Customer Reviews

Graco Angelcare Movement Sensor with Nursery Monitor

5 star:		(53)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

My baby had RSV at 7 weeks old, and wasn't bad enough to go into the hospital right away. About 3 am, the monitor went off, and he wasn't breathing. We were able to get to get him breathing again, and he was admitted to the hospital for 8 days after that. If it weren't for the monitor, he would have stopped breathing and we would have not been able to save his life. It is expensive, but worth every penny to have a happy healthy baby now!

My wife used to wake up every 15 minutes or so and check to make sure the baby was still breathing. She was so very worried about SIDS, and at first she insisted the baby sleep in the same room as us so that she could keep an eye on her.

We've both been sleeping more soundly now, knowing that the Angelcare Monitor will tell us if there's a problem.

This product should also work well for monitoring seniors, but since it monitors for any movement in the bed, a second person in the bed would throw it off.

This falls short of a perfect 5 star rating for two reasons:

+ It has a sensitivity adjustment knob but at best, sometimes the baby rolls too far away from the sensor and it goes off, and on the same setting we've noted that sometimes when the baby is no longer in the crib (we're standing next to the crib rocking her back to sleep in our arms) it picks up our footsteps as breathing. That means a large dog in the room might also throw it off. Still, it's usually accurate.
+ The audible baby monitor functions are not very good. Perhaps in the silicon valley there are more of us with wireless gateways, wireless security systems, wireless phones, etc. that create interference. I bought a second baby monitor with 10 frequencies that we set next to the Angelcare monitor in the baby's room (Angelcare only has two). If the Angelcare alarm goes off, the other baby monitor picks up the sound and broadcasts it on a frequency free from static.

Suggestion: If you're going to get a second monitor, get a video monitor. Sometimes you hear an odd sound in there and it's helpful to see what's going on without walking in there (are they throwing up or pulling the sheets off the mattress? The sounds are surprisingly similar!).

If I could only buy one baby item, it would be this one. It is that wonderful. No baby should be without this monitor. This monitor can save lives, not just tell you when baby is waking up or fussing. We have used this monitor every single day since our baby arrived home - we love it and couldn't sleep without it. We have had a few false alarms when she strays to the edge of the crib mattress but no big deal. SIDS happens and there is no better monitor to protect your baby from being a SIDS victim than this one. We use it every time our baby is in her crib and we've used it in her bassinet as well. It has nice features of being able to adjust the volume on the extra sound piece and being able to turn the ticking sound on/off. The way it works is very simple -- you put the movement sensor underneath the mattress on a hard surface (thin piece of wood works - it even works with just the crib springs underneath) and it detects the baby's movement caused by breathing. The main monitor piece that stays in the nursery has a flashing green light that flashes as movement is detected. If the movement stops for several seconds, you hear a single beep and a red light flickers on both the nursery unit and the mobile unit. After a few more seconds, an alarm will sound.

As a neonatal intensive care (NICU) nurse, I am acutely aware of the risks of a baby having apnea (stopping breathing). As a mom, I have nightmares about SIDS, suffocation, and the like. I found this monitor when I was pregnant with my first child, and used it every day until she was one (the period during which infants are at the highest risk of SIDS). I never had a false alarm, and it gave me complete peace of mind when I slept at night.

I used the monitor again with the birth of my second child, 19 months later. The alarm went off three times in a ten minute period one night, and during one alarm, I had to vigorously shake my daughter to get her to take a breath. (The other two alarms were loud enough to wake her up and stimulate her to take a breath.) I went to the doctor the next day, and was told that these types of monitors don't do anything, they result in false alarms due to the sensitivity settings, etc. Had it not been for the fact that I was a NICU nurse and had to actually stimulate my child to breath, I don't think the doctors would have done anything. But, because I was, and I did, they sent us to the hospital where my daughter stayed on a apnea monitor for 24 hours. That monitor recorded two more apneic events, and she was sent home on a home apnea monitor. She had two or three more events from home, but eventually outgrew the events. (She had been premature at birth, and they ultimately diagnosed her with apnea of prematurity.) Had it not been for the Angelcare monitor, we may have never detected this, and God only knows what the outcome would have been. So, I cannot recommend this monitor more highly.

I do note that what I learned from this was that apnea and SIDS are not the same -- stated differently, it is believed (although not confirmed) that children die from SIDS because they have a decreased heart rate and lack of oxygenation. It is believed that this lack of oxygenation, or hypoxia, is not due to lack of breathing, or apnea, but rather the apnea is the final trigger in the chain of events. By the time the child stops breathing, it may be impossible to resuscitate him or her. This monitor alarms for apnea, which may be caused by apnea of prematurity, or any other number of things. But, most likely, based on the research that I did after this whole ordeal, it will not prevent SIDS. Even hospital-grade home apnea monitors cannot prevent SIDS. But, the Angelcare monitor does, nonetheless give me peace of mind that I know my child is breathing. That makes this monitor worth every penny, in my opinion. One day, hopefully, they will invent a monitor that monitors both movement and oxygenation to aid in the detection and prevention of SIDS.

I LOVE the MOVEMENT SENSOR aspect of this monitor. I have used 2 of these (one in the crib for nighttime sleeping and one in the playpen for daytime naps) and they work GREAT at detecting when there is no movement/breathing. I used these with both my kids, up until they were both 2 years old and moved to big boy beds.

I only have two complaints. One is that I wish they would improve the monitors so that there is less interference/static, and more channels. With these monitors, you get lots of feedback and can even pick-up neighbors' babies (if they are using similar monitors). This means that the neighbors can also hear you and your baby. In fact, I always used Channel B because I kept picking up neighbors' babies on Channel A. My second complaint is I wish they would make the sensor that goes under the mattress bigger so that it covers more of the sleep area to prevent false alarms.

My workaround solution is that I also own 2 other monitors ... one with video and one with a greater frequency and less static (that I used in conjunction with this one) and carry around the house.

This monitor allowed me to get much needed rest and things done around the house without having to check the baby every 2 minutes to make sure he was still breathing. I wish more manufacturers would add the movement detection feature to their monitors.

Despite some of this monitor's shortcomings, I still HIGHLY recommend it. Worth EVERY penny for that piece of mind. If you buy more than one set, the monitors are interchangeable and work together nicely. In addition, it is small and easy to carry along with you when you travel. So, you can use it on vacations or when you are away from home, to monitor your baby for added peace of mind.

**PLEASE NOTE: You will need MASONITE BOARD, or some other hard board to place under the crib mattress for the movement sensor to sit on. With the playpen (because it had a hard bottom), I didn't need to use anything. I could just place the movement sensor directly under the pad.**

We splurged a little to get this monitor but we are very happy we did so. I sleep much better at night knowing that my baby's breathing is being monitored. The instructions indicate the sensor pad should be placed under the mattress directly under your baby with no bedding or padding in between. However, I've found the sensor will work even through a mattress, bedding, and a one inch thick sleep positioner. It's SUPER SENSITIVE which is GREAT! One thing to keep in mind - You should not have a ceiling fan on at night or have a strong draft in the room (such as an AC vent blowing directly onto your baby's crib). The unit will pick up air movement in the room. I highly recommend this product! I would not be resting at night as peacefully as I am without it.

My monitor is excellent as the others reviewed, but be careful with ceiling fans! When my fan is on the sensor is detecting movement when it shouldn't (baby is not in crib). If you have the fan on the movement detection is inaccurate. Be sure to test this under all circumstances (when you have something in the room on that vibrates/moves, etc...)

I have tested this unit on maximum sensitivity. At first, I was bothered with the constant tick that is an indication that the baby is ok. So I took the sensor out to see what would happen without the baby, ... it stopped ticking. The baby was not moving, but just it's heart and/or lungs working keeps the unit ticking. It detects even when you blow on the sensor. Maybe it should not be on maximum sensitivity, since ceiling fans, etc might activate it, but I was truly amazed with the sensitivity.
You can turn the tick down so it is not too bothersome, it is like a clock ticking, about once a second when baby is ok, if it stops ticking for about 30 seconds.. a noticeable alarm will ring.

I absolutely love this monitor. If I were to recommend only one baby item, it would be this. In 2.5 months, the monitor has gone off twice. I have no idea if they were false alarms or not, because by the time I sprinted to her crib, she had already been startled out of her deep sleep by the beeping of the monitor, which I like. Even though she was a healthy, full-term baby with a 9 on both her Apgars in a non-smoker household and the risk for SIDS is low for her, I have a great peace of mind knowing her breathing is monitored at all times.

Both my babies slept through after three weeks, and I found myself sitting next to them half the night checking their breathing. So I got the angelcare, and only checked for one night, found that it worked (it is easily tested by taking the baby out, the alarm goes off after 10 secs), and had peaceful nights ever after.
Happy to recommend it to everybody!!!!