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View Full Version : Looking for the best baby monitor



JeffreyTCook
07-15-2001, 06:55 PM
Wanted to get some feedback on a good baby monitor...anyone have a good experience, a really bad experience, features to look for,etc...any info would be greatly appreciated...

rebwal
07-16-2001, 01:20 PM
I owned the Crisp n' Clear and absolutely hated it. Every time we turned it on all we heard was static, and if you read past boards, I'm not the only one who has/had this problem. I read through a lot of previous boards and came to the conclusion that Fisher Price makes a really good monitor. So, I went with that brand. They had numerous models, it just depends on what features you're looking for. The only thing I liked about the Crisp n' Clear was that it came with a rechargeable battery for the parent pack (and seemed the only one on the market to have this feature). Now, Fisher Price has a model with this feature!

haydees
07-19-2001, 10:28 PM
You may want to steer clear of the AngelCare sound and movement monitor. We bought it hoping it would give us a warning if our daughter stopped breathing for whatever reason but it's never worked: not in the bassinet with the super thin mattress and not in the crib. It doesn't detect the movement well at all and the alarm goes off several times a minute. She is now 15 pounds and virtually out of the SIDS risk period and it still doesn't work.
In sound-only detection mode, the signal to noise is terrible and we have this continuously hissing appliance in our bedroom at night.
It's an overpriced gadget that doesn't work.

jtemberson
07-25-2001, 11:13 PM
LAST EDITED ON Jul-25-01 AT 10:15PM (Mountain)[p]Definitely steer clear of the the video monitor (I forget exactly what it is called but it is made by Safety first). We had terrible reception both sight and sound. I returned the first one thinking it was a defect and had the same prob with the second. It would work ok for 5 minutes then it would slowly fade to static on the video and audio after 10 minutes.... We then went with the Crisp and Clear by first years. I love the rechargeable feature but I don't think the reception is too great. Our house is about 2100 sq feet so it is not too big but it couldn't handle my parents larger house. My parents 7 yr old Radio Shack baby montior has much longer and better reception....I would check out FP model if it now has rechargeable feature like prev poster said......

jennifermiller
07-26-2001, 11:05 PM
Hi! I went though 12 monitors before I happended across the Evenflo Constant Care 4000. It's about $40 and works great, no static or feedback. All the others I tried were awful, lots of static. It has lights so you can "see" the level of noise your baby's making, especially if you turn the volume down some at night. I think they've got a new one out with two receivers, but I'm not positive on that. Overall, we've been really pleased with it.

bjessen
07-31-2001, 11:55 PM
LAST EDITED ON Jul-31-01 AT 11:01PM (Mountain)[p]I have been through 4 monitors and the Phillips brand at Target is the only one I found without any static. Now that being said, let me say I didn't initially like it. Also, we live in San Diego in a condo (high density...lots of other monitors likely in the area) and have ceiling fans (can cause interference). So, my experience will definately be different then someone who lives in the country.

My first monitor was a Safety 1st Sensitive Sound (I think) with rechargeable battery. Worked great for a week, then had complete static. It has 4 channels and I'll be darned if all 4 channels didn't produce static. Also picked up people's phone conversations.

My next was the Phillips. No static. However, when I was showering I all the sudden looked up and the lights were going crazy. Went from dead silence to wailing. I realized that this monitor has no low level noise. It only picks up when it gets to a certain sound level. When my daughter was only a few weeks old, I didn't like it. My husband was deployed and I was quite overwhelmed. I wanted to hear her as she was first getting fussy so I could rush in and grab her before she started to cry since once she started it was difficult for her to stop.

So, I returned it and went for a First Years 900mhz monitor. Liked the compact size and rechargeable battery. This was great for a day or two and then had a constant clicking sound. By then my husband came back home. It drove us both crazy at night. Not to mention, I again occasionally had phone conversations picked up.

So, we returned it and found the First Years 2.4ghz monitor. We thought since this was a new technology there might be less interference...wrong! This had a constant light sound that also was annoying, though no phone conversations this time. It too was returned.

I then mentioned to my husband that the Phillips was the only one without static and no phone conversations picked up, but I didn't like that I couldn't hear her fussing or cooing. He pointed out that that would just wake us when she might go back to sleep anyway. She now was a couple months older (3 months to be exact) and if she started crying, when I walked into the room she usual stopped immediately anyway. So, we went out and rebought the Phillips. Have been using it ever since.

So, would I recommend it? Yes. However, probably not if you want to hear every sound. It is great after the 3 month mark. I may still try another monitor when we have our next child for the beginning months, but in the meantime this is the only one I found that didn't have any interference. It also has rechargeable batteries which was a feature we wanted besides static free use. Hopefully their will be a better choice in the future.

BTW, I wish there was a test for these things that included testing in high and low density areas. I think it makes a big difference. I did use the First Years 900mhz monitor at my parents who live in a very rural area and had no problem at all.

Monica
08-02-2001, 05:54 PM
We just purchased the Fisher Price Sound n' Lights. Our child isn't due until October, but I tested it out - took it outside and to other rooms, plus called someone to check out interference with cordless phone. It worked just fine and wasn't too expensive (about $25).

luvrose
08-09-2001, 05:21 PM
We started out with the FP Sound & Lights. It was fine at first, but gradually deteriorated into constant static, which no amount of battery changing, cord twiddling, slamming or middle-of-the-night cursing would stop. So then we went to the one with the two-way capabilities and the pop-out portable monitor (oh, I can't remember -- Safety First, I think) We loved it, too, until it started screeching at us like a fax machine in the middle of the night and picking up phone calls. So was were advised by the Safety First folks to go out and buy non-900MHz monitor. We got the Graco Ultra-Clear and love it. It is the quietest we've had, and it never picks up phones or other interference.

nymom
08-27-2001, 08:04 AM
We just replaced our Fisher-Price Sounds So Clear Monitor with the Sony Sound-Sensor Monitor and are extremeny pleased. The Sounds So Clear gave us alot of static and feedback. We live in a high rise apartment and have two 900 MHz phones in opur apt. so those two things may have had something to do with how poorly the Sounds So Clear worked. But now that our 12 week old is sleeping through the night, i don't want to be woken up by static and decided to try a different monitor. The Sony (at Babies-R-Us for $30) works fantastic, no static, no feedback, just baby sounds. I highly recommend it!

dianaco
09-06-2001, 01:20 AM
I've gone through monitor hell in san diego. We tried both the first years monitors that are sooo highly rated and all we got was static. We finally found the evenflo monitor and we love it!
Great features: Recharagable batteries on the parent monitor, intercom feature on parent monitor (this allows me to sing or talk to my 3 1/2 month old when she wakes and I am on my way to her - this gives her a feeling of comfort that her cries are being anwsered or to request that my husband bring down some burp rags or whatever), sound and lights, wasteband clip, good range of distance we love it:)
The only negative is that the monitor is fairly large.

ecarley
09-10-2001, 07:30 PM
we have a FP Sound and Lights with 2 receivers. It works great, no static and we can even hear our baby's breathing if we turn up the volume. All three pieces have plugs, and the receivers can take 9-volt batteries. They're available at Target around here.

We really wanted 2 receivers so we could leave one in our room and another could travel around the house. So we never flop into bed and then realize we left the receiver in the kitchen or wherever.

ebergman
10-22-2001, 10:19 AM
Does anyone know about the Graco Ultra Clear Monitor or the UltraClear Plus Monitor? What is the difference between the 49 Mhz and the 900 MHz? I have a 900 MHz cordless phone, so what frequency monitor should I get?

jacks_mom
11-13-2001, 09:25 PM
I've got the Safety 1st Sight & Sound, and it is the best baby gadget we've got! We get excellent reception, both sight and sound, and can watch our baby from the comfort of our bed, or from our living room while watching tv. It saves us from constantly getting up to check on him, and provides so much joy, just watching him.

I highly recommend it, though I understand everyone's reception may vary.

heather10
03-30-2002, 04:46 PM
I am researching this right now and found a great website with opinions from other parents at http://www.epinions.com

More than just baby stuff!

I am going to go with the FP vibrating monitor which has rechargeable batteries!

munchkinsmom
04-03-2002, 06:44 PM
Ditto. This was the first one we tried -for the same reason - the dual receivers. FP was highly rated in general, so we went with it. We've had nothing but a good experience. Once in about every 2 weeks we'll get a brief period of static - 30 seconds worth. We live near an airport, so there's plenty of chance for interference, and it just never happens. It picks up a lot of sound with the volume turned up - we hear the airplanes in stereo, the sound of a plastic mobile clinking, a picture vibrating against the wall. With the volume down a little, it's perfect.

akc
04-06-2002, 06:25 AM
Hi -

Sorry to give a differing opinion, but I disagree with the post to steer clear of the video monitor. We have the Safety 1st Child view video monitor and LOVE it! The picture and sound are perfectly clear (the only exception is when you have it in the kitchen and are running the microwave, but c'mon...) And, lest you think it's b/c of our home, it's not -- we live in a three-story, 100-year old (very solid) brick home. I have better reception on the monitor than I do on our cordless phones! We got it because it is very reassuring to me to see the baby and not overact to all the sounds because I don't know what's going on. (You can, by the way, also set it to only do sound if you don't want to see the picture) You quickly learn the hiccups, snorts, pauses, etc. are ok when you can see the child sleeping soundly. It's more peaceful than any tv I've watched & our friends are mesmorized!

A second testimony - our next door neighbors had the video monitor first for their son (now 18 mos). They used to bring it over to our house after their son was in bed in his nursery and they could watch him - sound and picture were completely clear and he was about 35 feet away in another house! They now have a second camera for their second son (newborn) and can see one on one channel and one on another (you have three channels on the monitor). Believe it or not, if we set our camera in our house to the channel they have their sons on, we can see & hear them perfectly too!

I would say finally - this is not because we wanted a cool gadget. I am a somewhat obsessive person who was afraid that I would go crazy with just hearing sounds & wondering what was up with my child. The video monitor has made that a non-issue!

Good luck!
akc