How do you choose a baby monitor?

[MrsMcSpooky]

So baffled by the choice, can anyone give me some useful tips?

you're at it again aren't you??

I have discovered that generally following your questions helps me on the way to thinking about the stuff I need to be thinking about, and getting lots of helpful MN'ers answers!

I honestly have only bought one baby top, that was after my 20 week scan, was excited. Am sh*ing self now am so disorganised, not even sure when I'm stopping work for mat leave, and due in just over 10 weeks!!

I look forward to baby monitor info though! Thanks! x

Hi Mrs! Again!

Well... I had a fairly cheapo Tomy one which was good because you could walk around with the parent bit. It was very basic and only meant you could hear baby... which is really IMO all you need to do. I think that people prefer a digital one nowadays as they are generally clearer than the old type. However, are more money. I reckon though that for what you actually need, a cheap, walkabout non-digital one is fine.

anything that allows you to hear baby is fine - we had a good ole Tomy one, but after a few months we got fed up of picking up the radios of passing taxi's at all hours! so we moved to a philips digital, but only cos it was a gift - i begrudge paying money for things like that.

this is useful info

oh and it's ESSENTIAL it has a mute switch....can watch the lights gooing nuts and not hear a thing - helps you eat dinner in peace and then go up afterwards to sort em out.

At night as mine got older, i used to switch mine onto mute after dh had dropped off - he was paranoid about hearing them all the time, but never got up or did anything about the noise, so i would switch off, i could listen to chunters through the walls, but if they really needed me they would soon let me know......

Thank you all keep those suggestions coming!

Chunkypudding - LOL it's called lazy research and on the whole the answers you get are so helpful you sound so chilled, wish I was more like you!

Honey full of questions this afternoon! I?ve realised that if we stay in our current house, I am going to need a monitor. Thanks for that site, I?ll check that out.

So ? I need one that:

• I can walk around with the parent bit
• Can hear the baby (hope they all have that!)
• Digital if possible to avoid interference
• Mute switch

My sis had one with a mat under the mattress than made a noise if the baby hadn?t moved for a while ? would that work in an Amby I wonder Honey?

Also, how about two way talking? I see that on a lot of them ? would that be useful to soothe the baby?

I would buy the cheapest that works in your house unless you live in a mansion and really wont be able to hear your baby cry from the west wing
I bought a mega cheap tomy thing but it was terrible for interference andnyway tried two more before we ended up with the lights one which worked.
We only ever use it for in the lounge when ds was in bed in case we didnt hear him over the tv, have never needed to use it anywhere else apart from the dining room if outside having BBQ.

the one that uses under mattress is angel care digital very good

I have a spare angelcare monitor with the senor mat for sale. But its missing the power adapter for the parent unit, but can be powered with a battery, if anyone is interested.

chilled?? nah not me Mrs Mc, just stressed about too many things to get my head around what I need to buy for LO.

went round to our new house last night, is literally a building site and we're just about to rip bathroom out too!

And I still haven't worked out when i can actually stop work, may end up giving birth in the office

Am really rather chuffed that I sound chilled out though, think have reached such a manic point of stress that its just all funny now really!

and thanks to you asking all the right questions I'll know everything I need to buy soon! btw did you decide on buggy?

sorry this was sort of a hijack-ish type thing

Hi, Mrs Mc - I'm a first timer, so can't claim to be speaking from experience BUT have just ordered digital BT monitor from Amazon - normally 50quid but half price at the moment. It does everything people recommend on here. Neighbout recommeded we get digital or we'll be listening on them and their LOs! Lol!

Thanks

Does anyone know if you can use the under mattress ones with a nature?s nest?

Chunkypudding ? we ordered the bugaboo cameleon in the end, it is the best one for us and any other would have been a compromise.

Minicooper ? that sounds like a tip worth checking out, thanks

Aah, Mrsmc, that question about the sensor mat and the natures nest is something I've been wondering about too!! Well done for asking!

We 3 of the things but only use 1 as the other 2 had such bad interference. Tomy plug in one didn't work as we have 2 electricity circuits in our house (loft conversion)and there was quite a big buzz. Second one was anologue but no good as it picked up the planes going overhead.

We got a BT digital in the end which is brilliant, no interference, a sensitivity button so you can hear every murmur or just crying, also a talk back button which is great for us as we are in the loft and baby is downstairs so he can't hear us at all without this.

personally don't worry about a mat thingy one - it will drive u insane! My twins were in hosp for 8 weeks when they were born, on all sorts of monitors that went off at the slightest hint....when we got em home we just wanted some peace and quiet!

Seriously babies breathing can be irregular, so the mat thing will have you running up and down the stairs every 5 mins - you will never relax.....think about it, what did our parents do when they put us to bed, and we are all fine!