VAVA vs Infant Optics: which baby monitor to buy
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Our verdict, if you don’t read another word: in the VAVA vs Infant Optics choice, buy the Infant Optics DXR-8 PRO if you want a monitor with no WiFi that keeps going for years, and buy the VAVA if the biggest screen is what you are after. We use both. The Infant Optics is our only 5 out of 5. The VAVA is our 4.5 and the closest call against it.
One note on scope. We cover baby monitors as gear. A monitor is a convenience device and not a safety one, and anything touching safe sleep is a question for the AAP and the CPSC rather than a blog.
The quick verdict
These are the two best monitors in our house, and they get there differently. The VAVA is the one that looks better on the nightstand tonight: a bigger screen, loud sound and the room temperature at a glance. The Infant Optics is the one that is still as good in two years, because the parts that wear out or limit a monitor have been designed around.
Buy the Infant Optics if you want no WiFi, if you run a fan in the nursery, or if you want the monitor to outlast its battery. Buy the VAVA if a large screen is the thing you will notice every night and you are happy with a WiFi monitor on a charger.
Three differences that decide it
The first is WiFi. The Infant Optics has none. Its camera talks only to its own handset over FHSS, so there is no app, no account and nothing on your home network. The VAVA is a WiFi monitor. For plenty of families that settles it on its own.
The second is the screen. The VAVA’s is just under 6 inches and the Infant Optics’ is 5. Both are 720p and both stay readable once night vision kicks in, but from across a dark room the extra size on the VAVA is what you notice.
The third is the battery. The VAVA runs about 5 hours from a sealed 4500 mAh battery, so it is an evening unit that sleeps on its charger. The Infant Optics has a user-replaceable battery, and after two years of daily use ours still lasts as long as it did new. When it does fade, it is a battery you are buying, not a monitor.
Side by side
| Infant Optics DXR-8 PRO | VAVA 720P | |
|---|---|---|
| Our rating | 5 / 5 | 4.5 / 5 |
| Connection | No WiFi, FHSS | WiFi |
| Screen | 5 in | Just under 6 in |
| Resolution | 720p | 720p |
| Camera | Pan, tilt and zoom from the handset | Steers side to side from the handset |
| Zoom | Optical zoom lens in the box | Digital zoom |
| Lenses | Standard and zoom swap in seconds, wide-angle extra | Fixed |
| Noise reduction | Yes, filters fans and air conditioning | No, but very loud |
| Room temperature | No | Yes, on screen |
| Battery | User-replaceable, like new after 2 years | About 5 hr, 4500 mAh, sealed |
Our ratings are a judgment about living with each one, not a total worked out from this table.
Infant Optics DXR-8 PRO: the one that lasts
A white dome camera with an aluminium lens hood and a 5 inch handheld screen, with no WiFi anywhere. A standard lens and an optical zoom lens come in the box and swap in seconds, so a bad frame is fixed with glass rather than by moving the camera. Its noise reduction strips the fan and the air conditioning out of what reaches you. The camera pans, tilts and zooms from the handset, and two-way audio works properly.
What we like
- No WiFi, no app and no account
- Optical zoom lens in the box, swapped in seconds
- Noise reduction that filters out fans and air conditioning
- User-replaceable battery, still like new after two years
What we don't
- A 5 inch screen, smaller than the VAVA
- No room temperature readout
- No remote viewing, which is the point of a no-WiFi monitor
The full review is our Infant Optics baby monitor review.
VAVA 720P: the bigger screen
A dome camera that mounts on a wall or stands on a shelf, paired with a just under 6 inch handheld screen, connected over WiFi. The infrared night vision gives a clean picture rather than grey mush. The camera steers side to side from a button on the handset, which also lets one camera cover two cots in a shared room. The room temperature sits on screen, the sound goes properly loud, and it takes up to four cameras.
What we like
- A just under 6 inch screen that stays readable at night
- Camera steers from the handset, so one camera can cover two cots
- Room temperature on screen
- Loud, and feels solidly built
What we don't
- About 5 hours of battery, so it lives on a charger overnight
- A WiFi monitor, so not the pick if you want one off your network
- Digital zoom only
The full review is our VAVA baby monitor review.
Which one fits your house
If you want a monitor that never touches your WiFi, buy the Infant Optics. That decision alone puts the VAVA out of the running.
If you run a fan, an air purifier or air conditioning in the nursery, buy the Infant Optics. Its noise reduction means you hear the baby rather than the room, and a monitor that hisses all night is one you end up turning down.
If you want the biggest screen you can read from bed, buy the VAVA. The extra size is noticeable at 3 a.m.
If you want to know the room temperature without a separate thermometer, buy the VAVA. The Infant Optics does not show it.
If you want the monitor to still be fine in three years, buy the Infant Optics. A sealed battery like the VAVA’s sets the monitor’s lifespan. A replaceable one does not.
If you have two cots in one room and want one camera, either works. Both steer from the handset. For a camera over each cot, look at our VTech vs Infant Optics comparison.
The bottom line
The Infant Optics DXR-8 PRO is the better monitor and our 5 out of 5, because it has no WiFi, filters out noise, zooms optically and outlives its own battery. The VAVA 720P is the better screen and our 4.5, the one to buy if size and a temperature readout matter more to you than WiFi and longevity. For the other no-WiFi monitors we own, see the best non-WiFi baby monitors, and for all four monitors in the house, the main best baby monitor roundup.
Frequently asked questions
Is the VAVA or the Infant Optics baby monitor better?
We rate the Infant Optics DXR-8 PRO 5 out of 5 and the VAVA 720P 4.5. The Infant Optics wins on the things that matter over years: no WiFi, swappable lenses with optical zoom, noise reduction and a battery you can replace. The VAVA wins on screen size, at just under 6 inches against 5, and it shows the room temperature on screen.
Does the VAVA or the Infant Optics use WiFi?
The VAVA is a WiFi monitor. The Infant Optics has no WiFi at all: the camera talks only to its own handset over FHSS, with no app, no account and no cloud. If you want a monitor that stays off your home network, the Infant Optics is the one.
Which has the better battery?
The Infant Optics. Its battery is user-replaceable, and after two years of daily use ours still lasts as long as it did new. The VAVA runs about 5 hours from a sealed 4500 mAh battery, so it lives on a charger overnight.
Which has the bigger screen?
The VAVA, at just under 6 inches against the Infant Optics' 5. Screen size matters on a baby monitor because you read it from across a dark room. Both are 720p, and both stay readable at night.