Here it is folks. This is the most exciting thermometer I have had the pleasure to review on this site. The VAVA Smart Baby Thermometer will allow you to keep an eye on your baby’s temperature from the comfort of your own bed.
Parenting is hard. There is a lot of guesswork involved and that always makes things feel very chaotic. Your baby cries and it is your job to figure out what the problem is. When you get really expert at the process, you can even anticipate the crying before it happens or at least know right away what the cause is. There is very little control in this game of parenting.
Most parents can feel anxious that they aren’t doing something right. Or they can feel that if they look away for a second then disaster will strike. I think most parents will agree that they felt apprehensive the first few nights after their baby was born. What if they choke? What if they stop breathing? How will I ever sleep again? There are little sock heart monitors for this very reason. But the VAVA Smart Baby Thermometer is a thermometer that can monitor your baby’s temperature throughout the night in the same concept as the sock heart monitor. Your baby will wear the monitor, and nighttime temperature checks and sleepless nights for parents and children are a thing of the past.
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How Does It Work?
The VAVA Smart Baby Thermometer is really a unique model and is one of a kind. Instead of the thermometer being inserted rectally or orally, which can be difficult for small children, it is held in place under the armpit for up to 24 hours at a time.
This thermometer still works with contact temperature reads, similar to your basic thermometer that you read under the armpit, but it is thin and discreet. Your child will hardly even notice that it is there. It continually reads your child’s temperature and displays it on the storage unit that you can keep anywhere in your home.
There is no need to take it off and read a tiny screen on the thermometer itself and there is no need to take a temperature and retake it every half hour until it drops. You will be able to keep an eye on the fever and how it develops even from a distance. You will be able to view your child’s temperature in the middle of the night from the comfort of your own bed.
How Accurate Are Armpit Temperatures?
Though the Seattle Children’s Hospital states, “Temps done in the armpit are the least accurate,” they do go on to say that “armpit temps are useful for screening at any age.” This means that the temperature might not be the most accurate when compared to rectal temperatures or oral temperatures, but it is a great way to screen for a fever.
This hospital goes on to say that if your child’s armpit temperature is 99 degrees Fahrenheit or above, then your child has a fever and they suggest that you take a more accurate temperature such as an oral or rectal temperature. Fevers can be dangerous for very young babies, so if your child is 3 months or less, an armpit temperature of 99 degrees is enough to call a pediatrician.
Many doctors will say that an armpit temperature could be one degree lower than the actual read, and the Seattle Children’s Hospital website corroborates that. You can just add one degree to every temperature reading you have with the VAVA smart baby thermometer, or you can retake it with a thermometer that can read in a more accurate place.
How Accurate Is VAVA Smart Baby Thermometer?
This all being said, the VAVA website states that the thermometer is only off by a window of 0.2 degrees Fahrenheit give or take. It might be worth it to you to do your own verification tests, but an armpit temperature reading will still let you know if your child has a fever, which is the important thing.
Wireless
One convenient feature of this thermometer is that it is wireless. The docking station doubles as the digital display of the thermometer, but it can work on battery life. The thermometer itself will last for 24 hours, but the docking station will last up to 72 hours without needing to be plugged in.
When you do want to charge it up, it only takes about 3 hours of plugging in through a DC 5V cord. With this wireless feature, you can take it with you around the house, which is awesome since babies are constantly on the move.
The docking station does need to be within 50 feet or 15 meters of the thermometer itself, so keep that in mind as you are deciding where to keep it. That is a fairly good range if you are staying in the home, but something to remember.
Long-Lasting
When your VAVA Smart Baby Thermometer is fully charged it should last for about 24 hours before the battery gives out. This is an important feature because a huge reason why people love this thermometer is that it isn’t intrusive. You can stick it to your baby’s armpit region and you don’t have to worry about bothering your baby all day.
Click Here for the Best Price on the VAVA Smart Baby Thermometer
Charging Time
It may surprise you that this thermometer, which lasts all day long paired to the dock would charge in a relatively short amount of time. It only takes an hour and a half to fully charge.
So you could leave the thermometer off for a stroll around the neighborhood to get some fresh air and by the time you get back, it could be ready for another full day and night.
Charging time is very important, especially since many fevers will last more than one day and you’d prefer to have full-day coverage.
Backlit
The whole display is backlit, so you can easily see the temperature day and night. It is similar to an alarm clock that you can view the time throughout the night, but it isn’t so bright that it will keep you from falling asleep.
3M Medical Grade Adhesive
I mentioned earlier that the VAVA Smart Baby Thermometer was similar to the owlet heart rate monitor socks that many parents buy for babies. It is different in one very important way, however. The most common complaint about the socks is that they can come off or get loose during the night and wake parents up because it isn’t getting a good reading, even when their child is perfectly fine.
The VAVA Smart baby thermometer doesn’t have this problem at all because it uses a 3M medical-grade adhesive to stick to your baby’s skin. This adhesive is super strong and will not move once you put it on your baby.
It is also great for sensitive skin. These are the kind of adhesives that are used in hospitals for all kinds of patients with all kinds of skin conditions. It will stick to skin effectively, and it doesn’t hurt like a band-aid when you pull it off. It goes on smooth and comes off smooth.
Replacement Strips
The VAVA Smart baby thermometer comes with 10 of these adhesive strips in the box that it comes in. You can also buy replacement strips here. Though the strips are supposed to be one use only, you might be able to get more out of one if you only used it for a few hours.
The big downside to this innovative thermometer is that you will need to continue to buy replacement strips to keep using it, so you have to consider that into the cost of the thermometer. However, the amount of data and peace of mind are worth it in my opinion.
IPX7 Waterproof
Many parents like to give their babies soothing baths when they have fevers. And the nice thing about the medical-grade adhesive is that it is IPX7 waterproof, which means that you can submerge it into up to a meter of water.
Though you definitely don’t need a meter depth, it is nice to know that you don’t have to waste an adhesive strip on a bath. You also don’t need to restrict your baby from bathing.
Notifications
The thing I love about this thermometer is that it isn’t very fussy. You stick it on your baby and you get constant temperature reads when you want them, but you can just ignore it the rest of the time. In fact, it will notify you if anything is going wrong. So you really can have peace of mind, knowing that your baby is constantly monitored.
Here are some of the important notifications that the VAVA Smart baby thermometer has.
Beeping
When your baby’s fever reaches over 100 degrees Fahrenheit or 38 degrees celsius, the docking station will immediately beep and wake you up. This is very handy for all those nights that you sit up awake worrying about your baby and wanting to check their temperature every two minutes. You can rest at ease, knowing that if anything is wrong, your thermometer will tell you.
Light Indicator
When your baby has a high fever, the thermometer docking station will also beep immediately like it did when your baby reached a low fever, but this time it will be accompanied by flashing lights. A high fever is anything above 102 degrees Fahrenheit or 38 degrees celsius.
Tips For Using It
The Medical Grade Adhesive is very strong and most babies will not have the strength or dexterity to peel it off of their skin. However, if you are using it on an older child or toddler, they might be able to take it off. You will get a notification that it isn’t against skin anymore, but that doesn’t fix the annoyance of having to apply and reapply it every few minutes. The patches are also not super inexpensive, so you’d want to resist waste when you can.
The best tip I have for parents who have this problem is to make sure that their child is in a sleeper suit or long sleeve onesie while using the thermometer. This will ensure that your child will not be able to pull it off easily. This doesn’t mean you should use a hot, fleece sleeper when your child has a fever. But a light, thin sleeper will be comfortable and protective.
One Improvement
If I could change one thing about the VAVA Smart Baby Thermometer, it would be that it have a smartphone app to go with it. Of course, many parents will say that they don’t want to be too far from their baby when they are using it anyway. However, it is a bit annoying to carry an alarm clock sized display around the house from room to room.
This would also be an amazing feature for parents who are unable to stay home with their children. It is nice to be able to keep an eye on their fever while at work even if they are in trusted care.
Battery Life
I would say that one of the reasons why VAVA didn’t make this thermometer have a smartphone app is that the constant pairing with your phone or device would cause the battery life to deplete faster. It would drain the battery in a fraction of the time.
Still, it might be a nice improvement in the future as technology continues to develop.
Click Here for the Best Price on the VAVA Smart Baby Thermometer
Conclusion
All in all, the VAVA smart baby thermometer is a really great option for parents who really want to keep an eye on their baby’s temperature for long periods of time. Some children have conditions like febrile seizures or periodic fever syndrome and these conditions make it very important for parents to track their child’s temperatures regularly.
Even for parents who do not have children with these conditions, fevers can be a scary thing, especially in babies. I would assume that most parents would love to have a thermometer with the capabilities that this one has. It is easy to charge, easy to use, safe for your baby, and very convenient. This thermometer gives parents the option of not having those traumatic temperature-taking experiences during a high-stress time where everyone, baby and parent, are likely on edge.