Growing Plants with the Help of a Smartphone? Niwa Makes it Possible

Back in December, I talked about a product called “Click and Grow” which aims to make it easier for people to grow plants in their homes – at least, if there’s an ample amount of sun available. Overall, it’s a neat product, but it’s held back by high-cost cartridges that don’t last quite as long as we’d hope. And really, proprietary cartridges are hardly ideal. We get enough of that foolishness with our printers.

On that front, Niwa, a product with similar goals, looks a lot more interesting. Here, you’re able to use your own seeds, and like with Click and Grow, you don’t need to know anything about growing plants successfully. If there’s an immediate downside, it’s the product’s cost, which will be about $500 – but at least there are no expensive cartridges to shell out for.

Niwa’s founders Javier and Aga

A Niwa unit is much larger than a Click and Grow, but it’s for good reason. It’s in effect its own mini-greenhouse, which can regulate everything from the amount of water a plant gets to making sure it gets enough sunlight. One downside of Click and Grow I mentioned was that it’s unsuitable for those who don’t have a room that gets a sufficient amount of sunlight – that’s an issue Niwa negates thanks to its built-in light.

Light moderation is just one aspect that Niwa can handle. It also features automatic irrigation, a heater system, ventilation, and climate control. It’s starting to become obvious why Niwa carries a $500 price tag.

The Niwa unit itself is modern, and would look great virtually anywhere. What makes it even more modern, though, is that it interacts with a mobile app which will keep you up-to-date on your plant’s progress. It’s this mobile app that configures a Niwa unit in the first place. Because no cartridges are used, there’s no way for the unit to know what you’re planting. So with this app, you choose what it is you’re growing, and as Ronco famously said, you set it and forget it.

At the moment, Niwa’s designers are running a Kickstarter project which has already reached 75% of its $100,000 goal – and that’s despite having another 26 days to go. This is one project I’m definitely going to be keeping an eye on.