The major concern of every parent is the welfare of their children. You will find yourself worrying about the safety and well-being of your little ones. You want to ensure that your child is always safe even in your absence.
If you have a babysitter over when you’re away at work, you need to know that your child is in safe hands. If you have a live-in nanny, you want to ensure that your child is well-cared for when you’re not looking. That is why parents now use nanny cams to keep watch on their kids when they are away.
Parenting is hard work, and the anxiety never stops. As much as you hate being away from your child, sometimes you have to go out and run some errands. But not to worry, with a nanny cam, you can keep tabs on your kids when you’re miles away. Whether you’re out on a date, a business trip, a couples night out, at the grocery shop, or at work, a nanny cam helps keep your mind at peace. It helps you to see how your kids have been and you can even talk with them with the two-way audio system.
Great, right?
However, your nanny cam may not have the capacity to monitor your child round the clock as you may want. Nanny cams have different record duration. Some can record videos all day long while others can only record for some hours. Before you dash out to buy that nanny cam, you must ask,
“How long can this nanny cam record?”
Recording Capacity of a Nanny Cam
The length of time a nanny cam records videos depends on the type of nanny cam you buy. In our previous post, we explained that nanny cams come in different shapes, forms, sizes, and colours with a range of interesting features.
Nanny cameras are broadly divided into three categories. We have the wired nanny cam, wireless nanny cam, and self-recording nanny camera. The wired nanny camera works effectively when connected to an Ethernet network through an electric cable. The camera is connected to a viewing device through a single wire for easy video transmission.
On the other hand, wireless nanny cameras use a strong WiFi connection to record videos. The video footage can be watched on a compatible device. Self-recording nanny cam also works via WiFi. It has an inbuilt memory card that stores all the recorded video footage.
However, when it comes to their recording capacity, cameras are either classified as self-contained or connected, and this determines their recording time.
Self-Contained Nanny Cams
This type of nanny camera has a small internal storage system. Recorded videos are automatically stored in the storage space. You can always go back to watch previous video footage that you may have missed. As long as the battery is fully charged, this nanny camera can help you monitor your child non-stop. It records and stores videos around the clock. Some say it could record continuously for 10 days without having to recharge the battery.
You can get self-contained nanny cams from Amazon.
Connected Nanny Cams
Unlike the self-contained cameras, this nanny cam does not have internal storage. With a strong WiFi connection, you can watch live streams on your phone or any other viewing device.
But the camera does not start recording until you click a command on your phone. Once your mobile device is connected to a stable source of power, the nanny camera will record videos for as long as you want.
Now, let’s talk about the internal components of your nanny camera that affects its recording time. Tag along with me.
Bitrates, Memory Cards, and Batteries
These are the components that control how your nanny camera works. They also affect your nanny cam’s recording time.
Bitrate
Bitrate is the amount of processing power needed to run your nanny camera. This is what controls the resolution of the images you can see on your nanny camera. Bitrate determines the number, size, and quality of videos you can record on your nanny cam. Before using your nanny cam, try to reduce the bitrate so you can have a good image quality.
Remember, when there is a fluctuation in the WiFi connection, the video begins to glitch and that reduces the image quality. But if you tone down the bitrate, the video quality will be unaffected. Also, if the video’s bitrate is high, the video will take up more space in the internal storage
So, the higher the bitrates, the bigger the size of the video. And that results in more space and data consumption. If you don’t know how to reduce the bitrate of your nanny cam, you can employ the help of a professional.
Memory Card Capacity
A memory card is an external storage device that can be used to support the inbuilt storage space in your nanny cam. Most nanny cameras can only accommodate a memory card of 32 Gb or less.
Video recording of low quality takes just 20 MB per minute, while high-quality videos could take as much as 140 Mb per minute or even more. The amount of space a video occupies in the memory card depends on the mode of recording and file format.
Battery Life
If your nanny cam is powered by a battery, you will find it very convenient and easy to use. The only restriction is that the battery puts a limit on the length of time your nanny cam can record videos. You would have to charge the battery constantly to promote battery life.
If your nanny cam’s battery capacity is 350 mAh, it could continuously record video footage for more than an hour. A 350mAh battery can record live streams 60-12 times before it drains. Your nanny camera’s battery life tends to last longer if it has a motion sensor. The nanny cam records 1-5 minutes when the motion sensor is triggered.
Conclusion
How long your nanny cam records depends on several factors as discussed in this post. If you want a nanny cam with a long record time, now you know what to look out for. Go for a nanny cam that is not powered by a battery. If you must, then it should have a long battery life. Buy an external SD card to support your nanny cam’s internal storage. Also, reduce the bit rates to record more videos in a short time.