Hi-tech devices rewriting babysitting rules

Being a new mum or a mum-to-be can be both exhilarating and unsettling. Welcoming a new baby is every parent's ultimate joy. At the same time, parents have jitters about what could happen to the baby when alone in a room or left with a nanny.

 But modern technology has an array of intelligent devices that are changing the conventional babysitting rules. Using inbuilt sensors, the devices gather round-the-clock information about the newborn — their movements, temper, temperature — and send alerts to parents.

The intelligent baby monitoring cameras can be mounted on the wall of the baby's room, perched on a stand, or bolted to the baby's crib. The monitors take a bird's eye view of the baby's crib. From there and connected to the right app of the parent's smartphone, they use WiFi to send mum, dad, nanny, or anyone else a blow-by-blow account of the baby's moments in the crib.

 The baby-watch devices vary in sophistication. The basic devices can be set to stream video from the baby's room to the parent's phone. The advanced ones track the baby's heart rate, breathing, and sleep patterns.

Send alerts

They analyse the baby's face and send alerts to the parent's phone when they "see" or "hear" the baby crying or when he or she has covered their face. They also record and send photos and videos. They also digitally inform the parent when the temperature and humidity in the room fluctuates.

 Then there are devices to lull the baby to sleep. They shine white light and cooing noise to soothe the baby. And if rocking the baby gives it some pleasure on their way to slumberland, there are smart swings, some of which have speakers that mimic the parent's voice and tone — either mum, dad, or anyone else whose voice the device adapts.

Companion robot

 Some of the intelligent devices are equipped with two-way audio. When the baby mumbles a word or giggles, they respond by repeating the same or different words depending on the settings. Such two-way communication assures the baby that she is not alone in the room. She has a companion, only that it's a robotic one.

 Supported by the smart babysitting devices, a new parent may sleep better at night with the assurance that should the baby be uncomfortable, an alert will beep on the phone, or stream some data to show if the baby is warm, cold, hungry, or wet.

As for visitors who go to welcome the bundle of joy, the gift shopping list is now expanded beyond the usual clothes and toys. Now you can gift with an intelligent gadget.

Next time you make a trip to your online or on-the-ground supplier of baby appliances, clothes, and toys, ask about these technologies. You may find a babysitting companion who runs on a battery and can rock the baby for hours without complaining.

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