White noise machines emit soothing sounds designed to mimic the noises your little one heard in the womb, from a heartbeat to a droning whoosh. Placed in or near your baby’s crib, these machines aim to make your child feel comfortable and safe. They can also be called pink noise machines or advertised as both white and pink noise machines. Material : Plastic, Nightlight : Yes, Power source : USB charger What is a baby white noise machine? It’s not just babies that struggle to drift off at night; many toddlers need a little help from time to time too. Designed by Dr Harvey Karp, the SNOObear is a teddy and white noise machine rolled into one. It provides either 30 or 60 minutes of shushing (which you stop and start by squeezing the teddy’s tummy), three volume levels, and six soothing and shushing sounds including a rumbly train, soft shush and loud shush. When it comes to materials, there tend to be two camps for white noise machines. You have devices that look like cuddly toys and you have devices that look like smart speakers.

White noise machines can be found at many departments stores and specialist baby shops. We would recommend the following retailers. We’ve rounded up 13 of the best baby white noise machines to help everyone get some more rest in 2023. Best baby white noise machines at a glance: The best baby white noise machines don't have to cost a fortune - and often come with extra features such as nightlights or light projectors too. READ NEXT: The best baby toys to buy What other considerations are there when choosing a white noise machine?

Lumi white noise machine

There are a number of benefits to using a white noise machine. For example, it acts as a cue to tell your child it’s time for sleep. As part of a napping or bedtime routine, your child will soon learn that once the machine is turned on, it’s time to go to bed. Portable - The super lightweight and compact device easily fastens to a pushchair or car seat using the child-safe clip. This makes it the ultimate sound machine when you’re on-the-go or travelling, ensuring your baby remains comforted, even when outside of their home environment. If you’ve got a smart speaker or a smart phone, a radio or a fan, you don’t necessarily need to buy a new white noise machine,” says Dr Browning, a psychologist and neuroscientist. “I’m a huge fan of free, but a fan won’t turn off itself during the night like a white noise machine can.” Fans may emit the sound that helps lull you into slumber, but they use more energy to operate. In the winter, you may want the sound without the air circulation. You also can’t adapt the volume of a fan to fit the environment you’re sleeping in. What is pink noise? Minute Timer- The noise machine can be played continuously all night, or you can set up a 30, 60 or 90 minute timer to switch off the sounds and lights after the preferred time.

If you’re going through the menopause, your sleep is likely to be a bit disrupted and you may be more susceptible to waking up to sounds as your tolerance for it may change. A white noise machine might be helpful to mask snoring partners.” They may benefit shift workers and those who want daytime naps too. Are there any downsides to using a white noise machine? Pink noise consists of all frequencies we can hear, but the energy isn’t equally distributed across them. It’s more intense than white noise and occurs at lower frequencies, which creates a deep sound. Heartbeats, wind and rain are considered pink noises – although are also lumped within the white noise category. Are white noise machines safe to use? With four soothing sounds including heartbeat, pink noise, lullaby and waterfall, the Snuz is a cross between a cuddly toy, a nightlight and a white noise machine.White noise machines benefit a baby by helping to promote easy sleep. However, it is important to keep the noise at a safe level for all, babies and adults included. It offers 11 different soothing sounds in total: six of which are for babies and include lullabies, and five that adults can enjoy too (if you enjoy being lulled off to sleep with white noise). There’s a wide range of volume levels (32 in total) and it’s surprisingly clear and powerful for its size. Don’t forget, however, that white noise machines shouldn’t be left on too loud or close to baby’s ears. Relaxing Sounds- The LUMI App offers a selection of 34 calming sounds, including classic white noise, gentle pink noise, and deep brown noise. Immerse yourself in the tranquil sounds of light rain and distant thunderstorms, or comfort your baby with shushing sounds and the familiar tones of a womb heartbeat.

Each is digitally created and designed to mimic a natural environment, so the sounds aren’t too harsh, even if you turn the volume right up. My baby responded best to the straight white noise, but we preferred to hear the summer night sounds playing into our room via the monitor. Like others in this list, it’s portable, but it will fit a little more snugly – and more discreetly – than the plush versions. Noise machines vary from little portable powerhouses that throw out a handful of fan sounds to complex and expensive wired ‘companions’ that connect to your phone and train you in sleep-related habits, like meditation and mindfulness. As a result, they range greatly in price too. Some are aimed specifically at calming children, with long battery life and baby-proof clips for cots. Others are good for adults, thanks to more sophisticated designs and diverse audio options. READ NEXT: The best baby carriers to buy The best white noise machines to buy in 2023 1. myHummy: The best all-round white noise machine for babies The machine is suitable from birth and has a timer button that you simply press to switch it on for 20 minutes. My own family has the Filbert bear, which offers five types of white and pink noise, designed to sound like amniotic fluid mixed with a heartbeat, rainfall, sea waves, hairdryer or vacuum cleaner sounds. The audio gently fades away after an hour, but activates again if baby starts to stir – or you can enable a non-stop mode that keeps the sound playing for 12 hours. You can get a week’s worth of nights on 12-hour mode with one set of batteries, but they’ll obviously last longer if you don’t have the myHummy on all night.Pink noise is white noise with the higher frequency sounds turned down. It’s thought to be less harsh, more natural: similar to steady rain or wind rustling through trees. Sounds that otherwise keep you awake, like neighbours talking, car doors slamming or partners snoring, may sound softer and less disturbing through pink noise. What is brown noise? Beyond volume, there’s some anecdotal debate about whether babies can become reliant on white noise machines to sleep. The thinking is that little ones come to associate the sound with sleep, which is great when you have access to a white noise machine, but less handy if you don’t or if you want to stop using one.