Infant Optics DXR-8 Video Baby Monitor, Non-WiFi Hack-Proof FHSS Connection, Interchangeable Lenses, Pan Tilt Zoom, LED Sound Bar, Night Vision, and Two-Way Talk

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It also comes with an additional zoom lens to increase camera placement options, which is something unique to the Infant Optics monitors. Gone are those connectivity issues I would have when I brought the parent unit into the kitchen — in fact, I’ve found the longer range allows for an uninterrupted feed anywhere in my house. I've been writing about computers, the internet, and technology professionally for over 30 years, more than half of that time with PCMag. An LED bar to the right of the buttons indicates the charge level; it was almost 12 hours before it needed to be plugged in again, but a full charge does take seven hours. Another good feature of the Infant Optics DXR-8 is the ability to remotely pan, tilt, and zoom the video image as needed.

Performance of the DXR-8 is marginal at best, and just plain non-functional when the out of signal range issue surfaces out of nowhere. I never have to worry if the signal will drop in the middle of the night or if the monitor will randomly die. It sports a much more intutive interface than the original DXR-8, which is important, since you're accessing everything using four function buttons and a D-pad (which controls navigation and pan/tilt). Additional features include a thermometer that monitors the temperature of the baby’s room in either celsius or Fahrenheit (although we wish it would alert us if the room is too hot or too cold) and automatic invisible infrared night vision (but no night light).We chose the infant optics monitor primarily because we did not want a monitor that could be hacked. While it is a higher-scoring dedicated option, it is also a somewhat spendy one given how it stacks up to the competition. As is the audio quality, with the microphone on the baby unit able to pick up the faintest of sounds, such as your baby rolling over through the night. Have a look at our review of the best WiFi baby monitors if you want to be able to pair it with your iPhone or Android phone. The company touts an 8-hour live screen battery life—meaning it should last a full 8 hours with the screen on—and a 12-hour audio-only lifespan.

Some of my favorite features are the convenience of moving the camera with the receiver, superior night vision, temperature monitor, and push-to-talk feature. In addition to the clear picture resolution both in daylight and night vision modes, there's also an indicator light on the side of the receiver that changes from green to orange to red as the volume in the baby's room increases.

For example, if you live in a moderately sized two-story home or an apartment, it’s easily worked around. Volume and brightness controls have also been added to this larger unit, which make life easier for the parent. The last missing piece was an antenna from a retired Alfa card I had bought almost a decade ago to experiment with some long-distance security penetration. The DXR-8 PRO is the most advanced non-WiFi video baby monitor system available, designed with state-of-the-art features to keep your baby and family safe.

For example, while pointed at the inside of my son’s crib with the normal lens, it would sometimes lose track of him if he stood up at one side or rolled down to another corner.

It does have a shortcut button for volume and brightness, but the shortcut is almost the same as going through the menu features, so we still wish it had buttons outside the menu options on the body of the parent unit. Unfortunately, the camera is relatively average in most ways, with disappointing clarity on daytime visuals and night images where the baby has no face. This means that you can change the default lens to a wide angle or a zoom lens to give you more flexibility.