Angelcare AC25-1 baby monitor review “The movement pad gives extra peace of mind”

A baby monitor is one of those products that are a must-have for new parents, not only to provide the reassurance that baby is sleeping, but also that they are sleeping safely. There's so much that you can worry about as a new parent, but safe sleep shouldn't have to be one of them. That's where baby breathing monitor products such as the Angelcare AC25-1 can provide that added peace of mind, as it combines a video monitor with movement sensor.

The AC25-1 is medically certified by the MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency). It features contact-free sensor pad technology - simply place the wireless Movement Sensor Pad under the mattress to monitor your baby's movements, and an alarm will sound if no movements are detected for 20-seconds.

Mum-to-be and hub editor Stephanie Specncer tried out the Angelcare AC25-1 for herself, here's how she got on.

Testing the Angelcare AC25-1 baby monitor

While I'm currently expecting my baby I have tried out a few baby monitors before in my time at Mother&Baby and used this one with the help of my friend's 6 month old. Firstly, initial setup was relatively simple, although I'd recommend getting to grips with the controls before turning it on - it did almost immediately start beeping at me because the pad didn't detect movement and I couldn't figure out how to turn the volume off!

The screen is really clear and good quality, the clearest one I’ve tested, especially for night-vision. The audio is great and there's a really sturdy kickback stand to keep the monitor upright. I like that the camera can be tilted to find the best position, and the range of motion it has makes it really easy to position perfectly.

One thing is you can’t adjust the camera position from the monitor, and I have used others where you can adjust it remotely, which is handy if you just want to move it without having to go back up and disturb baby. You can zoom in and out from the monitor though, so you just have to make sure you’re happy with the positioning before you leave it. It does have a great range to adjust though, it has a better range of vision than others I've used which do have the remote positioning, making it easier to install on a wall or flat surface, thanks to its tabletop stand.

I prefer something non-wifi so that's a plus for me, especially considering the addition of the high-tech movement sensor pad. You can also turn off the pad and just use it as a baby monitor, which I think will be useful for when baby is a bit bigger and you don't necessarily need the extra reassurance of the breathing monitor as much.

The movement monitor seems very sensitive which is good, I've not had it go off apart from a couple of accidental times when baby hasn't actually been in the cot. You can set it to four different sensitivity levels. The alarm is loud and I can imagine it would be quite jarring to hear - I'm going to use it with my newborn and see how I get on but if it makes me worry more then I know I can use the monitor without the pad, and if it does reassure me then it's great to know I can use the movement pad.

I like that it is something you can tuck under the mattress rather than something that baby wears, just another reassurance that nothing can fall off or get dislodged while baby is sleeping.

The monitor had no problem picking up signal from the camera from downstairs, and even from the garden, I was very impressed by the range. You can also set temperature alerts and there are a range of soothing lullabies you can play through the camera, as well as a nightlight. The buttons on the monitor itself don’t light up or glow, but because they’re a bit more pronounced they’re easy to feel for if it’s dark.

The battery on the parent unit lasts up to 5 hours with audio and visual, 8 hours with just audio - which is plenty as long as you remember to charge it in between uses, or keep the plug somewhere you're likely to sit with the monitor nearby. The movement sensor pad has a battery life of 8 months.

Some improvements I can think of are it would be good if in the main menu there was some sort of description rather than just symbols, as I can’t remember what they all do and it takes me a minute to figure out each time. Also the lights don’t go red at the top for loud noises, which I actually find I prefer as it catches your eye if you don’t have the screen on, there are four green lights and they go from 1 being on to all 4 – so at a glance it’s harder to tell if baby is crying or just murmuring.

Final thoughts

Overall I think this is a high quality baby monitor, with everything a new parent could want - from a clear screen, to light and sound, plus the addition of the movement pad. It does have a premium price point, but I think this is justified by the standard of product you're getting, plus it's in line with other baby breathing monitor products on the market.