What an app adds

Hatch Rest 2nd gen, Rest+ 2nd gen, Hatch Baby and Nanit Sound + Light are set up in an app over Wi-Fi (Nanit says 2.4 GHz; Hatch does not name a band). All of them let you change the routine from your phone and run several light and sound steps a night. Rest+ 2nd gen and Nanit can use different times on different days; Hatch does not say that Rest 2nd gen or Hatch Baby can.

The Tommee Tippee Connected also needs its app, an account and Wi-Fi. It adds a nap timer and up to four alarms, each set for the days you choose; Tommee Tippee does not say whether the bedtime and wake-up light times can differ by day.

What buttons keep simple

Light to Rise, Groclock, MELLA, NESSI and ZAZU Sam are set with their own buttons. Their saved times run without a phone or the internet, because neither is involved.

What you give up is range: Groclock, MELLA, NESSI and Sam keep one time for every day (Yogasleep does not say either way for Light to Rise), and none of the five runs several steps a night. Groclock, MELLA, NESSI and Sam add a nap setting, which you start at the clock.

When the internet drops

Hatch says saved routines on Rest 2nd gen and Rest+ 2nd gen should still play when the internet is down, perhaps a few minutes late, and the app can still reach them over Bluetooth to start a routine or change its volume, light or sound. What you cannot do until it is back: create or change routines, set a timer, or change the child lock and display settings, and some Hatch+ content may not play. For Hatch Baby, Hatch says only that it can work offline for short periods and that a steady Wi-Fi connection helps its schedules run reliably.

A power cut is a separate question: Rest 2nd gen and Hatch Baby stop when the power goes off, while a charged Rest+ 2nd gen keeps going on its battery.

Who will change the times?

An app suits a family that wants to change times from another room or use different times on different days. Skip Hop’s Smart Snail works differently again: it uses Bluetooth instead of Wi-Fi, changes need an iPhone or iPad within 30 feet, and it cannot be changed from further away.

Buttons suit a plan that stays the same every day, and keep changes in the room. Groclock, MELLA, NESSI and the Hatch clocks have a child lock; Yogasleep does not say Light to Rise has one.

Questions to decide

If another grown-up needs their own access, check who can invite them and what they can change: being able to change the clock from your phone does not mean someone else can.

  • Do weekday and weekend wake-up times need to differ? Rest+ 2nd gen and Nanit can do it; Groclock, MELLA, NESSI and Sam keep one time for every day, and Yogasleep does not say either way for Light to Rise.
  • Will someone change the routine from outside the room? Hatch, Nanit and Tommee Tippee Connected allow it.
  • Must everything stay changeable when the internet is down? Choose a clock with buttons.
  • Do you need a nap setting more than several steps a night? Compare Groclock’s nap wake-up time with the nap timers on MELLA, NESSI and Sam.

Sources

Details can differ between versions and countries. Dates show when we last checked something that changes, like stock or a recall. Every source we use