Levana Stella 2 Video Monitor (Review)

Disclosure: Items were sent for review purposes only, all opinions are completely honest.

Levana, a brand of high-tech, stylish and reliable baby monitors has came out with the Stella 2 Camera Video Baby Monitor. It comes with two cameras instead of one and has a 4.3” screen. Why choose a smaller screen when you don’t have to? This is something that you can’t afford to see half-way.

 

What's in the Box

• Baby Video Monitor
• Pan/Tilt/Zoom Night Vision Camera
• Rechargeable Battery
• 2 Power Adapters
• Instruction Manual
• 1 Year Warranty
• Lifetime Live Customer Support

A video screen this big is the next best thing to actually being in the room with your child. The screen can show each cameras view just by touching ONE button. That is pretty cool. Whether you have larger rooms or need to monitor more than one room, this is perfect!

The two cameras allow you to monitor more than one room in your home on a single monitor! They are great for babies and toddlers alike.

Stella features:

· Touch panel pan/tilt/zoom video baby monitor

· A powerful battery that will last up to 24 hours

· Talk to Baby two-way intercom

· Three soothing lullabies

· Invisible LED night vision

· Private ClearVu Digital Signal

· Expandable up to 4 cameras

User Interface Assessment

Easy to assemble, mount, and use even without using the directions. Pretty simple to figure out the features, because all the buttons are labeled. The two video monitors run via plug-in, while the parent unit can run via cord OR batteries. 

The parent unit is small enough to fit inside your pocket. This is handy if you need to clean the yard while your baby naps, or check the mail. It also has controls for audio, pan-tilt-zoom and multi-camera mode. The parent unit doesn’t beep but it does flash a red “x” when it’s out of range from the video monitors.

The range on this monitor is insane. So insane, that I ended up walking 4 houses down and audio AND Video was still super clear. I can’t imagine someone needing to leave their napping children at home to go any further than the neighbors house to borrow an egg. (Or so I hope not)

Image quality is very clear. Easy to tell if your babies awake (even in the dark) or what the munchkins are up to. It has a menu (3rd button) that allows you to set up your options such as sound sensitivity and screen brightness. Also has a super cool kick-stand that I use to sit the monitor on my desk or a shelf beside me.

I like that I can easily switch between viewing the two cameras. Seeing both screens at once would make the resolution smaller. One button and I can see the other camera via full size, which is awesome!

It is a color picture but only when used in direct lighting. When used at night or in low light, the picture will appear to be in black and white. This monitor doesn’t have temp reading feature like other monitors I’ve used. It’s not a MUST but handy with small children or large homes. It doesn’t matter in my house because I only have one floor, so all rooms are the same temp.

BEST USES

• Infants
• Naps
• Newborns
• Preemies
• Remote Monitoring
• Sleep

Tilt & Zoom

Using the monitor from anywhere in your home you can adjust the camera view horizontally 270° and tilt vertically 110° so you can see everything in baby’s room with the simple touch of a button.

The pan and tilt mode is a must-have in my opinion, especially a silent one. Pan/Tilt means that you can rotate/move the camera down/up and side-to-side. This lets you basically have eyes in the back of your head. (Didn’t your mama ever say that SHE had them? NOW you can!!) If your child moves to a space within the room that the camera wasn’t set on before, just adjust it with the pan and tilt buttons.

The only drawback I had with the tilt/pan feature is that it isn’t as smooth as some others I’ve had. Which takes slightly more time to adjust to exactly the spot you need it to be. That’s only because it seems to tilt/pan a little too much at a time, but it doesn’t take long to figure out.

Also that the zoom is separate from the tilt/pan. So you can only zoom into the specific area that the camera is selected to view. To zoom into other areas, you have to back out and re-adjust the pan and tilt to the area you want to see and THEN zoom back in. Not that much of a deal, but it would be awesome to zoom into the entire area of the room.

Private ClearVu Digital Signal

ClearVu technology provides you the outstanding precision and clarity of a digital signal from up to 750ft away. Stella has a private, secure and interference-free digital signal that no one but you can access.  Feel free to accomplish tasks inside and outside of your home, all the while knowing baby is safe and sound.

The monitor doesn’t have any background noise (whitewash sounds) or static. Nothing interferes such as cell phones or microwaves- not ours or our neighbors, which I especially like. The audio is very clear and has a very strong signal strength. I can do chores or work in my office without worrying my kids are dumping all their toys out in their toy room or getting into an argument about “she said this, he did that”. I can now listen in and see very clearly what’s going on.

LED & Night Vision

            

Invisible infrared LEDs provide a clear image of your child in the dark up to 12ft away. Your baby will sleep more soundly without the distracting red LED lights found on traditional baby video monitors Smart LED Indicator Ring Sound indicator ring changes color with the sound of your baby’s voice alerting you if she if crying out when you have the volume turned down and features adjustable sensitivity.

Two-Way Talking

Talk to Baby and calm them down  with with two-way communication. Let them know that your on the way the sound of your own voice as you head to the rescue. Levana parents also love this feature for communicating to each other when they need some help in the nursery.

Although my kids aren’t babies anymore, I still LOVE this feature. If they are playing in their playroom, I don’t have to constantly get up and check while I’m working. If they are doing something they shouldn’t be, I can warn them with the two-way talking feature. I don’t have to constantly get up while I finish up my work for the day. Makes working from home during the weekends 10x easier.

My kids think this feature is funny though. They try to use this as their own “walkie talkies”. One will come in my office and try to talk to the other through the Levana System. They also make weird faces at each other and do crazy stuff, it’s pretty funny to watch!

3 Remote-controlled lullabies

                                      

Does your baby love the sound of lullabies before bed and cry out for more when the music stops? Stella has three lullabies that can be remotely activated and changed by your parent unit.

Disclosure- I was given this product for review purposes and was not financially compensated otherwise.  All opinions are my own, based on my own use of this product.

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Motorola MBP36S Remote Wireless Video Baby Monitor

Are you a light sleeper who wakes up to your child’s every roll, whimper, and cry? The Motorola MBP36 Remote Wireless Video Monitor will cure you of those sleepless nights worrying if they are alright. This has so many features that if James Bond had a baby, he’d be sure to want this. Nothing but the best, right?

This monitor is equipped with a 2.4GHz FHSS technology for sound clarity. The sound is dynamic, delivering even the slightest sounds, so that you can be sure that your child is sleeping peaceful and sound. If they cry, you’ll definitely know because the sound comes in loud and clear. You can even hear them taking each tiny little beautiful breath!

I don’t have a baby, although I wish mine were that small again. Time flies, huh? I got this to be able to keep an eye on my kids while they’re playing in their playroom. I can work in my office and see that they are playing without arguing or doing something they shouldn’t be. Kids are tricky little monsters. Playing one minute and then trying to draw on a wall the next. I can now multi-task and get some work done while they’re playing and not worrying.

Display

It has a 3.5” LCD color display monitor with a kickstand and infared night vision. I can place this on the shelf next to my desk and look over randomly to see where they are. I don’t have to get up and look every 5 minutes to make sure they aren’t trying to wreck havoc and pull out all the toys. It has an impressive range of up to 200 meters with an out of range warning, so that I know the boundaries reach. That’s pretty cool.

Remotely controlled Pan, Tilt, & Zoom

I love that this has the remote capability with it. Do you know how awesome it is to be able to have a clear view of the entire playroom? I can move the camera around with the monitor to see the entire room. It has all 4 buttons; up, down, right, and left. No matter where my kids are in the room, I can see them at all times. Makes it so much easier to focus on my work without stressing about what they’re up to. It even has a zoom feature, which works extremely well.

Two-way Communicating

It also has two-way communication, which is top-notch. Not only can I hear every little thing they say- I can talk to them. I had issues of them fighting over toys, arguing and such. Now if I hear it, I can warn them that they are about to sit in time out if I hear them arguing again or taking something away from each other. It works so well, that in fact my kids tried to get me to let them use it as a walkie-talkie when we were at supper, haha. Nope, don’t think so.

No Dropped or Mixed Signals, EVER!

The 2.4GHz FHSS technology of this antenna is superb and offers a more reliable wireless connection over previous versions, such as the 900MHz. We have cell phones and wireless internet, and there have never been any mixed signals or the monitor picking up any different signals. No weak or dropped signals either, so that’s a win. Knowing that I’m not missing anything (think of a mixed cell phone signal how the people cut in and out). There has definitely been absolutely none of that. Nothing but pure amazingness from this monitor.

Infared Night Vision

I also set this up in my sons room when he’s sleeping. He’s 7 but I’m pretty sure he has sleep apnea. There are times that he’s falling alseep beside me and scared me almost to death. It sounded like he was randomly getting short of breath, gasping for breath. Sometimes it sounds like he stops breathing altogether, making me touch him just to make sure he’s OK. This gives me the reassurance I need that he’s alright and breathing. I can place this on my nightstand and see him in full view and hear him breathing.

The resolution at night is awesome, so awesome in fact that I can see Aidans chest rising and falling with each breath. It’s very important to be able to see everything in great detail, and this one never fails. I love that I can watch him sleep without having to bother him with the bright light of a lamp or the nuisance of a night-light.

Sweetly Luring Lullabies & Room Temp Monitor

Although I don’t need the lullaby feature, anybody with a baby would consider this genius. It has 5 built-in polyphonic lullabies built in. You just pick up your handheld device and scroll over to the lullaby section, choosing whichever lullaby suits your baby. It also has a room temp sensor, letting you know at all times how warm or cool it is inside the room. It displays the temperature right on the video screen, so you don’t have to click to view. You can choose to view the temp in Farenheit or Celcius.

You can buy the Motorola MBP365 here.

What would be your favorite features? What would you use this for?

 

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Until next time,