Here’s looking at you, kid: Papalook video baby monitor should give parents some peace of mind - The Dallas Morning News

I don't know how my parents raised three children without a baby monitor, but they did.

Today, I don't think a baby shower would be complete without the mom-to-be receiving a baby monitor.

I don't have kids, so this is all new territory for me. I never realized there were so many brands of baby monitors.

This week I've been testing the Papalook BM1 Video Baby Monitor, and I'm impressed with its simplicity and video image quality.

The BM1 has two parts — the camera and a monitor.

After unboxing, you'll notice that each piece is powered by a USB cable. There are two cables and two USB power adapters in the box.

I find it a bit odd that the camera uses an older microUSB cable, while the monitor uses a newer USB-C cable.

Plug them both into power and turn on the monitor by pressing the power button on top. You'll instantly see the camera image on the monitor.

Setup could not be easier.

The camera and monitor are paired from the factory using 2.4 gigahertz direct communication. You do not need Wi-Fi., and the BM1 components talk directly to each other with a range of up to 900 feet.

The camera

The camera resembles a snowman, but it has ears on top like a teddy bear. I suppose the ears make it cute enough to not stand out in the nursery. The ears are blue. I didn't see an option to change them out for pink if you have a girl.

The head of the snowman/bear houses the camera, which you can control.

The camera of the Pappalook BM1 Video Baby Monitor

The 1080p camera pans 160 degrees up and down (floor to ceiling) and rotates 355 degrees, so you can see every part of your nursery.

There is a one-click zoom to see a close-up, but while you are zoomed in, you can't rotate the camera.

The snowman/bear has a small wire tail with a temperature sensor so you can tell if the room is too hot or too cold. You can set an alarm to sound if the temperature is outside the acceptable range (64 to 86 degrees), and you can't adjust the range. You do see the current room temperature on the screen.

The camera has a microphone so you can hear what's happening in the nursery and the mic can also alert you of noise in the room.

There are three settings for the sound alarm.

The low setting will sound if it senses a shouting cry from the baby.

The medium setting will sound if there is a loud voice in the room, and the high setting will be triggered by normal speech.

You can also turn off the sound alarm and just listen. The mic was able to pick up sound clearly.

The camera has a microSD card slot for recording. It does not record continuously. You have to open the recording screen on the monitor and manually start the recording.

When you turn off the room lights, the camera automatically switches over to night vision mode. It has red LEDs that can gently illuminate your nursery so you can clearly see what's happening. The night vision mode shows a black-and-white image.

The monitor

The monitor has a 5-inch color video display with a built-in rechargeable battery, so it can be carried around the house or yard.

It measures 5 by 3.7 by 0.5 inches and it weighs just about the same as my iPhone XS Max.

It could be carried around in the back pocket of your jeans.

The monitor of the Pappalook BM1 Video Baby Monitor

On the back, you'll find a small speaker and a flip-out kickstand so it can stand up like a picture frame.

You interact with the camera and the monitor with a row of buttons on the monitor's top and right sides.

On top, you'll find the power button and a button to acknowledge/silence the sound alarm.

On the right side, there are buttons to enter the menus, switch cameras (you can view up to four cameras, but extra cameras are not yet available), and set the screen brightness and speaker volume. There's also a button you can press to speak to your baby remotely.

If you press the mic button on the monitor and speak, your voice will be heard from a small speaker on the camera.

There is an antenna on top of the monitor that you can flip up if you are at the edge of the reception range.

The monitor has a 3,600 milliamp-hour battery that will power 10 hours of video monitoring and 15 hours of audio-only monitoring.

The monitor charges in about 5 hours.

In use

Out of the box, the monitor is set to stay on all the time, but you can also set it to turn off after one, 10 or 30 minutes. Touching any button brings the image back.

You can adjust the camera view with four arrow buttons for up/down and left/right. The camera movement is silent, and the response is quick.

Once you place the camera where you can get a good view of the baby, it is nice to be able to pan and tilt to see any part of the room.

The picture is clear and the sound is good. The speakers on the monitor and camera are tiny, so don't expect stereo quality.

Turning on the monitor takes a five-second press on the power button, and it seems a bit longer than you think it should be.

The default is to immediately bring up the video image.

If you'd like to get into the onscreen interface, press the upper right button with a gear symbol.

You'll see a screen full of icons for the various settings like Camera, Sound Alarm, Temperature Alarm, Music, Recording and Playback.

The BM1 doesn't have a touchscreen. I have to admit I tried to touch the icons on the screen more than once. We've had smartphones for so long that I forgot what it is like to have a screen you can't touch. You use the arrow buttons to navigate.

The speaker in the camera can play lullabies to soothe your little one to sleep. There are eight song choices, and you can have them play once or loop them. The songs play with simple notes like a small music box.

You start and stop video recordings from the Recording icon.

Pricing and availability

The Papalook BM1 is available from Amazon for $139. Check the Amazon page for a digital coupon to drop the price a bit.

Overall, the Papalook BM1 Video Baby Monitor is a very nice, self-contained solution for keeping an eye on your baby. The fact that you don't have to fumble with Wi-Fi networks or apps on your phone means you just turn it on and it works.

It is also easy enough to unplug it all and take it with you for trips to grandma's house.

It has good range (it worked from every corner of my house and through walls to the back yard).

The microphones and speakers relay the sound in both directions, and the camera pans and tilts to see every inch of your baby's room.

Pros: Good image quality, even in the dark; easy to set up.

Cons: None.

Bottom line: The Papalook BM1 has everything I'd want in a baby monitor.