subject: Buying A Video Baby Monitor As A Gift [print this page] Buying a video baby monitor as a gift is a great idea. It's one of those items that many parents wish for, and indeed consider an essential nursery item. However, when it comes to choosing an ideal video baby monitor it can be very confusing as there are so many of them available. Before you start to tear your hair out here are a few things you need to think about.
Type of Transmission
The first consideration is what type of video baby monitor to buy. Monitors these days have either an analog or digital transmission that run on different frequencies. Analog monitors are cheaper to buy but are more open to interference. Digital monitors offer a more secure and interference free reception, but tend to be pricier. However, digital frequencies can be open to interference so many of the newer models now utilize digital frequency hop and data encryption technology. This not only makes it virtually interference free, but offers optimal security so you dont have to worry about your transmission being intercepted by neighbors.
Signal Range
Some monitors offer a signal range of 350 feet up to 650 feet with a clear line of vision, although in reality the range tends to be shorter because of concrete walls, furniture etc in the way. If the monitor is for someone who lives in a large house with a big back or front yard, then you will want to go for a model with a longer signal range as opposed to someone who lives in small apartment.
Portability
There are video baby monitors that cant easily be moved around. As most parents are moving around most of the day it would probably be a good ideal to buy one that's portable. This means that the parent unit can be easily handheld, has a kick out stand so they can place it on a table top or even has a belt clip so they can attach it to a belt, waistband or pocket.
Features
What sort of features are parents looking for in their video baby monitors? Obviously they want to be able to see their baby clearly both day and night. Most monitors come with a LCD color screen, and automatic black and white night vision. The screen sizes vary, however. They range from a small screen, around 1.5 up to a large 7 which is great if not a bit excessive. Parents seem satisfied with a 3.5 screen and this is perfectly adequate, although I would say anything between 2.4 and 3.5 is good. There are video monitors that have a basic black and white day and night screen which some parents find perfectly adequate and is cheaper too. However, I do think that having a color screen is much nicer for day time viewing.
Other features that you will find on video baby monitors include talk-to-baby intercom, voice activation alert, temperature sensor, lullabies, camera pan, scan and zoom and night light. The more features a model has the pricier it can become.
Apart from night vision, I think the most important features are: talk-to-baby intercom which means you can soothe your baby without having to go into the room; audio only mode so you can turn the video off (conserves energy) and you are alerted when your baby starts to whimper or cry. This is a great for parents at night as they can then see whether they need to get up; and expandability. Its always useful to choose a model that has the option of adding additional cameras. This allows the parent to have a camera in different rooms, great for an expanding family.
As you see, buying a video baby monitor as a gift is not as easy as you probably thought as there are so many factors to take into account. So which one should you go for? I would say that you should choose the best model you can afford that offers an interference free signal, optimal security, expandability and the most important features. You have to remember that this is a gift that will probably be used for many years.
by: Jessica Johnson
welcome to Insurances.net (https://www.insurances.net)
