Safest and Best Analog Baby Monitors: 2022 Update

From 1937 to the 1960s, analog baby monitors with simplex communication mode (one-way) dominated the baby monitor industry. The digital processing technology which was discovered in 1965 paved the way for digital encrypted communication. More than 90% of the monitors in the market in 2022 are digital but about 10% of baby monitors still use analog transmission technology to transfer audio signals from the baby unit to the parent unit. We checked the market and could not find an analog video baby monitor.

What is Analog Baby Monitor

Analog baby monitors are devices that transmit audio signals using lower frequency bands using non-linear, unencrypted signals. Analog baby monitors utilize 49 MHz to around 900 MHz frequency bands which is lower than digital baby monitors’ frequency bands which range from 1.8 GHz to 5 GHz. Most digital baby monitors rely on 1.9 GHz to 2.4 GHz but some of the latest brands such as Nanit also rely on 5 GHz frequency band that has less interference.

Analog Vs Digital Baby Monitor

The table below shows the difference between Analog and Digital baby monitors. The table below will assist you to decide whether you can go for an analog or digital baby monitor in 2022.

Analog Baby Monitor	Digital Baby Monitor
Unencrypted communication signals	Encrypted communication signals
Lower frequency band from 24 MHz to 900 MHz	Higher frequency band from 1900 MHz to 5000 MHz.
Has a lot of interference and noise is not very clear	Limited interference
Limited range	Longer range
Limited channels	Several channels

Are analog baby monitors safe

Analog baby monitors use lower frequency bands from 24 MHz to 900 MHz to transmit signals from the baby unit to the parent unit. Graco baby monitors have been leading the way and have advocated making the case that analog baby monitors are safe and we sought to investigate this claim here at 10BabyGear.

Analog does not have several channels and are not encrypted. Another question we always get is whether analog baby monitors are safer than digital baby monitors.

Analog baby monitor radiation

Analog baby monitors use radio frequency to transmit signals. It, therefore, emits radiation as it is a wireless communication device.

Philips Avent analog baby monitor

Philips Avent Analog baby monitor, SCD485/01 is an analog baby monitor manufactured by Philips Avent. However, this analog baby monitor by Philips is no longer available as it has been discontinued. By the time we published this article in 2022, a few of these low-frequency analog baby monitors were still available on Amazon and you can check it today here. You can also check on Philip’s website here.

Below are some of the features that drew parents to this Avent analog baby monitor:

• Clear sound transmission almost close to what you’d hear in digital baby monitors such as VTech DM1211.
• Low battery alerts
• Sound activated lights which made it easy for parents with hearing impairment or for deaf parents.
• 6 hours of battery life
• 40 MHz frequency band, a lower frequency band dedicated to analog baby monitors
• Utilize two channels

Below is a video review of Avent analog baby monitor:

Safety 1st Crystal Clear Audio Monitor, White

Safety 1st analog baby monitor challenges the Philips Avent analog baby monitor. Similar to VTech audio baby monitors, Safety 1st Analog baby monitor, it experiences interference.

It has a 600 ft. range and uses the 49 MHz frequency band, a band higher than Philips Avent’s analog baby monitor.

Unlike the Safety 1st Sure Glow audio baby monitor below, this brand uses 2 channels to minimize interference and comes with an audio jack for listening w/earphones.

This Safety 1st’s 49 MHz analog monitor is also among the few baby monitor with an audio jack and earphones. In addition, it has a convertible belt clip/carry loop.

Safety 1st Sure Glow Audio Monitor

Safety 1st Sure Glow in another analog baby monitor brand by Safety 1st. It uses the 49 MHz frequency and has a range of 600 ft. which is average that of most non-wifi baby monitors.

In case you miss the parent unit, you can use the pager as the parent unit as they use the same frequency. To assist you to easily use this baby monitor, power and low battery indicators and volume controls.

The table below summarizes the details of this analog monitor.

Name	Safety 1st Sure Glow Audio Monitor
Signal transmission	Analog baby monitor using 49MHz frequency
Dimension	3 x 2.25 x 6.75 in
Power source	AC and battery
Rating on Amazon on Feb 2, 2020	3.7/5 by 24 customers
What parents like about it	Low radiation, transmits the sound signal as expected, relatively cheap.
What parents don’t like about it	Sound quality isn’t good–lots of static
Cost	Check Price

Video Review of Safety 1st Analog Baby Monitor

Below is another video review of Safety 1st analog baby monitor

The First Years Two Receiver 49 MHz Monitor

The First Years Two Receiver 49 MHz Monitor is another best analog baby to feature in this list. Over 70 parents have rated this analog monitor giving it an average rating of 3.4/5. A check on Amazon revealed that this First Years analog baby monitor is the only brand by First Years.

Here are other features we like about this non-digital monitor:

1. It has a sensitive microphone that detects almost all sounds
2. It has a baby sound-activated light which makes it very ideal for any deaf parent
3. It also has a sound indicator/speaker on the parent unit
4. It has two receivers to minimize static noise.

Graco Analog Baby Monitor

A corded analog baby monitor

You can design a corded analog baby monitor that will have low EMF radiation and perhaps safer than the digital baby monitors.

Where to buy Analog baby monitor

You can get the analog baby monitor in Australia, US, UK, China, India and in Europe. Online retailers such as Amazon have them but some local stores such as Walmart and Target may also have them.