Turn AirPods into Baby Monitors with Clever iPhone Hacks | DIY Listening Tips

Turn Your AirPods into a Baby Monitor with These Clever Hacks

Keeping an eye and ear on your little one is one of the most important jobs as a parent. Baby monitors give you peace of mind that your baby is safe and sound in their crib while you do other things around the home. But traditional audio and video baby monitors can be yet another gadget taking up space on your nightstand. Did you know you likely already have a handy device in your pocket that can double as a high-tech baby monitor? Read on to learn how your AirPods can allow you to listen in on your baby when you aren't in the same room.

What You'll Need to Use Your AirPods as a Baby Monitor

Transforming your AirPods into a DIY baby monitor requires just a few key ingredients. Here is what you'll need:

• AirPods (any model - original, AirPods 2, AirPods Pro, or AirPods Max)
• An iPhone, iPad, or Mac
• A secondary device to place near the baby such as an older iPhone/iPad or HomePod Mini

As long as you have those three things, you can use already-owned devices to create a high tech monitoring system for listening in on your little one!

How It Works: AirPods Become Baby Monitors with an Extra Device

The process turning your AirPods into helpful baby listening devices leverages a feature that allows audio from your iPhone to automatically play through your AirPods. By placing an additional iPhone, iPad, or HomePod near your baby, you can tap into the microphone and listen through your own AirPods even when in another room. It takes just a few minutes to set up and costs nothing if you have the required devices already.

Step-by-Step Guide

Follow these steps to hack your AirPods to hear your baby's babbles, breathing sounds, and whimpers from afar:

1. Place an extra iPhone, iPad, or HomePod Mini – anything that is compatible with your main Apple ID – in your baby's room near their crib.
2. Make sure this secondary device is connected to power and turned on. Connect it to your home WiFi network.
3. Also make sure your primary iPhone/iPad is connected to same WiFi network and that your AirPods are paired to this device.
4. Open the Control Center on your primary device then force press/long press the audio card in the upper right corner.
5. Select the secondary device now appearing as an audio output option. For example, you may see "Joe's iPhone" in the list of available sources.
6. The audio feed from your baby's room will now be seamlessly broadcast through your AirPods! Put them in your ears and you can listen in as your little one babbles or cries even from another room.

It really is that easy with just a few taps on your iPhone or iPad! The audio keeps playing through your AirPods as long as the Control Center remains open. You can still use your phone as normal while listening in on your baby.

Pro Tips for the Best DIY Baby Monitoring Experience

After getting your instant baby monitor setup with AirPods, keep the following tips in mind:

• Adjust volume - Use the volume buttons on your primary iPhone/iPad to turn the audio feed up or down.
• Fine tune placement - Experiment with placement spots for your secondary device so the microphone picks up best vantage point of baby noises.
• Conserve battery - Keep all devices plugged into power to avoid losing the audio feed when batteries get low.
• Consider neighbors - Be conscious of adjoining homes and keep volume at respectful levels.

Advantages Over Traditional Baby Monitors

Hacking regular household devices as baby monitors has some nice perks compared to products specifically marketed as nursery monitoring gadgets. Benefits include:

• Completely free - No need to purchase a stand-alone baby monitor, camera, receiver, special apps, or subscriptions.
• Utilizes existing gear - Repurposes devices you already have instead of acquiring new products.
• Portable - Listen through AirPods anywhere inside or around the home unconstrained by a separate receiver.
• Long battery life - AirPods last for 5+ hours per charge versus shorter-lived dedicated monitors.
• Upgradable features - Can switch to using HomePod for even better sound quality.

Of course traditional baby monitors also have perks like video feeds, temperature alerts, talk back communication and portability on-the-go. But if you are sticking close to home, hacking everyday Apple products can get the monitoring job done!

Troubleshooting Your DIY Baby Listening Setup

In most cases, pairing your everyday AirPods with an iPhone/iPad in the nursery is a painless process for tuning into baby sounds from a second room. But issues can occasionally pop up that disrupt the audio stream.

If you suddenly lose the ability to eavesdrop on your little darling, try these troubleshooting tips before panicking:

No Audio Through AirPods

• Confirm devices are connected to WiFi
• Ensure secondary device microphone access is enabled
• Check secondary device battery percentage
• Try resetting network settings
• Force close and reopen Control Center

Choppy or Static Sounds

• Make sure all gadgets have sufficient WiFi signal
• Switch Bluetooth off/on on primary iPhone/iPad
• Repair AirPods
• Move secondary device closer to crib

Battery Draining Quickly

• Always keep both devices plugged into power
• Turn off background app refresh
• Enable low power mode
• Adjust screen brightness down

In most cases, taking a few minutes to run through basic connectivity and performance checks fixes any hiccups heard through your homebrew baby monitor hack!

Alternative Ideas for DIY Baby Listening

Don't have an extra device to transform into a nursery microphone? Or simply want to switch up your budget baby monitoring setup? A few alternative ideas exist for letting you tune your AirPods into infant sounds.

Old Smartphone into Dedicated Baby Monitor

Instead of repurposing your current secondary device in your baby's room, turn an unused older smartphone into a dedicated monitoring gadget instead. Simply connect it to power, enable airplane mode, turn the volume up, and place it close to baby's crib. Then select this phone in the audio Control Center to hear everything through your regular AirPods!

Use a Smart Speaker

Today's smart speakers like the Apple HomePod Mini, Amazon Echo Dot, or Google Nest Mini make excellent microphone-enabled devices for monitoring baby noises on a budget. Place a speaker in your nursery then link it to your main Apple ID account. Choose it as your AirPod audio output source for yet another way to achieve whole-home listening abilities.

speaker as Microphone + Regular Earbuds

If you don't have AirPods but want in on distance baby monitoring, you can replicate the setup with any powered speaker in your nursery and wired headphones with your iPhone/iPad. Connect the speaker to your Apple device then choose it under audio output options. Sound transmits through whatever headphones are plugged into your primary gadget's jack.

Get Peace of Mind with Your Own DIY Baby Monitor

Listening in on babies while they slumber is reassurance all parents crave. With just everyday household items like AirPods, iPhones/iPads, and WiFi speakers, you can assemble your own budget baby monitor in just minutes. Set up a secondary device in the nursery, select it as your AirPods' source, then enjoy crystal clear sound from anywhere within range of your home's wireless network.

These clever MacGyver-style baby monitor solutions put live audio right in your ears so you know little one is safe and sound even without expensive dedicated gear. Sweet dreams for both of you!

FAQs

What devices do I need to make DIY baby monitor with AirPods?

You need 1) AirPods - any model, 2) An iPhone or iPad, and 3) A secondary device like an extra iPhone, iPad or HomePod mini to place in the baby's room.

Do I need to buy any extra gear or apps?

No, you don't need to purchase anything additional. As long as you have AirPods paired to an iPhone or iPad, plus an extra device you can use as a microphone, that's everything you need using items you likely already own.

How good is the sound quality?

The sound quality depends on your model of AirPods but is generally very good. AirPods Pro and Max provide exceptional audio feeds while original AirPods or second generation also work well.

Can I still use my phone normally while listening to the baby monitor?

Yes! Your phone works as normal even while tapping into the audio feed from your baby's room through AirPods. As long as the Control Center stays open, sound streams in the background.