I started this site to showcase my writings, hoping to grow into something other than a teacher. I thought I’d become a tech journalist (although my passion has always been fiction writing). As I became a father, my technology interest took a backseat, but that doesn’t mean I’m not still a tech-lover.

Here are some of my favorite dad tech products I use.

Eufy Spaceview Baby Monitor

After we found out we were expecting, I bought the Eufy Spaceview Baby Monitor as a Mother’s Day present for my wife. It has been a pretty solid camera system for two babies now.

The Eufy system is on a closed circuit. Since it’s a closed circuit, no one will get access to your cameras unless they have the monitor. Neighbors won’t get pirate radio waves and hear your conversations like they do in the movies.

The closed circuit also means you can’t access the camera from the internet, which is a bit of a bummer. We supplement that camera with a simple Eufy security camera. From these cameras, I can check on him when I don’t have the monitor around or when I’m out. We wouldn’t use these as our only mentor because you must use your phone or tablet. Plus, the connection isn’t always the quickest to connect. If there had been an accident, we wouldn’t know about it until we had been too far removed from it.

But these cameras work great for what they do. They offer you peace of mind. We use these cameras when our kids sleep. They are great at letting us watch what’s happening in the room. When the kids wake up, we can monitor them as they get up or return to bed.

The camera shoots well enough to see everything in the room, day or night. I can even tell if my son’s eyes are open or closed. You can pan and tilt the camera to see more of the room. The monitor and camera pair quickly from waking up, and you can even talk through the monitor for the sound to come out to the camera.

Currently, we have two cameras hooked up to one monitor. You can easily switch between the two views. I wish it had an easier way to alternate between the two views quickly. Right now, you have to push about five buttons to get the view to cycle on a timed schedule, like every five seconds.

There are other cameras on the market, but I have been pretty happy with these cameras. I liked it enough to buy an extra camera for my youngest.

Meross Smart Bulbs

I’m surprised how much I’ve used my smart bulbs throughout this journey.

When we moved my oldest to his own room, I installed a smart bulb in his room. The bulb allowed me to control the light and set a schedule.

I would set the light to a low percentage when bedtime started. The light would change once it was time for him to get in bed.

Now that he is older and can get in and out of his bed at will, I have the bulbs set to change colors. It dims when bedtime starts, turns red when it is time to get in bed, and turns green when it is okay for him to get up. While it doesn’t always work, it is a good support system for him to learn the ins and outs of sleeping.

I like these bulbs because they pair with my HomeKit system. They work with my iPhone, Siri, or my HomePod. I can also pair them with other smart home systems if I need to.

Smart Speaker

I’ve used Apple stuff for so long that buying a HomePod and setting it up was a simple choice. When they came out, I purchased a few HomePod Minis for a few of the rooms in the house, like the kid’s room and our bedroom.

I mostly use the HomePods to control the smart home stuff in the house. The one in my son’s room starts playing white noise when bedtime starts. My son has also learned to control things in his room with the HomePod, such as stopping the white noise or changing his light. But we have to watch out because I can’t limit his access to the house stuff. He can control the entire house, but he hasn’t on purpose yet.

With the HomePods, we also like to start some dance parties, especially when we haven’t moved much in a while. It’s great to shout out a song request and have it start playing.

It doesn’t matter what you use for your smart speaker. Amazon leads the market, so I’m sure many can default to getting an Echo or Echo Show, but Google has a good system, and if you’re looking to play music, Sonos has some great speakers as well. I’m sure kids would love these cute Echo speakers designed for them.

iPad 9th Generation, Kids Case, and Logitech Crayon

I know that tablets are a hot-button issue. I even tackled how we use tablets in our family.

I think it’s a good thing for them to have it in moderation. Our kid has been very successful with a 9th-generation iPad. It was the last iPad Apple made with a home button, and while it is a little older now, it has served us well. Of course, when I bought it for my son, I also got a protective case and a smart pen to go with it.

The iPad works great for us. Apple made these things so fast that there isn’t much of a slowdown even all these years later. While I expect the tablet to grow with him, I know that it will eventually need to be replaced. For now, though, it does everything we need. I’m sure we’ll be able to hand it down to my younger son, too.

My son watches videos on it and plays simple games on the PBS Kids game app. We haven’t run out of space on the smaller storage drive, although we only download videos when I know we will be on the road.

This iPad does everything a young child might want. It is also the cheapest iPad and is usually on sale for even more.

But don’t just invest in something like this without getting some protection. The LTROP Kids Case has treated us very well. The case was easy to install and has protected my son’s iPad from all types of abuse. He has thrown it, stepped on it, and crammed it into a bag. So far, sticky fingers are the only thing it hasn’t protected the iPad from.

Finally, I also picked up the Logitech Crayon. My son loved using my Apple Pencil on my iPad Pro before he had his own. I would open a note and let him draw as much as he wanted. He does the same on his iPad now, but I’ve also downloaded some coloring apps. He has a good time with it, and I’m glad I didn’t get the more expensive Apple Pencil. I wish I had a better place to store it with the tablet. We have lost the pencil a couple of times.

AirPods Pro

The AirPod Pros are one of the things on this list that is just for me. I use my AirPods daily, although it is usually in the morning when everyone is still asleep.

But I have started to use these a little more when my kids are awake. The amazing thing about these AirPods is the Transparency and Adaptive modes. These listening modes pipe your music or podcasts into your ears and the ambient noise from the world around you. That way, you don’t miss out on anyone calling your name for the thirteenth time in the last five seconds.

Of course, they also provide excellent noise cancellation if you want to tune the world out. It won’t stop the kids getting right in your face and screaming, but they do a great job of blocking out a lot of noise. I used mine when we went to Monster Jam, and they worked great. If you turn on Noise Cancellation, you can turn on Conversation Awareness. When someone talks to you, your AirPods will turn the volume down and switch to Adaptive mode to allow the conversation to flow.

I love these AirPods because I can throw them in my pocket and go about my day. They are often in my pocket, even when I don’t use them much during the day. It’s nice to have them if I need them.

My Essential Dad Tech

These are some of my favorite technology-related gadgets in my house. Make sure to bookmark this page, as I’ll try to update it as I find more to add.

Reminder: using the links on this page to make a purchase helps the site. You can also get most of the links from my Parent Technology storefront!

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