90s nostalgia is taking the Aussie smart garden industry by storm as the ‘plantagotchi’ makes waves on social media.
Cast your mind back to the 2000s, to a time before iPhones and Fortnite dominated the playground and domesticated digital pets known as tamagotchi’s reigned supreme.
At my school, these freaky little aliens had us (ironically) in the palm of their hands, watching them day or night, cleaning up their digital deuces when they called. I was hooked, and unashamedly rocked four or more on a lanyard for longer than I would like to admit.
Don’t judge me. It was a simpler time.
Fast forward 20 years and tamagotchi’s time in the spotlight might have come and gone, but a new smart planting product is tempting us millennials back into the world of digital pets with the launch of the adorable ‘Plantagotchi’.
Pretty f#*king cute, right?
These deceptively delightful pot plants claim they are trying to make maintaining your indoor flora fun again by turning your favourite household plants into a family pet.
To be honest, if your pet is anything like my girlfriend’s cat I have dubbed “Travis the annoying sh*t” they might actually be better than the real thing, as the anime-inspired face on the front will actually tell you what the plant wants in the moment.
Have you plant tucked away in the dark corners of your house? The smart sensors hidden in the soil will detect it’s not getting enough light and, along with sending a notification to your linked smartphone, make an upsetting little frowny face.
The same goes if your plant needs more water or a temperature change, with “Ivy” displaying different facial expressions for each need.
The pot also comes connected to a database of over 36 popular household plants, so homeowners will receive a step-by-step guide on what sort of conditions and care your plant needs to thrive indoors.
With that said, it should come as a surprise to absolutely no one that the adorable little planter has attracted millions of views on social media in the last month as people catch on to the smart garden craze.
@plantagotchi I’m obsessed 🪴😍 #AIplanter #planter #cuteplanter #plants #plantcare #plantsoftiktok #plantslover #foryou ♬ espresso sabrina – celebs media
With TikToks and Instagram reels degrading our attention spans down to goldfish levels, one user said she “may actually be able to keep a plant alive with this”.
“Now I feel like I need one for each of my 33 plants 😭” wrote another.
But there are some downsides with the Plantagotchi. The potted pet can’t stray too far from a charging station as it has a relatively short battery life off the cable.
Homeowners looking to pick up the Plantagotchi will also see their dreams of owning an indoor monstera dashed as the small-sized pot only measures out to 4.49 inches in height, 3.94 inches in width, and 3.78 inches in depth.
