The eufy E21 delivers a clear, detailed picture on both the 5-inch parent unit and through the app, with the 4K camera making it easy to see small details.
Does it come with any smart features?
Yes, and unlike some baby monitors where the extra features feel a little gimmicky, Maisie found several of the eufy E21's smart features genuinely useful day to day.
The monitor includes cry detection, sound alerts and temperature monitoring. Maisie found the cry alerts reassuring, although they were a little sensitive until she adjusted the settings. The temperature display proved particularly useful during the recent heatwave, allowing her to quickly check that her baby's room wasn't getting too warm overnight.
She also made regular use of the built-in white noise and nature sounds. “They helped settle my baby and meant I didn’t need to take a separate sound machine with us when travelling,” she says.
The eufy Baby app also allows continuous recording when a microSD card is installed. Maisie later discovered she could still take screenshots and record short video clips through the app without an SD card, which she found a useful bonus.
Having previously tested a few baby monitors, Maisie appreciated that the eufy E21’s smart features felt genuinely useful rather than being included simply for the sake of it.
Does the eufy E21 5" Smart Video Baby Monitor use Wi-Fi and how is the signal?
Yes. One of the eufy E21's key features is that it can be used with or without Wi-Fi. The parent unit connects directly to the camera, while the app allows you to check in remotely when connected to Wi-Fi.
Maisie found the connection reliable overall and didn't experience any significant dropouts during testing. “I liked knowing that the parent unit would still work if the Wi-Fi dropped out,” she says, as it made the monitor feel more dependable both at home and while travelling.
At home, the signal remained strong through walls and between floors, allowing Maisie to carry the parent unit around the house without losing connection. There was occasionally a slight delay when opening the app or loading the live view, but it usually connected within a few seconds.
The only time she noticed any issues was while staying in a large Airbnb with weaker Wi-Fi. In that environment, the app sometimes took longer to load, although the parent unit remained reliable and she didn't experience any major freezing or disconnections.
How is the video quality?
Video quality was one of the standout features for Maisie. “I thought the video quality was excellent,” she says. “The picture was sharp and clear, and I could easily see small details such as my baby’s facial expressions, sleeping position and whether his eyes were open.”
The 5-inch parent screen provided a clear view for quick checks, although Maisie felt the 4K image looked even more impressive on her phone. Night vision also performed well. “Night vision was very clear, and I could see my son well in both dark rooms and different daytime lighting conditions,” she says.
Maisie was equally impressed by the camera controls. “The pan and tilt controls made it easy to look around the room, and the zoom stayed surprisingly detailed,” she explains. One feature she used particularly often was the baby-focused zoom, which allowed her to get a close-up view of her son’s face without manually repositioning the camera.
The video feed was smooth for the most part, although Maisie occasionally noticed a slight delay when the picture first loaded or when viewing through the app. Overall, she felt the picture quality was “one of the monitor’s strongest features.”