I first came across an Aero Garden at my cousin's. She had gotten the high end LED one as a gift. It was pumping out lots of herbs and a couple of tomatoes. It worked well, and I was tempted but it was way too pricey for me. Fast forward to a month ago, I came across one at goodwill for $5. Price was right. It was missing a bulb but that was on no concern. I intended to convert it to standard CFL or LED bulbs.
The original bulbs are rated to last -for growing - 6 months. They are expensive, $14 each from what I've seen. Standard 6500k 100w equivalent bulbs are two for $8.00 or so, LEDs a lot more. From my research the 6500k CFLs are pretty much what the Aero Garden uses, theirs are proprietary. So for a few $$ I converted mine, there is a lot of info online on various ways of doing it.
I'm going to get some herb kits first, I'm thinking about the 1st of October to start them for winter use. The results my cousin had were very good, and from what I"ve seen on line the system can produce a lot of cherry tomatoes. I'd like some salad greens too, if I come across another cheap unit I'll do that but herbs seem the most practical to me at this point. Also from what I"ve read you can reuse the pods, some reported repacking them with air-conditioner foam seal and such as the medium for growing. Odds are I will explore that after I do the first batch since I find the cost of the pods quite high for what they are.
I now own a Wascomat washer