Ecobee Sweet Dream Baby Kit review - Reviewed

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Pros

Easy to set up
High quality video
Many useful features

Innovative motion-tracking and customizable activity zones set this monitor apart from others we’ve seen

The Sweet Dreams Baby Kit is simple and intuitive, and because this system runs on Wi-Fi, you’ll never have issues with range like monitors that run on radio frequency.

Ecobee bills its Sweet Dreams Baby kit as a starter set for frazzled new parents. Adapting a quality home surveillance camera for nursery use—bundled with the company’s SmartThermostat and SmartSensor—Ecobee aims to take the guesswork out of safe sleep, ensuring a watchful eye and comfortable sleeping temperature for naps and overnights. While there is no handheld parent unit, which may be a drawback for some, the Wi-Fi–enabled SmartCamera connects by app, available on iOS and Android.

About Sweet Dreams Baby Kit from Ecobee

Callout — The Ecobee Sweet Dreams Baby Kit coins itself as the perfect starting point for newcomers to the parenting world.

What’s included: SmartCamera, SmartThermostat, SmartSensor
Parent unit: None
Wireless connection: Wi-Fi
Charging: AC Power adapter with 10-foot cord
Mounting: Stand and wall-mounting options
Smart assistants: Amazon Alexa
Security: Two-factor authentication
Indoor/Outdoor: Indoor use only
Special features: Voice control, two-way talk, 1080p HD video quality, digital zoom/tilt/pan, wide lens, integration with Spotify and Amazon Connect for streaming white noise and lullabies

What we like

It’s user-friendly

For a company known for its high-tech gadgets, the Ecobee Sweet Dreams Baby Kit is remarkably simple to set up. No user manual is necessary, just download the Ecobee app and follow the prompts to get your camera, thermostat, and sensor connected and running.

Right out of the box, we had the SmartCamera trained on our test subjects in a matter of minutes. While slightly more involved, the thermostat took us about 25 minutes to install. The sensor, which detects room temperature wherever you place it, only needed a quick pairing. The app itself has a clean, easy-to-navigate interface, making nursery-monitoring a breeze.

There is a breadth of useful features

For anyone who has ever risked waking a baby to check if they’re sleeping too warm or too cold, the SmartSensor will come as welcomed relief. While the SmartThermostat reads the temperature at its installation site, the sensor allows you to monitor the environment in any room you place it.

The SmartCamera captures daytime video with astonishing clarity, thanks to its 1080p HD settings. It also has a 180-degree field of view, which displays the nursery in panorama—especially useful if you’re keeping an eye on more than one sleeping child.

Making good use of its origin as a security camera, the monitor has the capability to auto-track a child on the move. The lens adjusts to movement, making certain a climbing or crawling little one never goes out of frame. Parents of mischief-loving toddlers will put this feature to good use.

Key features are customizable

One feature that truly sets Ecobee’s SmartCamera apart from other baby monitors is the option it allows for creating activity zones. Within settings, users can draw a boundary that allows the monitor to detect motion only within that zone. If you have wandering pets, for example, they can roam the nursery freely without setting off the camera’s notifications.

Users can also set the activity sensor’s sensitivity level, choosing to pick up even modest movements, or reporting only movement that’s more notable. Adjust speaker volume, choose Alexa integration, and toggle between video and audio-only options, all with a few taps on your smartphone.

The SmartThermostat has an intuitive touch screen that allows for plenty of programming options to keep your home comfortable and energy efficient. Manage this device either by app or on the thermostat itself.

It can become part of your security system after the kids grow up

For anyone with a focus on sustainability, Ecobee’s SmartCamera makes a wise choice. While many baby monitors make their way to the landfill after they’ve fulfilled their use, the SmartCamera easily integrates back into your home as an indoor security camera. Buyers can switch from home use to baby monitor with one setting option, dimming the camera’s LED lights and disengaging a security siren feature.

The SmartThermostat and SmartSensor are whole-home focused and can go on keeping your entire family comfortable long after your baby outgrows the nursery. Move the sensor to any room that has trouble regulating temperature.

What we don’t like

Push notifications are silent

While the SmartCamera connects to the app and runs continuously, either on video or audio-only, it’s easy to miss push notifications when they show up without a telltale ding. Receiving an alert that your baby has tossed a stuffy from the crib doesn’t do much good if you don’t see it for 30 minutes. Parents will be best served by ensuring the audio is running consistently to pick up on any sounds coming from the crib, and checking in periodically by video.

It’s missing key alerts

Twice during testing we inadvertently tapped the camera’s microphone off and, without any alerts, didn’t realize it for hours. Similarly, when the camera goes offline, as any baby monitor can do, we received no notification or alert. Knowing when your baby monitor malfunctions is crucial to having peace of mind as a parent, so this is a definite con for us.

Privacy

It’s always a good idea to keep security in mind when installing Wi-Fi–enabled cameras inside your home. The SmartCamera offers peace of mind by using two-factor authentication during set-up, and on-device processing and video encryption while running—all of which go a long way toward keeping your nursery views safe and secure.

Should you buy it?

Yes, but only if you plan to watch carefully for notifications

While we remain enthusiastic about the impressive innovation on display in the Sweet Dreams Baby Kit, we can’t overlook the SmartCamera’s faults on its most basic level. Every parent needs a trusty, reliable monitor they can count on—and without audible notifications and malfunctioning alerts, we don’t see the SmartCamera as meeting that critical need. If you plan to watch closely, this will suit your needs. But if you're a parent who knows you'll be relying on audible cues, this might not be the monitor for you.

Instead, we recommend the Cubo Ai Plus Smart Monitor, which is the best video baby monitor we’ve tested.

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Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.

Meet the tester

Lizzie Duszynski-Goodman

Contributor

@LizzieDuszynski

Lizzie Duszynski-Goodman is a journalist living in the Midwest with her husband and two young children. Her work explores the intersections of mental health, wellness, and parenting. When not behind her computer you can find her on a yoga mat or with her nose in a good book.

See all of Lizzie Duszynski-Goodman's reviews

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