Baby safety monitors can help you monitor your baby while away from his or her bedroom. The baby safety monitor is composed of two parts : a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter is placed in the child's room and the receiver, in the parents' room. The sounds coming from the baby's room are transmitted (transmitter) to the parents' room (receiver) and alert them of any abnormal sound.
Those devices allow you to remotely monitor your baby and alert you when your baby is unhappy. Hence, those baby safety monitors you to keep a close eye on their baby without having to disturb them. Baby safety monitors can be used as soon as you welcome your baby to his or her new home.
Prices
It varies in function of the model chosen. Some type of transmission technology used will cost you more. While basic devices only transmit and receive sounds, other more sophisticated ones offer a surveillance infrared video camera that allow parents to see what their baby is doing at all time. The size of the device also impact on the cost of the intercom, the smaller ones being the most expensive ones. Other newer devices even offer more high-tech features that may be useful. For instance, some models include a warning by vibrating mode of parents' mobile phones. Other models have a built-in silent mode receiver which consist of a light which luminosity will vary depending on the intensity of the recorded sound. That feature can be useful if a loud sound such as a vacuum cleaner covers the sound of the baby monitor.
Radio waves
Before doing your final decision, identify what are your needs and what is the minimal length of reach you need in order to receive a clear sound (or image for fancier devices). For small apartments, the range needed will be much smaller (few feet or meters) while for big houses, a much larger length of reach range will be needed(few hundreds feet or meters). When the monitor uses radio waves, it is also important to consider the number of channels available. A baby safety monitor with more channels with be more costly, but will show less interference if there are a lot of electronic devices in the surroundings. Less expensive models have one or two frequencies, while high-end models offer up to 64 different frequencies. In between, models offer a range of options (8, 10, 12 frequencies).
Autonomy
Baby safety monitors can be powered by 3 different source of power: battery, rechargeable battery or AC power. The first model, the basic battery model, are fairly inexpensive, but have a more limited autonomy. Because batteries need to be changed, they can become quite expensive! On the other hand, the great advantage of the battery models is (just like the rechargeable battery models) that they are very portable, are easy for parents to move around. Models that are powered with a rechargeable battery tend to be generally a little more expensive than the basic battery model, but on the long run, those models can come up less expensive to maintain. AC models need to be constantly connected to a power outlet in order to function. While AC powered models are not very convenient during day time, they can be a preferred choice at night, when they don't need to be moved around.