What they say:
“Philips AVENT DECT Baby Monitor SCD580/01 not only allows you to hear every gurgle with perfect clarity, it comes with a range of great features to ensure your baby (and you) can sleep peacefully. The remote activated starry night projector will calm a restless baby, as well as a remote controlled night light, lullabies and even a 2-way communication, so you can calm your baby with your voice. The temperature and humidity sensor alert you of any changes in environment by vibration, and can also be set to alert you of sleep and feed times.”
Tested by mum Michelle Brown for the M&B Awards 2017:
Would you recommend this to other mums?
This baby monitor is brilliant! I love it. The tunes are lovely and so easy to listen to and soothing! Even for an adult. The lovely stars that display on the ceiling are bright and colourful, they also move all around the room. The monitor has a good range on it and many features. Including temperature and humidity. You can also put a timer on it for the tunes and stars which is controlled from the parent base so no need to be in the same room!. Also it has got a talk back function.
How did this product make your life easier?
I can now settle my baby down for a nap and I know she's safe and I can go downstairs and be alerted if she cries. It's got a sensitivity function on it to if you don't want to be alerted for just "moans and groans". The lead provided means you hang it round your neck. I also like the clean white colour and it looks good, it looks professional and good quality.
Would you choose this product to win?
I feel safe knowing that I can leave baby and be alerted if she cries. My baby couldn't take her eyes off the ceiling and loved the bright colours. The talk back is great so no need to enter the room and disturb baby. There's also a power safe mode so your not using it all the time and wasting electricity!.
What changes would you make to this product?
It would be useful if there was a clip so you could clip it to trousers. The display could have a wider diameter on it so it covers the "whole" of the ceiling. It would also be good if there were more options so not just stars. Maybe the moon or planets would be a nice feature. The tunes could do with being a bit more louder also.
Tested by mum Jess Gibbins for the M&B Awards 2017:
Would you recommend this to other mums?
When baby is in another room you need a monitor you can trust and the Avent SCD580 lets you listen in with perfect clarity. The quality of sound on this monitor is fantastic and it packs plenty of extra features, too. It is easy to set up and hasn't dropped signal once so far. The monitor does need a good charge at first. There are nice bright flashy lights on the parent unit to alert you to baby's cry. From the parent unit you can control many of the features on the baby unit.
How did this product make your life easier?
I have tried lots of different monitors and this has by far the best sound quality and range, even in our house which appears to be in some sort of black hole for wifi and dab radio, so it's great to find a monitor that can pick up the signal in any room or even in the garden. I love the projector, it's very soothing and it's a nice addition to the bedtime routine. The monitor has worked flawlessly from day one and that's impressive.
Would you choose this product to win?
I like to have a video feed in a monitor. However, the Avent SCD580/01 does everything else and more. The projector is a great feature and it is handy to have a humidity and a temperature feed as well. There are a lot more functions available to you such as a nightlight on a timer, parent talkback and Eco Max mode, which only transmits when the sound in baby's room reaches a certain level. Due to the excellent sound quality and extra features I would definitely recommend this to parents.
What changes would you make to this product?
I would change the baby unit to be rechargeable so it doesn't have to be plugged into the mains. This is because sometimes baby will nap in different places and you have to plug it in every time. The only other thing I would change is to add a camera and a video feed but that is a whole different monitor.
Tested by mum Emma Betianu for the M&B Awards 2017:
Would you recommend this to other mums?
I would recommend it yes, it's not too expensive for all the options that this monitor provides, it's modern looking and easy to use. The sound is very clear and it has different levels of sensitivity which is great. The night light and projector are a lovely feature and the handset can be carried around with the lanyard whilst you are doing any housework which is very handy.
How did this product make your life easier?
I really liked that I could control the nightlight, music and projector from the handset so you don't have to go into the babies room and disturb them to alter anything. Sound of the music can also be adjusted by the handset. The handset also comes with a little lanyard so you can easily carry it around with you when doing any housework.
Would you choose this product to win?
This monitor displays the humidity in a room which I haven't found on another monitor yet, I think this is a great thing to know, also you can set a feeding timer so if you are feeding baby by a schedule rather than feeding on demand it's an extra peace of mind to know you have the alarm just incase you forget when you last fed baby.
What changes would you make to this product?
I would personally prefer if it came with a camera so I could see the baby as well as hear it but if judging it solely on the fact it's just to hear baby the only thing I would change is the projector. Don't get me wrong it's lovely but it would be nicer if the projection moved rather than just change pattern.
Tested by mum Rebecca Johnson for the M&B Awards 2017:
Would you recommend this to other mums?
This product is easy and simple to use. It has added features which could make most parents’ lives easier. The parent unit can give instant information to the parent and if baby is unsettled the parent unit can remotely soothe baby by accessing music/light/projection. The units can be easily wiped down due to the design, there are no gaps between the buttons.
How did this product make your life easier?
Generally the concept of a baby monitor makes life easier, however, the fact you can talk back to baby, put on a soothing light, projector and sounds REMOTELY means that the parent can continue what they are doing without going into the room baby is in. Also, the product lets you glance at the parent unit and in a split second you are able to assess the room temperature, humidity and if baby is stirring/crying.
Would you choose this product to win?
This unit has additional features, the light, sound and projection which can be remotely accessed by the parent unit. I found this to be the unique selling point for me. The units are stylish, but compact and will fit perfectly on bedside tables. The buttons are nice to use, no excessive pressure or awkward switches, and it's easy to clean.
What changes would you make to this product?
I would like to see an interchangeable disc for the projector. Just to give a bit of variation and to adapt to the growing child. So possibly have a disc with animals on, an underwater theme, clouds and birds, a starry night. This would be more appealing to me as it would last longer and the older baby wouldn't get 'bored' of the same pictures.
Tested by mum Nancy Cullinane for the M&B Awards 2017:
Would you recommend this to other mums?
The Avent baby monitor is a brilliant product that not only offers the basic ability to listen in on baby, but has lots of added features that can help aid baby back to sleep and give comfort. I love the fact that you can talk to your little one through the parent unit offering comfort and reassurance which is sometimes just enough to help them get back to sleep. The option to play and control music and lights from the transportable parent unit is also a great feature, as well as the eco mode.
How did this product make your life easier?
The Avent baby monitor definitely makes my life as a mum much easier because the monitor allows me to go from room, to room, to garden all while being able to hear that my little one is settled because of how transportable it is. The ability to play melodies and turn the light show on and off without having to go into the room and disturbing the baby is great. The monitor also shows the room temperature and alerts you if there's a change which is such a reassuring feature to have.
Would you choose this product to win?
I think this is a great baby monitor because it not only offers the basic audio function it also has added extras to help aid baby back to sleep. The ability to talk to baby and turn music and lights on from the parent unit is amazing to help reassure and comfort little ones. But by far my favourite feature is that it is so easily transported, meaning I don't need to be tied to the same room while baby is sleeping.
What changes would you make to this product?
If I were to change one thing about the Avent baby monitor it would be to make the screens a bit bigger on both units, primarily the parent unit as that's the one I tend to use most for changing functions. It's not too small to read when it's on the main screen, but I would have appreciated it being a bit bigger when I was trying to change functions.