Owlet Smart Sock + Cam Review

Hands-On Experience

Our baby was born via c-section and had some fluid in his lungs after birth. The Owlet gives us peace of mind that he is sleeping happy and healthy through the night. I appreciate the heart rate and oxygen saturation level icons. We can make sure he’s doing well with a quick glance at the monitor.  

The sensor sock is cute and fits easily into pajama footies, although it can shift during feedings and changes, which results in a ‘blue’ notification alert. This typically happens in the middle of the night and unfortunately wakes my husband.

But from our experience, having an audio and video feed of what’s going on in your child’s bedroom is more useful on a day to day basis. Especially once your baby is over 12 months old and the risks of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) are significantly reduced.

That’s why Owlet now offers the Owlet Smart Sock + Cam package. It combines the Owlet sock that we tested before with a camera. Both the video feed and the notifications from the sock are accessible through the mobile app.

The Owlet camera is excellent. Picture and sound quality are on par with other WiFi models available today. The night vision is clear and well lit. It doesn’t have the option to remotely tilt or pan, however, so you’ll have to make sure that it’s correctly set up when you first install it. But its unique magnet attach makes that relatively easy. Read our guide on baby monitor installation if you want more tips on that.

The Owlet camera also lacks a few extra features that other WiFi monitors offer, such as the option to play lullabies or white noise. But that’s not a deal-breaker in our opinion.

What is more problematic, however, is the limited usefulness of the Owlet app. You can view the video feed on a phone or tablet and receive alerts from the sock, but that’s about it. Other models similarly priced offer more useful information about your baby’s sleeping patterns to help you improve their night. The Nanit Plus, for example, our best baby monitor of the year, works with pediatric sleep doctors to give you regular recommendations and it costs about $100 less than the Owlet package.

It’s also worth keeping in mind that using a WiFi monitor means that you’ll need to leave your phone or a tablet always on in order to receive notifications from the Owlet. It means that you’ll also other notifications through the night, from your emails to social media reminders. While this issue is common to all WiFi baby monitors on our list, it’s something worth keeping in mind if you’re hesitating to get a radio monitor instead. Check our list of the best baby monitors of the year here to see how they all stack up.

After a few months spent with the Owlet Smart Sock + Cam, we’ve come to a conclusion. We really like the Owlet sock for infants that have potential health concerns. It can make a big difference to help you and your child sleep better. But the sock will only be useful for your baby’s first few months. Past that, you’ll mostly rely on the camera to keep an eye on them. And this is where the Owlet Smart Sock + Cam falls short in our opinion. The system simply isn’t as good as other baby monitors on the market today.

If you don’t have reasons to be worried about your baby’s health through the night, we recommend that you go for the Nanit Plus or the Infant Optics DXR-8 instead. Both alternatives are more useful in the long run.