Gone are the days of blurry black and white nanny cams, guessing your baby’s temperature with nothing more than the back of your hand, or bundling up and driving to the emergency room in the middle of the night in a panic only to find out that everything is fine. Technology has made the lives of parents so much easier, and we’re having trouble keeping up with all the latest trends and devices. Below, we’ve rounded up some of our latest favorites that are guaranteed to make your life easier.
1. Baby monitors and nursery cameras
If you’re a new mom, you probably won’t remember those bulky, glorified walkie-talkies that moms toted from room to room back in the 90’s. The crackling sounds could have been a wakeful toddler… or just some radio interference. Luckily now we’ve upgraded to unobtrusive, full-color HD video streams that integrate with your TV, tablets, and smartphones. There are monitors that can connect with up to 4 cameras so you can watch over multiple kids at once; monitors with two-way feeds that let you chat up your kid if they’re feeling restless; or smart devices that will turn on the lights or play music according to the time of day. Welcome to the new normal.
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2. New apps
From tele health apps to services that will help you with where to find a changing table, there’s an app for that. Instead of making inconvenient appointments with health providers, you can call someone up on your device at all hours to answer your craziest health-related questions. If you’re out and about, there are apps to help you find family-friendly activities and quiet spots to breastfeed. Not to mention passive tracking is all the rage. Some apps will collect all the activity, sleep, and temperature data you could possibly want to track trends and adapt your parenting style accordingly.
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3. Wearables
Who wants to wake their baby up every couple hours to take their temperature? No need to now with blankets that continuously push data to your device of choice. The craze for fitness bands and heart rate trackers has migrated out of the adults-only zone and soft, sweet, and colorful versions are now coming out for the younger set. You might have seen the smart socks that hook over tiny feet, smart bandages that last up to 48 hours, and onesies with adorable frog sensors that can monitor your baby’s breathing, heart rate, temperature, and sleep.
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4. Two-for-ones
Why settle for multiple devices when you can have one that does it all? Cut down on clutter with devices that will do double duty. We found a nifty pacifier-thermometer combo that can soothe a sick baby while giving you a simple digital temperature readout. When it’s time for bed, there are combo night lights and sound machines for a multi-sensory experience. The latest smart cradles have a variety of rocking motions and soothing strategies, but are packed in high-design forms that will actually make your home prettier to boot. And finally, if you can believe it, they’ve even come up with a rubber duckie bath toy that’s completely waterproof… and doubles as a night light, in case your kid just doesn’t want to let go when bath time is over.
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So welcome to the future of parenting! What’s your favorite device for baby? Feel free to rave about your favorite high-tech gifts, including that sleep trainer or sound machine, and let us know what we missed in the comments below.
