New age parents prefer buying nanny cams than the old fashioned way of telling the neigbours to checkup on the nanny. There have been plenty of horror stories whereby house helps have been caught unawares abusing children and those videos bore paranoid parents who are forever anxious about their children’s safety. Before buying a nanny cam you need to see if the features are right. Nanny cams are not cheap but there are several brands in the market that are preferred based on the features.

  1. What’s the HD? HD or high definition is a video format with a high pixel rate to give you more details and clarity. But at the same time, it comes at the price of decreased storage and higher cost. Considering your storage space, and practical demand, 720p and 1080p resolution is enough.
  2. Can you hear or talk back and forth? Nanny cameras with audio let you speak to your kids and babysitters for better monitoring. This works especially well if you have already told your nanny that there’s a camera in the house because you prefer seeing what your baby is doing. I have a friend who diligently tells her nanny when she’s in the wrong and is able to see what her baby is watching.
  3. Is it wireless? A wireless security cameras for baby monitoring lets you watch live video feeds while other nanny cameras just record the video for you to watch later. It depends on whether you want to see things as they happen or you prefer watching the videos later.
  4. iPhone/iPad/Android compatible With remote monitoring, you can check live streaming of your kid and the caregiver from your mobile devices when you are at work. This is great because as long as your phone is on you’re able to see what’s going on in your house.
  5. Motion activation You can’t always be watching your PC or smartphone to keep track of everything you nanny does. Motion activation is an awesome feature which can send you alerts when motion occurs in front of it. This one is highly advanced and a bit more pricey as well.
  6. Recording Most nanny cams allows video recording on SD card, but the drawback is that the SD card can be filled up quickly. For a 24/7 reliable recording, use nanny cam with a NVR is a better choice.
  7. Viewing angle Depend on how large your room is, you can choose a wide-angle nanny camera, so that you can see all areas of the room. So make sure the camera has a pan-tilt function.
  8. Power source There are mainly two types when it comes to the power supply of a nanny camera: battery operated cameras and AC powered ones. Battery powered nanny cams run on rechargeable battery packs, while AC powered devices draw their power directly from the outlet. When running out of battery in several hours, the camera will stop working. If it’s convenient for you to find a power source, an AC powered nanny cam is a better choice for ongoing monitoring and recording.