking down daily.

Comment hidden because you are ignoring dag.(show it anyway)

I'm surprised this is so controversial. Surely this is a good idea for backyards and people who need to work during the day.

Comment hidden because you are ignoring dag.(show it anyway)

Well, Siftbot and I think it's cool.

Promoting this video back to the front page; last published Monday, July 11th, 2016 10:03pm PDT - promote requested by dag.

BUT WILL IT KEEP THOSE FUCKING CHIPMUNKS OUT OF MY STRAWBERRIES?!?!
(notice I'm not joking)

And who's got the blueprints for reaperbot, freezerbot, and cannerbot?

All you haters should maybe learn to code and help them out. It's open source, after all.

I think this is a great idea that will only get better as people start tinkering with it. I see great ways that you could use machine-learning or even just expert advice to know exactly what food you can grow in your conditions (including gophers and chipmunks).

All technology starts out impractical because it's new, expensive, and buggy. Give it a few years, and there will be cheap as prefab ones that do tons of cool things.

Buncha haters (except @dag and @siftbot).

@newtboy: Seems they thought of this argument. They put quite a bit of effort in refuting this.

As a person who actually grows much of my own produce, I can say definitively that many of their numbers are WAY off. They require one to pay one's self $100 per month for produce shopping to come up with their $1400 per year 'savings', but claim 5 minutes a day for 'harvest time'...good luck with that if you're not living on just lettuce and cauliflower...peas and beans will take 3 times that. They claim $6 for seeds, but the seeds I buy are over $3 per packet, so that's only 2 vegetables at a time...not much variety. I also note they have no cost for soil, the bed, fertilizers, pest control methods/time, disease control, etc. They also arbitrarily put the maintenance time at :30 min per month...that doesn't seem really realistic for an outdoor robot. Keep in mind that a single break down can mean the loss of an entire crop, depending on how it malfunctions. They also don't give an expected lifespan...or guarantee/warranty, so there's little way to know yet if it will last a single season, much less the 4-5 they say it takes to pay off.

It would have made much more sense to me if they had compared it to growing a home garden by hand, as that's what it's replacing, not the grocery store.

Don't get me wrong, I love this idea and would take one in a second if someone offered, I just don't see it as cost effective at $3-4K. Once the bugs are worked out so it lasts 10 years and the DIY cost is down to $1K(+-), then I'll think they have something pretty good that could also save people money. Being totally open source, I have hope that it will evolve quickly and be clearly viable in the near future. The time is coming when I won't be able to do the home farming I do today...it would be great to have a metallic yard slave to take over for me when that time comes.

@newtboy: I agree with everything you said except maybe some of the costs. I can't think they'd just make up the cost of seeds., it'd just be nice if they have a source. They definitely need more citations.

I also agree that it's a fantastic idea and I hope it grows (no pun intended).

Well, to be fair...I do buy good quality, non gmo seeds, and I live in northern California, where things can be expensive. I'm sure cheaper seeds are out there....but not here.