Video Baby Monitor: A Real Lifesaver for Every Parent

The problem of looking after a child at a time when you urgently need to leave the child’s room is probably known to every parent. During this time, it is important to know that the baby is fine and does not need anything. An innovative device, which is known as a video baby monitor will help ensure minute-by-minute control during the absence of parents.

Can a Video Baby Monitor Replace a Nanny?

Not, it cannot. But it can help you look after the babysitter to make sure that your baby is fine. The baby monitor is a small device, usually consisting of a small camera and a video screen. The first is installed in the child’s room and records live everything that happens in the radius of its coverage. The screen transmits these events to mom life or in the recording. A video baby monitor is a real rescue for a busy young mother who wants to not only be constantly up to date with her child’s life but also be active in other fields of her life.

All baby monitors are similar to each other, they differ only in a set of options and screen size.

mother-baby-monitor

The Benefits of a Baby Monitor

The baby monitor is the best mom’s assistant. It has a lot of advantages, among which are the following:

  • It makes life easier for parents. The portable device allows you to watch a child from anywhere in the house within a radius of 200 meters. Just recently it was scary to think about moving away from your beloved child further than five steps. Today this problem is solved. You have the opportunity to do the usual chores at home or at work, to leave when necessary and at the same time not to lose control over the baby.
  • A video baby monitor can become your silent companion and protector of the child, if you turn it on during the work of your babysitter. It may be difficult for a mom to leave her child with a stranger. In this situation, by using video baby monitor, you will be calm for the mental and physical health of your child, and that means a lot.
  • A baby monitor is absolutely necessary if you want to give your child the opportunity to develop independently. At the same time, the factor of maternal control does not disappear anywhere. Moreover, watching your own child from the side, you will know exactly what he is interested in, what toys he loves and which ones he doesn’t play with, what games he enjoys and how he behaves in the absence of his parents. This, in turn, will allow you to set the correct vector in the education of your child.
  • Another indisputable, although unobvious advantage of the baby monitor is its ease of use. No other device can transmit video information about your child as accurately, quickly and efficiently.

Key Parameters of Baby Monitors

  • Range of action. If you live in an apartment, then you may not worry about this parameter. The baby monitor operates at a distance of 150-200 meters. But remember that the signal level may decrease due to a large number of obstacles or the use of certain finishing materials.
  • The color of the monitor. You can buy a device with a black and white or color monitor. In the first case, the cost of a baby monitor will be less, but watching a child on such a monitor is not very convenient.
  • The sound. In good models of devices, it will be possible to listen to the child not only through the speaker, but also through the headphones, which is more preferable.
  • Night mode. This is a very important feature if you use a video baby monitor to watch your baby at night. The same function is useful in low light conditions. The transition to night mode, as a rule, occurs automatically.
  • Individual device models can be connected to a TV or computer. This will help not only improve the picture, but also get the opportunity to record what is happening on the screen to watch it later.
  • The video baby monitor in your free time can be used as a regular TV, which can transmit some television channels. Also, in some devices there is an alarm clock that will help you wake up for a walk or bathing your baby.
  • The device can be placed on a flat surface, worn on a belt or hung on a wall, for which special fasteners are responsible.
  • As for the price of the device, it will depend on the configuration and functionality of a certain model.

Pros of Baby Monitor

  • The ability to see everything that happens with the baby, even at night with the lights off thanks to the use of infrared technology.
  • The use of a remote control allows you to control the camera and see all the inaccessible for viewing places in the room.
  • New models of baby monitors are equipped with a feedback function.
  • Night light and lullabies provide an opportunity to lull the baby without going into the nursery.
  • “Sleep” mode allows you to save battery power: the display goes blank if the room is quiet, and turns on again, reacting to crying baby and other sounds.

Cons of Baby Monitor

  • High price
  • Increased power consumption
  • The ability to receive a signal at a short distance

Types of Baby Monitors

Nowadays, baby monitors can be divided into three groups:

  1. Classic baby monitors with their own direct connection between the units and without connecting to Wi-Fi. The camera (a child’s unit) broadcasts the image and sound, and the monitor (parents’ unit) receives the signal.
  2. Wi-Fi video baby monitor without a parent unit. This is a camera that connects to a home Wi-Fi network with Internet access. Observation is carried out on the screen of a smartphone or a laptop.
  3. Dual-mode baby monitors (with hybrid communication). Such a device is a classic video baby monitor with two units and with direct connection between them, but it can also connect to a home Wi-Fi network so that it is possible to watch a child through an app on a smartphone or a laptop.

Important Features of Baby Monitors

  1. Night vision – all baby monitors are equipped with it.
  2. Activation when a VOX sound is detected. In this mode, the monitor screen goes blank to save energy, and turns on when there is sound near the camera.
  3. Feedback. Allows you to not only hear the sound from the nursery, but also transmit your own voice from the parent unit.
  4. Lullabies.
  5. The night light on the camera.
  6. Motion detector. The baby monitor signals the parents if the camera detects movement in the nursery.
  7. System to overcome interference. It can be DSSS or FHSS. This is an important feature due to which home electronic devices operating on the same frequency, for example, a microwave oven or bluetooth devices, do not violate the stability of the baby monitor.
  8. Video and photo record. The function can be called relevant only for Wi-Fi video monitors without a monitor. In the process of caring for a child, the function is useless. Usually parents practically do not use it. But, if in the future, when the baby grows up, you need a camera as a device to monitor your home or pet, then recording videos and photos will be very helpful.

Important Design Features of the Baby Monitor

A Rotating Camera

The cameras of many models are equipped with a servo drive, thanks to which it can be rotated in any direction by pressing the buttons of the parent unit.

The Battery in the Monitor

A full charge should be enough for 4 hours of operation when the display is on. Otherwise, the baby monitor will be completely inconvenient to use.

Battery in the Camera

In cameras with a rotary mechanism, there is not much space for the battery. So, manufacturers balance between the compactness of the camera and the battery capacity.

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Touch Screen

This is also an important feature for mobility. A monitor with a touch screen requires fewer physical buttons since the functions are controlled by pressing directly on the screen. This makes the parent unit not as bulky as the models with a conventional display.

 Fixation on a Stroller or a Crib

Still, parents should be warned about setting the camera on a crib or a baby stroller. There are two main reasons for this:

  • A baby monitor is primarily an electrical appliance that is not safe to place close to a child. Even with a camera equipped with a battery, you will need to connect the power cord (after all, it should be regularly charged). A child can reach for a wire and get an electric shock, which in turn can cause a tragedy.
  • The baby monitor is the signal transmitter, and the parent unit is the receiver. No matter how manufacturers assure us of the safety of their products, the camera is still a source of electromagnetic radiation, the safety of which has not yet been proven. For an hour or two of operation of the device, there will certainly not be significant harm. Still, it is worth considering the fact that the baby monitor works at home all the time. So it is advisable to place it at a distance of not less than one and a half meters from the child and outside his access area.

Where and How to Install a Video Baby Monitor?

Installing a video baby monitor does not require special skills and recommendations. The information in the instructions is enough to establish the device.

The camera can be fixed on any horizontal plane, wall, or ceiling if special accessories are included in the kit. The most functional are cameras with a panoramic holder. Thanks to this tripod, the camera can be installed in any direction.

It is not recommended to place the video baby monitor near metal objects (for example, heating radiators), as well as directly next to other wireless devices. Such a neighborhood can cause mutual radio interference. For the image on the monitor to be good, the camera should not be directed to a window or a bright light source.

Experts warn parents against the use of video baby monitors in rooms with high humidity – in the pool or bathroom since these devices are usually not designed to operate in such conditions.