Philips Avent Digital Baby Monitor with Zero-Interference DECT Technology
by Philips AVENT
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List Price: Category: Baby Product See more product details |
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Baby Products Reviews of Philips Avent Digital Baby Monitor with Zero-Interference DECT Technology
Customer Review: Great features...
Summary: 4 Stars
We purchased this for our second baby this past January. We had some minor issues with our previous model, a Sony, and it had pretty much been worn out. Here are our pros/cons with the SCD589:
1. BATTERIES: You can supposedly switch out the batteries with either non-chargeable or regular. Our old one you had to use a specific rechargeable Sony battery that you had to order on the phone, and it never held a charge more than an hour. Also, the baby unit can run on batteries (or plugged in) which is nice if you want to move it to another part of the house (where ever the baby falls asleep :) ). We have had some issues with the parent unit battery charge, it does not last long, and sometimes we can't get it to charge at all. It's also nice because it travels (comes with a nice bag) and I use it when I am at my parents house and it can run on batteries.
2: ROOM TEMP INDICATOR: We thought this was a useless feature, but once we got it we have used it often. Our daughter was born in the winter (Midwest very cold) and our kids rooms can vary in temp from ours by as much as 10 degrees. This was a hand feature and works very accurately.
3: TWO WAY COMM: This is a great feature. We use it all the time, especially when I am nursing (which can take a while) and my husband wants to check on me or has a question/comment or vs versa.
4. LIGHTS/SOUND: Do not get this if you want the lights/music feature. They are worthless. The stars light up about a 1/2" around, not enough to light up anything. The music is also BAD - plays really short portions of music and the sound is horrible (I don't know how to explain it - it does not sound like any instrument/digital music). Considering its a Phillips we were very surprised by this.
5. CLARITY: It is very clear no matter where I am. However, it does not turn on at the slightest sound. There are some rigid settings for sound activation/etc...that are not helpful.
6. QUALITY: We have had this monitor for 8 months now. The readout on the parent unit is missing areas (does not light up or only partially) so you can't always read what it says. (It has been like this for the last month or 2) We are pretty careful with it since it cost us over $200. The batteries as I mentioned are shot and need to be replaced (dosnt hold a long charge).
7. ESTHETICS: Its looks hip and clean cut. Very small in size. We like that the parent unit can fit in your pocket (the belt clip is not useful). Buttons are easy to use. It also comes with a charging dock for the parent unit which is nice, our Sony you plugged in and the cord always fell behind by bedside table.
In the end, I would probably look elsewhere. It just was not worth the $200 we spent on it.
Customer Review: Crystal clear transmission and pure silence otherwise
Summary: 5 Stars
We recently moved our daughter to her big-girl room, which is quite far away from our bedroom. We keep doors closed at night so as not to disturb her, so we need a monitor that we could keep on all night at our bedside in case she wakes up or cries for help.
Performance
The Philips SCD 589 works perfectly as advertised. With the sensitivity set to normal (3 of 5 bars), the receiver always come alive virtually instantly and transmits every noise in her room clearly without any popping/cracking sounds. But as soon as the room is quiet, the receiver mutes to complete silence without even a hum or buzz. We have tried a number of other monitors and none have come close audio-wise. We leave the receiver on overnight at the nightstand and you'd forget it's there unless sound is transmitted.
Features
The UI is simple and intuitive, while the physical design is elegant and tasteful. For example, soft amber signal lights, rather than giant red glow (you know the brand), are used to indicate sound transmission. The receiver is small enough to fit in your pocket to help you look less like paranoid parents. The two-way communication feature could come in handy with spouse or older children. We are not using the lullaby/nightlight feature much, but that maybe useful for younger babies. And the remote temperature display is a rare advantage over the competition that further sets this product apart. The docking/charging simplifies daily operation significantly. The receiver uses 2 AAA rechargable Ni-MH and could be replaced with standard AAA's in the event they run out. From the small dimensions to industrial design to build quality, the product is top-notch.
Summary
The SCD 589 performs outstandingly. And with the thoughtful and well-implemented feature set, this product truely shines as one designed by those who understand parenting challenges. If they could somehow squeeze in video transmission (I realize DECT is only spec'ed for audio transmission) this product would put all other baby monitors to rest.
I highly recommend this product to anyone with, but not limiting to, child-monitoring needs (even for older children -- see 2-way feature).
Note
We used to use the MobiCam video monitor, which worked well for seeing what the baby is doing. However, the audio was interference-ridden due to the sheer number of 2.4GHz devices in our house. With the SCD 589, we now keep the MobiCam turned off until we hear something that needs verifying visually.
Customer Review: Best Monitor Made
Summary: 5 Stars
I am not one to usually review a product, but this is an amazing product. I have had at least five monitors since I gave birth to my three year old. I hated them all. The main problem was interference. Let me begin to explain the benefits of this monitor.
1. There is absolutely no interference!! Enough said about that.
2. The monitor has a sensitivity setting that allows the parent to determine how much sound is transmitted. My daughter has to sleep with an air purifier on, so I had grown accustomed to the constant hum coming from the monitor. With this monitor, I have the sensitivity setting set low, so the only sounds I hear is when she or my one year old actually talk or cry. This is amazing!!!
3. The walkie talkie feature is just phenomenal. We currently live in an house, and I have to walk through my room, where my son sleeps, to get to my daughter's room. In the past, if I heard her on the monitor, I had to go through my room and risk waking my son in order to see what was wrong with my daughter. Now, I can simply talk to her on the monitor to find out if I really need to go into her room. Also, if I hear her playing too long before nap or night time, I can talk to her over the monitor and tell her to get to sleep.
4. The lullaby feature is so nice, especially since I can operate it from the parent unit. My son takes his morning nap in my daughter's room, and one morning he was fussing a little, so I used the parent unit to turn on the lullaby, and he was asleep within minutes.
5. The temperature setting is also incredible. As I mentioned, we live in an old house, so the temperature varies widely from room to room. With this monitor, I am secure that my babies are not too hot or too cold.
I wish I had the money to buy all my friends this monitor; however, maybe a review is the next best thing. This monitor is worth the investment. I have spent at least this much cumulatively with the monitors I bought in the past.
Customer Review: Expensive, but Worth the Price
Summary: 5 Stars
This review refers to the SCD 590 Model.
We've been using this product for about four months now. It is an excellent product. I didn't realize just how good it was until we laid our baby down at a friend's house and had to use their monitor because we had forgotten ours. Their's was a Fisher-Price 900 MHz with two channels. It was a constant stream of static, the whole time we were there. By contrast, the Phillips model is silent. We live in a densely populated urban area and we never get any static on the Phillips montior. The range (at least 70 ft.) and sound quality are great.
We recently traveled out-of-state and took the monitors along. They use AA (Baby Unit) and AAA (Parent Unit) NiMh rechargables. We took a compact charger with us and were able to travel very light and recharge the batteries for both units with one charger.
We've also used the monitor camping. Montior worked perfectly between the tent and the campfire.
I can't really speak to battery life. Our baby goes down to sleep in the early evening in our room and we only really use the monitor for fours hours a night until we go to bed. One parent unit typically runs 2-3 nights of this sort of use before it needs recharging. If you lay your baby down with any soothing music or white noise, expect shorter battery life.
The only negative comment is that the low battery warning comes on too soon. The parent unit will run for about 3 hours after the alert starts. The directions take great pains to tell you not to charge the batteries prematurely, before they're empty. If you charge them when the low battery indicator comes on, you'll always be charging them prematurely. DO follow the directions about conditioning the batteires before first use.
Overall an excellent product, no static, great range, great sound quality, standard battery sizes allow for easy recharging or using alkalines when needed.
Customer Review: Over Priced & Under Performing.
Summary: 1 Stars
I spent way more than I should have on this product but hey my kids are worth it right? As it turns out my kids deserve better than this.
1- For the price, there is no reason this bundle should not come with 2 receivers. Very disappointing. Granted I knew it did not have 2 receivers when I bought but for the price but it should!
2- The starry nightlight is more like circles with random scratch patterns accross the inside that far from resemble stars.
3- With the sensitivity turned ALL THE WAY UP , the main unit just inches from the babies head and the handset volume ALL THE WAY UP , you cannot hear the baby until he is screaming full bore wich is the opposite
of what you wish to accomplish when using a product like this.
With all the settings maxed out and the monitor about 12 inches from your head the volume is equivalent to our old monitor , volume less than half from accross the room??? This renders the system completely useless.
They say it is guaranteed with Zero-Interference DECT Technology , which it probably is , we never heard any interference , but if you hold it 12 inches from your head and listen you can hear "white noise" so effectivly what they have done is cripple the volume limit to such a low level that you cannot here the white noise therefor giving the impression of being "so clear". Very innefective and I would not recommend this product.
On another note I am thrilled with Amazon yet again. They were very helpful and understanding with the situation. I had no problems obtaining a speedy refund and that is why Amazon is my #1 online shopping destination. They truly do take care of their customers.