Top critical review
3.0 out of 5 stars30% failure rate after 2 years
Reviewed in Canada on May 19, 2020
This is one of those devices that works great (5star) when it works; and just as advertised. But it only has a 1 year warranty. Out of 3 units I purchased together 1 failed in the electronics after 2 years. I took this unit apart and was impressed with the mechanical sturdiness. They key to take advantage of this sturdiness is to never let the unit freeze (I stored mine in a warm storage space). The weakness is the "programmable" electronics (a relatively recent addition to the line of water timers. Making electronics that can stand up to the temperature cycles of hot in the direct sun to cold in the shade is not easy: and Orbit clearly struggle.; as do many with outdoor devices. When I opened it up I expected to be able to easily get to the circuit board and expected that it would have been made replaceable (after obtaining a replacement part from Orbit). This is not so: the circuit board cannot be replaced. This is very poor design; I am left with throwing away the complete unit for what was probably a loose connection of solder point.
