What Is the Owlet Baby Monitor?
Back in 2013, one of Owlet’s founders reached out asking if I thought parents would be interested in a sock that monitors their baby’s vital signs while sleeping. My answer? Absolutely.
The Owlet uses pulse oximetry (the same technology hospitals use with those finger clips) built into a soft sock that tracks your baby’s heart rate and oxygen saturation. If levels fall outside preset zones, you get an alert on your phone.
Why I Would Have Used This
When my son was a baby, I was constantly checking to see if he was breathing. “Sleep when the baby sleeps”? Never happened – I was on permanent patrol duty.
We had one of those under-mattress monitors, but my kid was rarely in the crib. He’d be in the bassinet, swing, pack ‘n play, or on my chest. The Owlet solves this because the sock travels with your baby, not just monitors one sleep surface.
I would spend nights thinking, “He’s sleeping too soundly. He seems too quiet,” which would spiral into panic-checking that sometimes woke him up. It was a perpetual dance of insanity, and this would have been a game changer for me.
How the Owlet Works
- Pulse oximetry technology: A small light shines through your baby’s skin to measure blood flow and oxygen levels
- Wireless sock: Soft, washable, no adhesives
- Water-resistant design: Electronic components are sealed to protect your baby from electrical contact
- Real-time alerts: Notifies you via base station sound and smartphone app if vitals fall outside safe ranges
Important: This is not a medical device. If your baby was sent home on medical monitors, use those instead.
Dream Sock Features: What You’re Getting
The Dream Sock has been clinically evaluated for SpO2 (oxygen saturation) accuracy across all skin tones under both motion and non-motion conditions.
Real-time health insights + alerts:
- Live pulse rate monitoring
- Continuous oxygen level tracking
- Historical sleep trends and patterns
- Wakings and sleep trend data to understand sleep quality
- Health trend tracking over time
- Low or high pulse rate alerts
- Low oxygen level notifications
Real Parent Experiences: The Good and the Bad
