First Look: Cubo Ai Sleep Sensor Pad review

Tested by: Roanna, mum of two.

Cubo was co-founded by Joanna Lin, a mum who wanted a way to ensure her baby slept safely after she found her little one with its face accidentally covered. She launched Cubo Ai, pioneering AI technology, to help parents keep their babies safe while they sleep.

Cubo Ai’s Sleep Sensor Pad connects with the Cubo Ai Plus to add motion sensor technology to the suite of helpful information the Cubo Ai already provides.

I’m a mum of two, my son is just about to turn three months old, and so I’m thankful for anything that helps me relax and switch my brain off while he sleeps. Even when you’re tired from months of broken sleep, it’s amazing how worrying about your little one can keep you awake.

We used a very basic baby monitor set up with my daughter, who’s now two, and having to second guess every noise we heard through it was torturous. I’m excited to make the most of the wealth of information; visual, audio and motion, to reassure us while my son sleeps.

Who’s it for?

While a good baby monitor is a given for most parents, the brilliant breakthroughs of AI and motion sensor technology are still fairly new to the market.

Cubo Ai’s Sleep Sensor Pad gives parents live, detailed information on how their baby is sleeping. Combined with the Cubo Ai Plus, parents get precise, accurate updates on their baby without having to do anything other than look at their phone.

Whether you’re a first-time mum looking for extra reassurance or a busy young family needing support in establishing a nap routine for your latest addition, the sleep sensor pad is designed to support healthy sleeping for all types of families.

At first glance

The Cubo Ai Smart Baby Monitor and Sleep Sensor Pad arrives in lovely packaging. I love the welcome message as you open the box: “Our mission is to bring peace of mind and joy to parents everywhere”, from the company’s co-founder Joanna.

Everything in both boxes is neatly laid out and labelled and the accompanying instruction guide is really clear and easy to follow. With two little ones to manage and not much sleep, I’m very glad the set-up process looks so easy.

Cubo Ai obviously prioritise good design and the sleep sensor pad is no exception. It’s slim, lightweight and unobtrusive.

Set-up

Cubo Ai have definitely considered how time-poor parents are and made the set up of their Sleep Sensor Pad as easy as possible.

Our dinner, bath and bed routine is always a little frantic since having two little ones, so I didn’t get round to setting up the Sleep Sensor Pad until my son was already asleep in my arms after his last feed.

I toyed with saving the set-up for the morning but thought I’d give it a go with one hand. All you have to do is click the button on the back of the pad and then slip it under the mattress (I’d inserted the batteries earlier that day). The rest of the set-up you do on the Cubo Ai app.

After popping the sensor pad under your baby’s cot mattress, you open the app, head to settings and click ‘Sleep Sensor Pad Tutorial’. The app then takes you through a really simple connection process which took me a minute, at most.

Once the pad is connected, it will pull real-time information straight to your usual Cubo Ai homepage on the app.

Alongside the live video feed and cry alerts I can now see my son’s ‘micro-movements’. My son is a very wriggly baby, he has been since he was in the womb, and so he ends up in lots of odd positions in the cot. Knowing how important safe sleeping positions are, the pad’s tracking of his micro-movements is incredibly reassuring. Thanks to the Sleep Sensor Pad’s motion tracking I know my son is still happy and breathing even if he’s wiggled over to the side of the crib and has his face pushed against the side.

Stand-out features

Four motion sensors

The Sleep Sensor Pad’s four motion sensors are the standout stars of this product. They cover a wide surface area and provide accurate recordings of your baby's micro movements. The motion sensors can detect ‘micro-movement’, which, when combined with the Cubo Ai Plus’s camera, means you have all the information you need to know your baby is sleeping safely.

If the motion sensors detect no movements in the crib, but the camera AI confirms your little one is still in bed, you will be alerted on your phone to check on your baby.

Non-slip rubber rim

The Sleep Sensor Pad is really well designed with a simple, sleek look. The addition of a non-slip rubber rim to its base means no matter how wriggly your baby is, the pad won’t slip around during the night.

This means the motion sensor technology is only picking up on your little one’s movements and not any disturbance caused by the pad slipping or shifting.

Water-resistant design

No matter how good your nappies are, leaks always happen! Especially when you reach the potty training stage. Thankfully the Sleep Sensor Pad is water-resistant so you don’t need to worry about any of your little one’s accidents causing it to break or malfunction.

Non-contact technology

There’s a lot of faffing involved in any baby’s bedtime routine. After my son’s bath he’s changed into a new nappy and clean sleepsuit. After his last feed he’s then put into a sleep bag. I also have to remember to pop his white noise machine on, close the blinds and spray his mattress with pillow spray. Adding another step would have been really off-putting for me so I love that the Sleep Sensor Pad uses non-contact technology.

I change my son’s nappy two to three times every night at the moment so any wearable technology would also really get in the way during those already pressured moments.

One time installation

Thanks to the Cubo Ai Sleep Sensor Pad’s one time installation design the device is set up and ready to go after you’ve popped it under your little one’s mattress. You don’t need to set it up again every night or for every nap. Anything that saves a bit of time for busy parents is a huge plus.

Key features

• Micro motion detecting technology

• Sleep Sensor Pad AI Mode*

• One time installation

• Connects to Cubo Ai Plus

*From the manufacturer: “When Sleep Sensor Pad AI Mode is on and Sleep Sensor Pad does not detect any movement, Cubo Ai Smart Baby Monitor's AI detection feature can determine whether the baby is in the crib, sending appropriate notifications only when necessary.”

Let’s talk money

The Cubo Ai Sensor Pad retails for £129. It’s also worth bearing in mind that you will need to pair it with the Cubo Ai Plus, which retails at £289. You can purchase a bundle with both - the RRP is £399 but ​prices may vary.

You also need a Cubo Ai Premium subscription to access the tracking on the app. Luckily with the bundle you get one year’s subscription for free, and after this period it’s £4.49 per month or £44.99 per year, so you will need to factor this into the cost after your first year of use.

There’s no denying that’s an investment but the amount of features the pad has and the peace of mind it offers means lots of parents will be happy to invest.

The pad comes with features you can use from birth right up to five years which makes the initial cost feel really reasonable.

With my little boy being such a wriggler I’m already a bit nervous about what happens when he starts to roll over in a few months. Knowing that the Cubo Ai Sleep Sensor Pad will be there to reassure me he’s sleeping safely is helping me not to worry about it too much. It’s the little reassurances like this that accompany your child from the newborn months right up until they’re starting school that make the Cubo Ai Sensor Pad a worthwhile investment.

Verdict (for now)

Honestly, I’ve loved having the Sleep Sensor Pad more than I thought I would. A part of me worried that it would encourage me to check the Cubo Ai app even more but actually knowing how precise the pad’s motion sensors are meant I knew, if anything was wrong, the app would notify me.

Being able to switch off for a few hours while both my kids are asleep in the evening is such an important part of my day. I love that the Sleep Sensor Pad helped reassure me enough to truly relax and stop worrying.

What is a First Look?

First Look pages are sponsored content. They provide an early glimpse of new products, showcasing releases from both exciting new startups and well-loved brands.

We give all new products a thorough once-over, checking that the features are as good as they say and that the product functions as it's supposed to.

This isn't an exhaustive test of the product or how well it performs – look to our Best winners for extensive testing in real life situations. Rather, our First Look features are informed previews, providing a basic overview and getting a feel for the product's most exciting features.