Philips AVENT Digital Video Monitor SCD600

Being a first time mom of the somewhat paranoid variety, I was looking for a way to keep both an eye and an ear on my daughter at all times. For me, a good video monitor was a must. When I decided to try out the new Philips Avent Digital Video Monitor SCD600, I was hopeful that it would be all I was looking for and more, but ready to keep looking if it didn’t make the grade.

As soon as I opened the box, I liked what I saw. The parent unit featured a sizeable, 2.4” color screen, and the baby unit had a round, modern design. I was happy to see that the parent unit came with a rechargeable lithium battery and a wall charger. The baby unit required 4 AAA batteries (which I happened to have on hand), and could also be plugged into the wall. Once the batteries were in and the baby unit was placed on its base, no additional assembly was required.

I took the baby unit into the nursery and was instantly won over by the magnetic mechanism that attaches the camera to its base. This made it extremely easy to rotate the round unit until it was angled just right to capture every inch of my daughter’s crib. Eager to test out the night-vision, I switched on the nightlight on the baby unit and turned off the lights in the nursery.

Running into the other room, I was happy to see that I could still see every inch of the crib, even in the pitch black darkness of the nursery. I could even make the screen a little brighter by pressing a button on the side of the parent unit. Any time the monitor picked up a noise, little lights flashed on the parent unit to notify me. I also loved the setting that allows you to turn off the video screen to save battery unless a noise is detected, and then the screen automatically turns on.

Pleased with the sound and video quality, I started tinkering around with the other features. Another button on the side of the parent unit lets you choose from 3 different lullabies to sooth your baby without having to re-enter the room to turn on the music. I also enjoyed the belt clip attachment on the back of the parent unit, which swivels around to allow the unit to stand up on the table when not wearing it on your body.

Although I live in a neighborhood with tons of young families with babies, I have not experienced any problems with interference and the range is large enough to take the parent unit all the way to far end of my backyard without any problems.

In the end, the SCD600 met all of my expectations and then some. Not only did it pass every safety test with flying colors, but it also featured some unexpected but welcome bonuses (like the soothing lullabies).

Price: $219

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