B vs Brightlayer Home
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
B
Control and monitor your sprinklers from anywhere with this smart watering app. It uses local weather data and plant information to create optimized watering schedules, saving water and money. You can also set custom programs and utilize an integrated irrigation audit tool.
- Remote sprinkler control
- Smart watering schedules
- Weather-based adjustments
- Custom program settings
- Integrated irrigation audit tool
- Water conservation features
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The B-hyve smart sprinkler timer app allows you to control or monitor your sprinklers from anywhere in the world with the convenience of your smart device. Smart Watering Knowing how long and how often to water your plants can be challenging. When set to smart watering mode, B-hyve takes the guesswork out of watering and utilizes Mother Nature, along with some really great technology, to determine the watering schedule for your yard. When set and left in smart watering mode, B-hyve can save users as much as 50% more water over a traditional controller. Weather When set in smart mode, B-hyve uses local weather data to determine how much water is evaporated and transpired through your plants each day to know when it needs to water. It also accounts for any rainfall that is in the forecast, shuts off the system for rain, then looks back to see how much actually fell. That’s smart! But all yards are not the same. B-hyve also takes into account things like soil type, plant type, sun/shade and slope to determine a watering schedule that takes the water to the roots and helps avoid runoff. WeatherSense If you want to be the one in control of the schedule, that’s okay too. With B-hyve you can set custom programs to water how you want while still taking advantage of the local weather data to override watering in case of a weather event. This will shut off your system during the rain and resume your program when the rain has passed. That’s smart! Integrated Irrigation Audit Tool The B-hyve app also integrates the award-winning irrigation audit tool right to your smart device. By performing a catch cup test on your sprinkler system, you will know exactly how much water is being applied rather than relying on estimated sprinkler head water use that other timers/apps use, which can be off by as much as 50%, saving you more water and money. This is the app for the best-selling, WaterSense and SWAT certified Orbit B-hyve Smart Wifi Sprinkler Timer. This is also the companion app for homeowners with the Hydro-Rain B-hyve Pro Wifi Controller. Please let us know if you have questions or problems. ALEXA – Works with Alexa. For a list of Alexa commands visit http://help.orbitbhyve.com/Alexa-Commands/ Bhyve.orbitonline.com 800-488-6156 support@orbitbhyve.com
Brightlayer Home
Monitor and control your home's power usage with smart breakers and wiring devices. Gain energy insights, set schedules for cost savings, and receive important notifications. Manage connected devices remotely and enhance security with features like vacation mode.
- Real-time energy insights
- Historical energy usage data
- Customizable energy-saving schedules
- Remote device control
- Out-of-ordinary activity notifications
- Vacation mode for security
- Voice control integration
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The Brightlayer Home app works with Eaton smart breakers and wiring devices. Easily view power usage, control connected devices remotely and make more informed energy decisions. • Energy insights- Better understand energy usage inside the home with real-time and historical insights • Cost savings- Create schedules and scenes to fit your daily routine and to save energy. • Stay up to date- Receive notifications of out of the ordinary activities • Flexible load control- Easily connect Eaton smart home technologies to manage and control energy usage • Added security- Vacation mode turns lights on and off randomly to make seem like someone is home • Voice Control – Pair with Amazon Alexa or Google Home to use voice commands
Screenshots
Verdict
B and Brightlayer Home both sit at 4.7 stars, but that hides the real split: 61% of B's written reviews are positive against 30% of Brightlayer Home's. B also leads on ratings volume (336K vs 2.5K). Brightlayer Home's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for B against 4.7 for Brightlayer Home. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: B has 336K ratings behind it against 2.5K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 61% of B's written reviews are positive against 30% of Brightlayer Home's.
B ships an update every 6 weeks, Brightlayer Home every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on November 1, 2026.
| Parameter | B | Brightlayer Home |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (336K ratings) — better | 4.7 (2.5K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 60.7% of reviews — better | 30.1% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 336K — better | 2.5K |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 | 15.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 128 MB | 41 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Orbit Irrigation | Eaton Corporation |
Customer experience
B
Brightlayer Home
User reviews
B
From 336K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 💻 Easy to use app
- 🌳 Effective smart watering
- 🌍 Remote control from anywhere
- ⏱️ Convenient manual control
- 📊 Detailed watering history
Room to improve
- 🐛 Connectivity issues
- 🌧️ Inaccurate weather data
- 🔍 Unintuitive interface
- 🔀 Inability to control multiple devices together
- 🕰️ Inconsistent watering schedules
Brightlayer Home
From 2.5K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Easy to use app
- 🚀 Seamless connection to devices
- 💡 Useful scheduling features
- 🔒 Secure remote control
Room to improve
- 🐛 Unreliable device connectivity
- 🐛 Inconsistent scheduling functionality
- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and bugs
- 🤔 Lacking key features (e.g. EV charger support)
Bugs and requests
B
Reported bugs
4 issues- Watering programs not executing as scheduled
- Zones not responding to manual controls
- Connectivity issues causing loss of watering history
- Unexpected changes to programmed watering schedules
Requested features
5 requests- Ability to pause and resume watering programs
- Integration with smart home platforms (e.g., HomeKit)
- More granular control over watering schedules and zones
- Improved weather forecasting and rain delay functionality
- Global calendar view of all connected devices
Brightlayer Home
Reported bugs
4 issues- Schedules randomly disappearing
- Devices disconnecting from WiFi
- App login issues and account creation problems
- Incompatibility with certain WiFi routers
Requested features
4 requests- Add advanced scheduling options (e.g. if-then rules)
- Improve app stability and reliability
- Integrate with popular smart home platforms (e.g. Alexa, Google Home)
- Add support for more device types (e.g. EV chargers)
In-app purchases
B
No in-app purchases
Brightlayer Home
No in-app purchases








