Nanny camera, commonly known as nanny cam is gadgets that are used to monitor nannies or house helps on their treatment to young children and the elderly on which they are entrusted.
In homes, nanny cams are usually installed in the living room, children’s playrooms, children’s bedrooms and even in the kitchen.
Apart from monitoring house helps, nanny cameras can also be helpful in monitoring small children sleeping behaviors, or even their interaction in
the playrooms.
There are many reasons why you may require a nanny cam.
You may need a nanny cam if
- A working mum and want to check on your child when you’re at work
- You want to monitor your household when you’re away and see if everything is done in time and to your expectations
- Suspicious of your house help is mistreating your child or you just want to check how your child is doing
- have a new house help and want to keep an eye to make sure shes bonding well with the child
- want to know who comes to your house while you’re away.
- want to monitor your children when you are away
- monitor your office when you’re away
- For the safety of your house against vandals
- you record secret business meetings
- Want to spy your cheating Partner and catch them in the act
If you answered yes to any of those questions, a nanny camera can be of great help.
Read the rest of this article to learn how.
How Does Nanny Cameras Look Like?
Nanny cameras are built-in ordinary household items.
This makes them hard to notice and helps to blend well with other household items in a house.
Some of the most common household items with nanny cams include;
- Wallclock nanny camera which is built in an ordinary working wall clock,
- Speakers nanny camera built in an ordinary working portable Bluetooth speaker,
- Table clock nanny camera,
- Teddy bear nanny cam,
- Air freshener nanny cams,
- Flowerpot nanny cam and many more…
Nowadays with more and more working parents, it’s hard to spend all the time with our children.
Never the less we can’t forget the love of our children even in the workplace.
As a parent, there are a lot of questions that ringer in our mind when we’re away from our homes
we are always thinking of how the children are doing,
- Whether they have eaten or not,
- Whether the house help changed their diapers in time or
- If they remembered to give the unwell child her medicine prescription.
This is where you require a nanny cam
Nanny camera lets you keep an eye on what happens when you’re not at home.
With more advanced models like the wifi-enabled type, you can even watch live on your smartphone and even establish two-way communication with your nanny.
What to look for when purchasing a nanny camera?
When you have finally decided you want to buy a nanny cam, there are several factors you need to consider to help you decide on the best model.
Factors to consider when purchasing a nanny cam
Camera Resolution
This refers to the clarity offered by the camera lens.
Some models offer resolution in HD (high definition) at 1080P which captures images with high clarity and with a lot of details.
Another common type is 720P. This type offers a good resolution for home use.
Connectivity To The Internet
A nanny camera can be connected to the internet in two ways.
- Either wired or
- Wireless.
Though both are commonly used, the wireless type of connection is more preferred due to its many advantages.
Audio Recording
Not all cameras can record audio. choose a camera with an inbuilt microphone for the best audio recording experience.
Smartphone Compatibility
If you want to watch live on a smartphone, you should choose a nanny cam with app support.
The app will enable you to set up and configure all the features of the nanny cam.
More so you will be able to watch live on the phone provided the camera and the phone are connected to the internet.
You can view live video feeds from anywhere in the world.
Memory Card Support
If you need to watch video footage later, you need to consider a model with memory card sd support.
There are models which can accept sd card up to 128GB
This large storage can save many days of video files.
On Motion Recording Support
A camera with a motion recording support is good in case you want to monitor an area with minimum movements.
This will help you only capture the instances when there is movement on the nanny camera area of view.
On motion recording mode is also recommended if you are using a memory card recording.
Loop recording
The loop recording feature is employed when a memory card is used for storage.
It helps the camera to continue recording even when the memory card is full.
This is achieved by deleting the old video footage and overwriting with fresh video footage files.
Power Source
A nanny camera can either be
- Battery Powered or
- Mains powered.
The choice will be determined by the duration of the recording that is required.
Normally many battery-powered types will offer 4-5 hours of continuous recording.
On the other hand mains, powered nanny cams will offer continuous recording provided its plugged in and power is available.
some models can also offer both battery and mains operation. The battery is used to support the camera when the mains power fails.
Nanny Camera lens Viewing Angle
Nanny cameras come with different viewing angles.
The choice here will be dictated with how large your room is.
If you have a large room it will be wise to choose a camera with a large-angle view that will be able to capture a large part of the room.
Blending
Choose a nanny cam that blends well with your room. Consider the color, shape and where you want to place the camera.
How To Set up a Nanny Camera
It’s easy to set up a nanny camera.
Since these devices come as a complete unit, it just needs to be placed strategically in a room that you need to monitor.
Make sure you purchase a nanny cam that blends well with other household items and not the one that will simply sell itself away.
You may need to insert a memory card to have backup storage for future reference
If the nanny cam is the type that uses a rechargeable battery, make sure it’s fully charged before its placed for recording
If its the type that needs to be plugged directly to mains, make sure its placed near a power socket, plugged in and powered.
To capture a clear image, pay attention to the lighting sources in the room.
A camera should be placed from the light source for a better image clarity
If its the type that has wifi enabled, make sure you connect to the home wifi.
You may need to download a smartphone app to access these settings.
nanny cams features have advanced with time.
Modern devices have been added with rich features. better enhancing their capability
Some of the best features to look for in a nanny camera include:
- Wifi connectivity allowing you to watch live on a smartphone
- With on motion detection, the feature enables the nanny cam to record only when motion is detected
- Nanny cams with rotating lens enhancing viewing even in the hidden corners of your house
- Email notification when the camera starts recording prompting you to log in and view live on smartphone, tablet or personal computer
- Scheduled recording enables you to record on your own set times
You may also read this: How nanny cameras helped this young mum.
