Efficient smart health connected shower head Review smart health innovation

Who has never railed against a teenager, a roommate or a spouse who drags on in the shower? The smart health connected shower head Hydrao First offers a solution to encourage saving water, thus reducing its bill and that of gas, because yes, it must be heated. Smart & Blue, the French start-up behind the project, has won numerous awards and has just launched its innovation available in Auchan, Carrefour, Leroy Merlin stores and in Orange stores. Efficient or more smart health connected gadget? The editorial team was present at the launch of the product and presents its full Review to you.

Mark : Smart & BlueCategory: smart health connected shower headConnection: BlueetothCompatibility: iOS and AndroidPrice: € 89.90Availability: AvailableTested with: iPhone 5s

(embed) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwA3QgSEhi0 (/ embed) 

Hydrao Unboxing

First of all, the shower head is enclosed in a cardboard packaging about 40 cm high. As often, the front side carries an illustration of the product illuminated in several colors on a white background. Some characteristics are also present as well as a tricolor flag and a "made in France" very appreciable.

The edges are wood color and, like the back, display functionality. Finally, the front panel pivots to reveal the comfortably installed Hydrao. It closes with a magnet.

The package opens from above to extract a drawer made of thicker cardboard. This simply contains the Hydrao shower head in its wood-colored recess. No, still no Tahiti shower on the horizon, too bad. However, the packaging also accommodates a quick start guide and a small plastic bag containing a seal and a flow limiter.

Overall, the packaging is quite successful without breaking through the screen. The space is well optimized, at the same time the packaging does not contain much content.

Hydrao design and ergonomics

In terms of design, the lines of the Hydrao shower head were designed by Sofian Tallal, a French designer. With a chrome finish, it is completely covered with a reflective gray apart from the lower part of the head hosting the pins. These, white in color, are grouped by five and encircle a plastic drop with relief.

The Hydrao hand shower, 26 cm high, has classic dimensions for this type of product but pleasantly surprised us by its lightness. On the form side, it sports a barely curved line. The handle has the fine inscription "Hydrao" and is refined on its ends before supporting the round head. It is surprisingly fine and rests without difficulty in the palm of your hand.

Overall, the design remains very simple with a touch of modernity that will go with most showers or baths. However, a little more fantasy and originality would have been welcome.

Hydrao installation

As often, before embarking on a hazardous installation, we prefer to trust the quick start guide. On his advice, we unscrew our old shower head after cutting off the water supply (it would be better). As it was already fitted with a seal, you can leave it or choose to replace it with the one supplied in the Hydrao packaging. We tried with both.

This done, all you have to do is aim at the smart health connected shower head and turn on the water. It will then light up in blue, white, red (cocorico) before remaining green. Here it is, it's simple and the Hydrao is ready to work, all you have to do is wash. The product is compatible with all standard showers and requires a minimum pressure of 1.2 bar. The installation does not require any modification beforehand.

As we said in the unboxing, a flow limiter is also provided in the box but its installation is not mandatory. It is inserted from the bottom of the knob and requires a minimum pressure of 2 bars while reducing the flow rate to 9L / min maximum. The quick start guide says it doesn't go away once it's installed, but still we did it.

Hydrao use

The shower head emits customizable colors, which we will detail later, depending on your water consumption. Admittedly, it is rather pleasant to wash with lights and it is even possible to see a few leaky drops inside the head of the pommel.

When activated, the Hydrao shower head emits a whistling sound that quickly fades. However, it tends to drag on a few times and gain in intensity. This can quickly become quite disturbing.

When everything goes well, the whistling sound disappears after a few seconds and the Hydrao shower head emits no more noise than its classic counterparts. We contacted Smart & Blue who told us that this defect has disappeared on the latest models. Indeed, we received the product in preview.

The jets, fine and of medium power, are rather pleasant. The tastes and colors are not disputed, some prefer thicker streaks of water. With the flow limiter, these whip slightly less.

When the shower is over and you turn off the water, Hydrao pommel takes longer to drip compared to its predecessor. At the connection with the pipe, large streams of water escape. By using the seal provided in the packaging, these are clearly attenuated until they disappear. We advise you to prefer it over the one already in place.

For the maintenance and fight against tartar, it is advisable to clean the Hydrao pommel 2 to 4 times a year with white vinegar. For pimples, Smart & Blue announces anti-lime.

Hydrao features

The Hydrao shower head emits light. The color of the LEDs can be personalized and informs the user of his water consumption in stages: green up to 10 liters, blue up to 20 liters, red when the 30-liter cap is exceeded and finally red flashing. over 50 liters. These parameters can be modified from the application.

However, just like the sound volume emitted, the operation of the LEDs turns out to be very random. At times, it may take several minutes for the light to appear and other times it will light up your shower almost instantly. Note that, when everything goes as planned, using the Hydrao shower head is fun. At low pressure, the intensity of the LEDs is very timid, it is necessary to increase the power of the jets to obtain a frank light.

When the water supply is cut off for 3 minutes, the Hydrao head considers the next activation as a new shower. Not easy for women who rub all their hair for a long time or if you are just having fun blowing soap bubbles.

The Hydrao shower head remembers the last 200 showers. Thus, this system does not force the user to wash near his smartphone or to rub with it. It is possible to come back a few days later and approach the Hydrao knob within 3 meters to retrieve the data.

The Hydrao shower head does not require any refill. It works without asking for a battery or electrical connection, luckily you would say. The system generates its own electricity with water pressure, like a hydroelectric dam, with a small turbine. It powers the LEDs, the sensors, and allows Bluetooth communication with the smartphone.

The Hydrao shower head does not have temperature sensors. It's a shame, this feature would have been useful to refine the calculation of the energy required for heating.

Hydrao application

The Hydrao app is available for free on iOS and Android. All the data saved in the knob is transmitted to the user's smartphone when you approach it.

The application menu, the icon with the three horizontal lines, offers 5 main tabs. The first, "My Shower", shows you in real time the amount of water consumed as well as its progress in the different levels. The second, "Configure the shower", allows you to select the color of the thresholds and their corresponding amount of water.

The third tab, "My consumption", displays a graph for the last 10, 20, 100 or 1000 showers. This history also finds its interest in the possibility of challenging the other members of his family and, consequently, saving a few liters of water. The fourth, "Settings", gives access to four sub-tabs. The first redirects to invoice configurations to select the price of water and kWh. The application, with this data, calculates the savings made.

The “Take a Shower of Reference” sub-tab, as its name suggests, assesses your progress in terms of savings from the reference shower. The last two display the features of your Hydrao shower head and a simple tutorial. Finally, the last main tab presents the legal notices of the product.

Overall, the app is quick to learn and pretty well designed. It exploits all the possibilities offered by the Hydrao shower head very well.

Against competition

There are three types of smart health connected shower systems: the shower head, the water dispenser and the shower column. Soon, we will see fully smart health connected booths, but that is not yet yet. In the meantime, the pioneer in the field is called the Terme.

At the level of the smart health connected knobs, there is no direct competition with the Hydrao. Some play music from smartphones while others produce light for design or depending on water temperature. However, these are not smart health connected. In the meantime, the editorial staff offers you Eva, Nebia or even the Hamwells e-shower systems.

The Hydrao First knob is available on the Smart & Blue website as well as in Leroy Merlin, Carrefour, Auchan and Orange stores, for € 89.90. The product has received numerous awards, including the Grand Prix d'Or for Innovation at the Paris Autumn Fair and two CES 2017 Innovation Awards in Las Vegas. Hydrao also has the support of French TECH, EDF and Green and Tech Verte.

Conclusion

Good points

• Very simple installation

• Innovative and economical features

• A useful application

Negative points

• Sometimes makes a lot of noise

• Shy lights at low pressure and sometimes nonexistent

Overview

Design and ergonomics: Classic but very simple to installFeatures: Innovative but hazardous operationApplication: Complements and exploits all the capabilities of the deviceValue for money: A bit expensive for a shower head but can save water and energy. According to the will of the user

3.4

 3.4 out of 5 

In the average

(Review) Hydrao: illuminate and connect your shower 

Reviewed by Sebastien  

we 2016-11-30

   Design and ergonomics: Classic but very simple to installFeatures: Innovative but hazardous operationApplication: Complements and exploits all the capabilities of the deviceValue for money: A bit expensive for a shower head but can save water and energy. According to the will of the user

Rating: 3.4 

AB SMART HEALTH REVIEW