AeroGarden Bounty Basic vs Elite: Similarities & Differences
Naila Syifa
Updated November 2024
When it comes to indoor hydroponic gardening, AeroGarden's Bounty series offers two compelling options: the Bounty Basic and the Bounty Elite. While both models provide efficient year-round growing solutions for herbs, vegetables, and flowers, they differ in several key aspects that might influence your purchasing decision.
Let's break down their similarities and differences to help you determine which model best suits your indoor gardening needs!
Key Takeaways
While the AeroGarden Bounty Basic and Elite share fundamental features like growing capacity and vacation mode, the Elite model distinguishes itself with dimmable LED, app remote control, Alexa compatibility, touchscreen display, and premium stainless steel construction.
AeroGarden Bounty Basic
Simple & Spacious Indoor Gardening
✓ Grow up to 9 Plants
✓ 30W LED Grow Light
✓ Hi-Res Control Panel
✓ Vacation Mode
AeroGarden Bounty Elite
Advanced Indoor Gardening
✓ Grow up to 9 Plants
✓ 50W LED with Infinite Dimming
✓ Sunrise/Sunset Auto Light Dimming
✓ Remote Control via App
Design
AeroGarden Bounty Basic
Similarities
Every AeroGarden model in the Bounty series supports up to 9 plants with a maximum growing height of 24 inches, so the Bounty Basic and Elite are identical in this aspect.
With that in mind, they also share a similar sleek design and size, with 16.5-inch length, 18.12-inch width, and 14.5 to 30-inch adjustable height.
Differences
What sets the two apart is the exterior material, with the Bounty Elite boasting a more premium stainless steel finish that looks more sophisticated and durable than the Basic's standard matte plastic construction.
There is another minor design difference in terms of color options, as the Basic comes in black and cool gray while the Elite is available in silver or black.
Control Interface
AeroGarden Bounty Elite
Similarities
The control panel of both Bountys includes a digital display and a few touch buttons, which allow for various settings adjustments, including lighting schedules, plant food cycle, pump cycle, and more.
The display's home screen shows essential information like water level, days since planting, and days until the next nutrient feeding is due. These features help you monitor and maintain optimal growing conditions for your plants, so you won't forget when to add water or plant food to your garden.
Differences
Bounty Elite has a more advanced full-color touchscreen display that is easy and intuitive to navigate. The Basic model features a grayscale non-touch display, so navigating through the menu and settings requires using the touch buttons instead.
Talking about the buttons, the Bounty Elite also offers more buttons than the Bounty Basic, providing better quick access to important features and settings.
For example, Bounty Elite has a dedicated Vacation Mode button, which can enable/disable the vacation mode with a simple touch. In the Bounty Basic, you'll have to navigate through multiple menu screens to access the vacation mode settings.
These differences make the Elite model more user-friendly and convenient to operate on a daily basis.
Lighting
AeroGarden Bounty Basic
Similarities
Bounty Basic and Elite feature an LED Grow Light with an automatic timer, which means the light will turn on and off at a specific time to provide optimal lighting conditions for your plants without any manual intervention.
This lighting schedule is customizable in the control panel to match your preferences and the specific needs of your plants. You may want to set a 16-hour ON cycle for veggies or 17 hours for herbs.
Different plants at different growth stages require different exposure durations for optimal growth and yield, so having this flexibility in lighting control is essential for successful indoor gardening.
Differences
LED Grow Light of the Bounty Elite has 67% higher wattage than the Bounty Basic – 50W vs 30W. A higher wattage means your plants will receive more intense light energy, potentially leading to faster and more robust growth, especially for light-hungry plants like tomatoes and peppers.
On top of that, the LED light of the Bounty Elite is dimmable to any brightness level you want while that of the Basic model is not dimmable. Different plant types at different growth stages require different light intensities, so having the ability to adjust brightness gives you more control over your plants' growth.
Dimmability also means more comfort for you when the light feels too bright for your living space or during specific times of the day. Imagine having a dinner or movie night with your AeroGarden nearby. The bright LED light might be distracting, but with the Elite, you can easily dim it to a more comfortable level.
In addition, the Bounty Elite offers an extra Sunrise/Sunset Auto Light Dimming feature. When activated, this automated system gradually adjusts the light intensity to mimic natural daylight patterns. It will fade in/out over 1 hour before completely turning on/off, creating a more natural environment for your plants and a more pleasant transition for your home.
Smart Features
AeroGarden Bounty Elite
Similarities
Both the Bounty Basic and Bounty Elite offer a Vacation Mode, a smart feature that adjusts lighting and water cycles to minimize maintenance needs while you're away.
It reduces light intensity and water consumption to slow plant growth, allowing you to leave your garden unattended for longer periods without worrying about your plants dying or becoming overgrown.
Differences
The Bounty Elite is compatible with Alexa for voice control of basic functions, such as turning the LED Grow Light on and off. Hands-free voice control means you can manage your garden even when your hands are busy with other tasks or you're across the room.
On top of that, the Bounty Elite can be connected to the AeroGarden app, thanks to its Wi-Fi connectivity. The app allows remote control and monitoring of the garden, so you can keep tabs on your plants and adjust settings from anywhere using your smartphone.
The Bounty Basic supports neither the app remote control nor Alexa voice control. It relies solely on manual operation through its control panel, making the Elite model more versatile and convenient in terms of control options and accessibility.
AeroGarden Bounty Basic vs Elite
Final Thoughts
AeroGarden Bounty Elite
AeroGarden Bounty Basic and Elite are similar in their overall design, growing capacity, and core functionality, including features like customizable lighting schedule and vacation mode.
However, the Bounty Elite offers significant upgrades like a stainless steel finish, higher wattage LED lights with dimming capabilities, a full-color touchscreen display, and smart features like app remote control and Alexa compatibility, making it the superior choice for hands-on gardeners who want maximum control and convenience.
If you like to read more about Indoor Smart Garden, check out our other relevant guides here:
AeroGarden Harvest 2.0 vs Harvest Elite
AeroGarden Harvest 2.0 vs Bounty
AeroGarden Harvest Elite vs Bounty Elite
AeroGarden Bounty vs Bounty Basic
AeroGarden Bounty vs Bounty Elite
Author
Naila Syifa
Content Manager at Synced. She crafts insightful content on the latest trends in technology, consumer electronics, and smart home gadgets.
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