VTech Communications DM221 Audio Baby Monitor with up to 1,000 ft of Range, Vibrating Sound-Alert, Talk Back Intercom & Night Light Loop, White/Silver
$ 33.95
Price: $33.95
(as of Mar 04, 2025 09:55:34 UTC – Details)
The VTech DM221 Digital Audio Monitor with DECT 6.0 digital technology provides crystal clear transmission, eliminating the annoying white noise you hear from analog monitors. The only sounds you hear are coming from your baby. Make sure the Baby Unit is turned on. Move the Parent Unit closer to the Baby Unit, but not closer than 1 meter / 3 feet. If you are using the Parent Unit in cordless mode, the battery may be low and requires recharging. A full charge takes 12 hours. Reset the system by disconnecting power from both units, waiting at least one minute, then reconnecting power. Allow time for the two units to link to each other. Nearby cordless phones or other electronic devices may be interfering with the baby monitor. Separate these devices as far apart as possible.
CLEAR AUDIO AND LONG RANGE – DECT 6.0 technology provides clear audio transmission, eliminating annoying background noise while allowing you to move from room to room. Up to 1,000 feet of range lets you stay connected to your baby from another room
5-LEVEL SOUND INDICATOR AND 2-WAY TALK-BACK INTERCOM – LEDs on the parent unit indicate the level of sound in your baby’s room so you can visually monitor the noise level. The built-in intercom on the parent unit lets you talk to your baby from any room
NIGHT LIGHT ON THE BABY UNIT – A soothing light on the baby unit gently illuminates a dark nursery. Both the parent unit(s) and baby unit allow you to turn on or off the nighlight on the baby unit
SOUND SENSITIVITY OF THE BABY UNIT – You can choose to hear sounds from the baby unit all the time, or to hear sounds that exceed a certain level. You can use the parent unit to adjust the microphone sensitivity of your baby unit
The parent unit runs on rechargeable Ni-MH battery or AC power. To continuously monitor your baby, make sure you use both battery and AC power at the same time. With the battery alone, the parent unit can cordlessly run for a short time only
Customers say
Customers find the baby monitor works well as an actual baby monitor. It’s sensitive and picks up even small sounds. Many customers consider it the best audio monitor they’ve used. They say it’s okay for the price, worth the purchase, and inexpensive way to have peace of mind. The range, talk feature, and ease of use are also appreciated. However, opinions differ on the battery life.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
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VTech Communications DM221 Audio Baby Monitor with up to 1,000 ft of Range, Vibrating Sound-Alert, Talk Back Intercom & Night Light Loop, White/Silver
$ 33.95
Alesha –
Great and budget friendly!
We are âminimalistsâ and not very gadgety people, so we personally think video monitors for baby are expensive & not worth it.
This little thing is perfect for our needs. We can hear baby perfectly, even when we take it into the bathroom while showering. We can talk to each other through it or to baby if we need to (there is a âtalkâ button on the parent monitor that you can hold to talk to the one in the babyâs room, which is very helpful if we arenât in a place that we can get to baby right away but we can talk to soothe him in the meantime)
Itâs simple, itâs functional, easy to take along on trips, we love it!
Bradley R. Clampitt –
Revised: Great Support, Great Product, a company willing to go the extra mile…
Update: July 25th, 2014:
I left a comment on my review and updated this on July 7th and waited to see if VTech would see and respond to my comment or my update. I assumed that they were busy and I am sure overloaded with emails to find my comment/update. So I called them today and the lady I talked to was very helpful, since I had previously called and had issues they had my number on file and swiftly took care of my issues.
They are going to send me another replacement set for the one that stopped working properly. I also asked that she note on my file that when they receive my unit back that is defective if there is something I did wrong, or that I could do to keep this from happening to have them give me a call.
I am going to also try a couple of things I discussed with her to see if I can make them work and if I find a solution that works for me I will be more than happy to update this review with some step by step instructions that may be helpful to others as well.
Update: July 7th, 2014:
Well we decided to move into a new home and the set that I was sent from VTech are actually still in the box because I bought another set. Well the other set I purchased when I unplugged them and moved them will not communicate with each other rendering them useless and in the same state as my others were that caused this review in the first place. I may have to resort to opening the replacement set VTech sent me and throw these away or put them in a box to never be seen again. I love them but not if they won’t sync back up after unplugging them.
Update: January 4th, 2014:
After Vtech Support left a comment on this review, I called this per their request and within 10 minutes of being on the phone with them they are sending me a new system with expedited freight. So I should get them early next week, and once I get them I can pack up my current “bad” set and send it back to them. Didn’t cost me anything other than the phone call. Talk about good support!
Before I got their comment and talked to them I went ahead and purchased a second set because out of all of the ones I have had, reviewed and otherwise had friends complain about they are still top notch. Their quality has been great, their range has been great it was just the issue of it not wanting to link anymore. Hopefully I don’t have that issue again in the future.
We have been dealing with an Angelcare Sound Monitor system in between getting the new Vtech set, mainly because I bought it with the motion board setup and never used it. The Sound Monitor worked out of the box but has some major interference issues with the parent monitor. It is odd too cause I cannot identify what is causing it to have a loud audible hum.. but doesn’t matter now since I have a set of Vtech’s and another on the way. not going to return my second set, will just use it for travel or will take to my parents and set it up for when we visit.
If your unit stops working, read the comments left by Vtech that have their 800# and call them, tell them your situation and see how well they can help you.
If you are looking for a system that can be used within a house with multiple levels, our babies room will be on the upper floor and the monitor works in the basement, out by the pool and etc… the pool is stretching it but it does work. They seem very durable and the belt clip seemed pretty sturdy as well if you clip it on your pants or belt. I have banged it a few times and it never fell off. So over all I can’t complain about the system especially after they have jumped in and are replacing our faulty set.
————– my old review below: THIS IS OUTDATED IS UNTRUE AS OF JANUARY 4th, 2014.
Well I purchased these on December 18, 2012 and yesterday we powered them off to take to my parents house so that we could use them there. Come to our surprise that no matter what we did we couldn’t get them linked back up. I thought it may be because I only brought one of the parent unit’s with me instead of both and that the one I didn’t bring was like a main unit… nope.
So I am sitting here, barely got a year usage out of them (considering I bought them in December and the boys were not born till March) and now the transmitter communication in the baby monitor unit has gone out…. seriously?
I cannot say I would recommend them, but if you get them because of the large amount of reviews it has then I would say once they are working DO NOT SHUT THEM OFF or MOVE THEM! God forbid you try to do something like that and have them function again.
—————
Amazon Customer –
Great Baby Monitor
So Iâve had this monitor for a few months now, itâs got great sound but thatâs not to say you can leave it in another room and expect to hear it very well. You can adjust the sensitivity for how much sound you want it to pick up. I have mine set to the highest sensitivity so if I leave my fan running in the room my baby is in, I can hear the fan but I also can hear baby just as much. You can talk through the parent monitor and the sound comes out of the baby monitor so you can talk to your baby if they are into that. Baby monitor does need to be plugged in in order for it to turn on but the cord is long enough so it shouldnât be a problem. I do recommend that as soon as you start setting it up, first thing you want to do is turn off the parent advisory speech it gives the parent monitor every time it gets powered on. I didnât mind it during the day but when Iâd go to work at 6am and turn it on for my mom, I would try lowering it down when it came to that part but it was quiet during that time which made the speech it gave still be loud. It took me a good few days to turn off the speech, the instructions are a little confusing on how to turn it off but I figured it out somehow. Overall itâs a good baby monitor for the price and itâs both have been dropped on the floor multiple times and they still work without problems. They are very durable.
J. Lacy –
Basic monitor, Worth the money.
***Update!! After 20 months of use.
This monitor still works! I’m impressed for the price. However, we recently moved and now have issues daily with the parent unit becoming unlinked from the baby unit.. even when we are in the next room! If we move it closer, it will link back up. Sometimes it will link again on its own. So that’s a bit disappointing. The other issue we have, is the battery of the parent unit does not last. We now plug it in every time our son is awake, and unplug when he’s sleeping to use. Doing this keeps it charged enough not to die. However it’s always at 1 or 2 battery level. Also, we have to keep it on ALL the time. Even if it has a full battery, when we turn it off it’ll turn back on and display “low battery” and need to be plugged in.
While these issues aren’t deal breakers, they are annoying. But again, for the price I’m impressed with how well it’s held up. Our toddler loves to play with it, the handle on top of the parent unit is cracked, but the screen works still!
Still recommended if you’re looking for a quality baby monitor for daily use that won’t get too much abuse.
*original review:
We’ve had our monitor for a few weeks now and I’m pretty happy with our purchase. For the money, it’s worth it. We bought it as a supplement to our video monitor (we bought a WiFi one so our long distance family could see our little boy) and only needed something for use while he’s napping. It works when the baby unit is upstairs and our parent unit is downstairs and on the patio with us, so the range is perfect. We haven’t had any issues with the screen dying or it breaking at all. The volume is loud enough for us to hear him when were spending time with loud company. And the sensitivity settings make it so we can hear him when he cries but not listen to his rock and play rocking in the background. My only complaint is the battery dies relatively fast, after using it for a few hours it displays “low battery” and needs to be charged.
Amazon Customer –
Bought to monitor a adult with medical issues. Didn’t need a camera just audio works great would reccomend
Cyntia S.M Comar –
Perfeito para deficientes auditivos.
Caitlyn M. –
These are wicked. I have now used them for approximately 7 months. Originally we got a video monitor for our baby shower that hooks up to your phone, but these are so much better. Let me tell you why.
These don’t rely on your internet connection. They work even when thats down. They sync so easily and ive never had an issue. Not once.
They stay charged pretty well. Honestly ours stay plugged in (one bedside, one in living room) but when we do have to take them to do random things, theyre great.
Sound quality is phenomenal. Honestly I can hear the quietest whisper when its on 3 out of 5 volume bars.
My only issue, and its a non-issue is that there is a little light to show its plugged in and the handle glows slightly. I covered it with electrical tape and the handle actually is very faint, I covered most of that with tape too actually.
Anyway, I highly recommend. Will be using these for our next children if we have any. Im very happy with our purchase as I write this at 1:30am because the video monitor has cut out…. again.
Camila Roberta Dianete –
Amei. Recomendo.
C 610 –
The monitor worked once and then stopped working. The 2 units donât even come on despite charging them for hours