Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I recently hired a contractor to sod my lawn after I did some major backyard renovation work. Prior to him sodding, I knew I would have to water the sod very frequently. I didn't have a hose timer, so I immediately looked to Amazon (my #1 choice) for hose timers. My only criteria (at the time) was that I wanted it to be under $30 (the closer to $20 the better). At the time of purchase (back in July), Of the top 6 hose timers on Amazon, only 4 of them met my criteria. They are as follows: Ranked #1 Orbit 91213 One-Dial Garden Hose Digital Water Timer - $29.98 Ranked #2 Orbit Hose Watering Timer 62024 - $20.49 (The One I'm Reviewing) Ranked #4 Orbit SunMate 62034 Mechanical Watering Timer - $11.17 Ranked #5 Orbit 62061N Single-Dial Water Timer - $24.99 I ended up choosing #2, the one I'm reviewing but really wished I would have chosen #5 (will get to that later). #4 was not an option due to same-day only watering. Physically, nothing is wrong with my timer. It exactly like I expected it to and has no leaks whatsoever. The gray "cover" you see in the picture actually goes over the timer itself (NOT the hose portion as pictured) to protect the "timer dial" from the elements. The reason I wish I got a different timer though is because the frequency of the timer activating is limited to "Daily / Every Other Day / Every 3rd Day". I live in Tennessee where the summers get hot (90+ degree temperatures). Because of my location, I am required to water my sod twice a day. Unfortunately with this timer, the best frequency I can choose is "Daily - Once A Day". So I've found that I've had to manually turn it on in the morning and then again when I get home from work. But due to the mechanics of how it repeats, the timer repeats at the time of day you last turned the dial. Now you must be thinking, with your schedule, you essentially got the same functionality as the #4 ranked timer, Orbit SunMate 62034 Mechanical Watering Timer. In essence yes (due to me watering daily) but once my sod is established, I will probably use this timer for other purposes to water my yard and/or plants with my sprinkled using the other frequency settings available. Now the reason I wish I chose #5 is because #5 is actually a newer model of #1. #1 is ranked just because of purchase frequency. If you Google both timers, you'll find on other reseller pages that Orbit 62061N Single-Dial Water Timer is the newer version of Orbit 91213 One-Dial Garden Hose Digital Water Timer. I'm not sure what is improved, but obviously they look the same AND the 62061N is $5 cheaper. But the main reason I wish I chose #5 is because you get a wider selection of watering "frequency, duration, time start, clock function" all for $5 more than the Orbit 62024. The manual is shared by both of the 91213 & 62061N and according to that, you can set duration anywhere from 1 minute to 4 hours, set the frequency of watering from 6 hrs or 12 hours, or 1 day to up to 7 days. The "Rain Delay" function is nice because with a press of a button, you can choose to skip the "auto watering" via 24 hour intervals up to 72 hours. So with that said, I really wish I got the Orbit 62061N Single-Dial Water Timer for $24.99, but I decided it's not worth the trouble sending it back since I'm already on my 3rd week watering my sod and I really need to keep it watered. Hope this review helps.