iNanny NC113 Wi-Fi HD Video Baby Monitor Camera for use with Smartphone, Tablet or Computer

We have several TP Link cameras set up in our home and thought this iNanny camera would be a great addition to the bedroom where our new baby will be sleeping. The monitor boasts features like the ability to talk to the baby through the monitor or play lullabies which make it a bit more appealing over a regular video monitor like the TP Link cameras we've already been using. In the description it says this camera also has a rechargeable battery which I thought would be pretty awesome, but it appears that the product description is not 100% accurate. This camera only works when plugged in since there is not a rechargeable battery. The monitor is supposed to be compatible with Android and iOS (Apple) devices. What they don't tell you is the functionality is very limited for iOS devices, so for households like ours where our tablet, phones and computers are all Apple products, this monitor does not allow us to use all of the features that we would have access to if we were using an Android device. In the end, after comparing performance and functionality of the iNanny to the TP Link cameras, we much prefer the TP Link cameras since they offer us full functionality. We can't talk through those cameras, or play music through them, but those features are not things we consider necessary in a baby monitor anyway. If you use iOS devices I'd suggest looking at other video monitors. There are ones out there that will give you night vision and full functionality with an iPhone or iPad for a faction of the cost of the iNanny. This monitor seems a bit overpriced and I suspect it's because it's labeled specifically as baby product.

This nanny camera comes pre-attached to a removable stand and bundled with a small DC power adapter and multi-language user guide (English, Spanish and French). My first step was to download the iNanny app to set up the camera. The micro-USB style power cord is about 8-9 feet long and provides ample length for just about any desired placement. The Amazon product description says the battery is rechargeable but I found no info at all regarding a rechargeable battery and my camera does not appear to work without the power adapter. I think that spec was a typo. After downloading the companion app, I registered for an account and plugged in the camera. I had to connect to the camera via internal Wi-Fi (not Bluetooth). I then connected the camera to my local Wi-Fi network from within the app. This part was a bit frustrating because the app crashed on me after I entered my network info and it took several minutes of waiting before I was finally able to see the camera again and continue setup. The app crash occurred when I tried to connect the camera to a 5G network. It appears to be incompatible with 5G. Once the Wi-Fi setup is completed, the camera can be accessed using the app from anywhere with an Internet connection.The quality of live video is good but not great. It doesn’t look as good as some full-HD cameras like Nest. It’s actually not even close. It also doesn’t have the zooming and enhancing capabilities of Nest. The video suffers moderate pixilation and other issues, particularly with rapid motion. The camera does seem to handle motion better from a distance. A minimum of five feet works best for me. This is something to keep in mind for anyone planning to sit this right next to a crib. The motion issues likely won’t matter with predominately stationary or limited movement subjects like sleeping infants. Active toddlers may pose an issue. Night vision quality is very good. Objects appear crisp, clear and easily discernible. Audio recording is also clear and the cam does a great job of picking up sound, even at moderate distances. The app alerts users to detected sound and motion events. That is a good feature because it can alert to any sounds from an infant that may occur before any detectable movement. The app does a good job of logging the events and saves them for 24 hrs. Users can go in and review motion triggered snapshots from the past 24-hours in a timeline. Events expire after 24 hours without a paid subscription. Even though it’s only snapshots, the “Freemium” plan is still pretty useful if you don’t necessarily need archived video. New users automatically enrolled in a 14-day trial that includes videos in the timeline as well. If you decide you like the 24-hour video viewing and wish to keep the feature, a yearly subscription is under thirty dollars, which is pretty good.There are a few things I dislike about using the app in iOS. My first problem is that I only get alerts within the app. I don’t get any pop up alerts on my phone nor any email alerts. I checked and verified alert settings within the app as well as notifications permissions on my phone. Everything is set to alert and permit same but it doesn’t happen. I can’t definitively say if this is a flaw or an intentional design but one thing is certain; I don’t get alerts of any type outside of the app. Another issue is capturing live video and photos in iOS. This is another awesome feature offered free of charge with this cam that competitors charge extra for. However, photo snapshot is the only feature that works in iOS. Video recording is not available. This is a documented limitation to iOS devices only. Android devices can record both still photos and video. One useful feature that does work in iOS is the ability to communicate via two-way audio through the camera. Lastly, there is a feature called “lullabies” that plays one of five lullaby songs through the camera when the button is pressed.This is a pretty good nanny cam with decent but not great video and a few hiccups in the software and firmware that results in crashes and missing features depending on OS used. It doesn’t have the quality or all of the bells and whistles of a Nest cam but a Nest also costs twice as much. I feel the NC113 offers a pretty good bundle for the price and an inexpensive entry-level subscription plan finally makes subscribing actually tempting. There are longer archive period plans available that can provide up to 30-days of archived triggered events. I would suggest buying the NC113 for the intended purpose as a nanny cam rather than a home surveillance cam. The lower video quality, glitch-prone software and lack of pop-up standby alerts make cameras like the Nest a better choice for home security and surveillance. However, if you want a good full-featured sub-$100 dollar nanny cam that allows you to actively detect and monitor several conditions such as sounds, movement and even temperature, this iNanny NC113 is a compelling choice.

Overall, I am not very enthusiastic about this webcamPositives (there are many devices that match this feature set)- acceptable resolution (720p) though not great- voice communication- temperature monitoring- motion detection- guided pairing- mobile app (ios or android)Negatives- subscription service (they specifically use the word freemium in their FAQ, so, expect to pay for anything meaningful in the way of features)- pairing and setup on my iPhone took a number of tries to get connection (5+, I stopped counting after I started to get frustrated)- unable to view via my IPCam viewer app (I have 3 other cams and thought I might be able to add this one to the set, not a good assumption), seems to require use of their dedicated service that I presume works only with their webcams- over priced in comparison to comparable devicesEssentially, the device works as expected (3 stars), but is not something I would buy when there are so many other devices out there that offer better features and are not tied to a proprietary service model that is setup as the primary income stream for this company.

Not impressed. Firstly I downloaded the app onto my iPhone 6 Plus and followed the set up instructions and created my account. Pretty simple and no problems setting up the account and connecting the camera to my wifi. I put the camera in my living room before I went out for the day to keep an eye on my dog and see what she really does while I'm away. I tested out the two way communication and lullaby features whileI was home and they worked great but a little laggy which I was expecting. The video quality however is horribly pixelated. I've had other cameras with the same 720p quality and they weren't as bad as this one. Next problem I faced was the app crashing and freezing up on me. I downloaded and re downloaded it a few times along with restarting my phone with no luck, still freezes. In the manual it says my phone is supported so not sure why it's giving me such problems. Overall I wouldn't recommend it.