BLACK+DECKER Video Baby Monitor Plus – 4.3″ Screen on Parent Unit, Pan-Tilt-Zoom Camera, Smooth Motion, Two Way Talk, Auto Night Vision and Room Temperature Monitoring

I’m a first time grandpa and was a bit anxious deciding between WIFI or not. I found this monitor and bought it right away as the brand has been part of my family since I can remember. Super easy to setup, just plug and easy to use. I recommend it to everyone, tech savvy or tech challenged as I am.

After trying several different brands of monitors , and I am happy to see a brand name I know and respect in the space now. This has become our favorite monitor.The picture is crisp and clear , there is no delay as we get with other brands . What’s happening in the room is exactly what I am seeing live on the parent unit.The pan and tilt feature is great too, responsive and easy to use. I really love that this unit is not hooked to the internet at all. It’s 100% digital secure radio transmission. It’s impossible for someone else to hack the camera and invade our privacy .

I put this baby monitor through its steps and here are my conclusions. First of all, I have a 40+ year history in audio visual with a photography background. I had cameras on my house 40 years ago, long before it became popular to do so.In my test, the connectivity seemed a strong point. I put the monitor in the house and the camera outside in the RV shelter inside the RV. It’s connecting from 30 feet and three walls with metal and had no issues . Most houses shouldn’t be a problem.I did not like the zoom feature. It’s not an optical zoom, it’s digital with two settings, not variable and it’s virtually worthless. It’s as if they added that feature so they could advertise it having zoom.The video / image quality isn’t what I anticipated. Black + Decker says “So Clear It’s Like Being There” That’s nothing but imaginative marketing! It’s acceptable at best. The frame rate is poor with the image being choppy while panning. I doubt that failure would be a major concern when used as a baby monitor but beware, it’s pretty sad.Temperature is a very useful significant feature.I gave three stars because the image quality and zoom weren’t as expected and rather substandard. That said, when used as a baby monitor where the angle will likely be stationary the majority of time, these weaknesses shouldn’t be a critical area of concern.If you are in need of this type of monitor for babies, pets or other needs were exceptional resolution, zoom and panning isn’t constantly performed or a critical requirement, it would serve the purpose.