If you’re buying for someone joining the new parents club in the new year, you might want to pick a gift with their plans in mind.
While the holidays can be a time for fun and thoughtful gifts, presents that also have use are just as desirable, particularly if that use has is going to be a big, big deal.
For new parents, technology can serve a pretty useful purpose, whether it’s monitoring a child’s vitals, watching them on camera, or just helping out mum in some way.
So if you’re buying a gift for soon-to-be-parents, you may want to consider these handy options for the 2021 holiday season in Australia.
BabyHeart Fetal Doppler
Price: $69
We’re not at the point where we can have an ultrasound at home, but what soon-to-be-parents can do is hear a heartbeat using a doppler. There are a few different grades of these, but the compact BabyHeart Fetal Doppler is one that you can plug headphones or a speaker into, and just listen.
It’s worth noting that dopplers like these don’t make up for seeing an OB, and also may not indicate any issues. But if you know a parent keen to hear a heartbeat, the boom-boom-boom can be heard using one of these little gadgets.
Morphee for Kids
Price: $149
Planning to get the kids to sleep is typically an effort in cuddling, cuddling some more, and continuing to cuddle because you’ll never get those times back, but technology can assist the sleep process, as well.
Morphee has something that can assist, with a speaker and specially programmed relaxation elements, bringing together soothing sounds, music, and guided meditation stories able to be triggered in a number of combinations.
The gadget is easy to operate and comes with a handle, so you can move it from room to room with ease.
Withings Thermo
Price: $179
Making sure your child is the right temperature is usually a case of throwing a thermometer in the ear and checking, but Withing’s infrared style of thermometer not only gets a temperature without a contact, but can send it to your phone.
It’s a quick way to check a temperature without needing to wake up a bub, plus includes an LED readout on the handle so you don’t have to check your phone at all.
Owlet Smart Sock 3
Price: $449
A wearable of sorts for a newborn through to several years later, the Owlet Smart Sock is like a fitbit for very young kids, yet for important factors.
Owlet’s special wearable is worn on one foot and tracks heart rate, blood oxygen level, and sleep trends, conveying it to your phone with notifications as your child sleeps.
Cubo AI Plus
Price: $499
No baby room is complete without a baby monitor, and while a favourite of the Arlo Baby has since been retired, there’s a new model worth checking out, the Cubo AI Plus.
While the since retired Arlo Baby could be triggered on crying and pick up on the temperature of the room, so too can the Cubo AI Plus, supporting not just that, but humidity detection, as well as whether the baby’s face is covered and if a baby has made its way out of its crib and into somewhere else.
There’s also built-in lullabies, sleep analytics, and sharing of the camera with family members, plus three ways of setting up the camera in a child’s room.
