As far as parenting concerns go, getting your baby to sleep tends to top the list—and as anyone who’s come across anything baby sleep-related will learn: White noise makes a difference. Why? Because the womb is far from silent (in fact, the rush of your blood could be as loud as a running vacuum). Our babies, sweetly nestled in the womb, are naturally comforted by the constant swooshing sounds. That means that finding the perfect white noise device is a part of that how-do-I-get-my-baby-to-sleep puzzle. Of course, my husband and I discovered this as many new parents do: too late in the throes of sleep deprivation when our oldest daughter, now almost two, was waking us up every hour on the hour as a newborn in our quiet bedroom. By the time her sister came along this past February, we knew better. Since she was born, we’ve been using The Hatch Mini to lull her, now 11 weeks old, to sleep. Here’s what I think about Hatch Sleep’s newest, most affordable sound device, including whether or not the stylish, smaller product has a place in your nursery.
Set up
Baby brands “win” in a parent’s mind if their product is easy to set up—and the Hatch Mini was. The product comes with a very simple instruction manual (which I actually didn’t need to use) and a plug. In order to get everything set up and running, all you need to do is download the Hatch app (if you don’t already have it from using another Hatch Sleep product) and plug the device in. The only setup snag I had—that other parents with other Hatch products might experience—is that my app was out of date, so I didn’t immediately see a possibility to add another device. Once I updated the app, I easily added the Hatch Mini to my app and set it up via Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. It took less than 10 minutes even with the out-of-date app snafu; I’ll blame sleep deprivation for that one.
Design
Since babies already tend to come with a lot of stuff, small, sleek products are always welcomed in the homes of newborns. The Hatch Mini is designed to take up less room and have a more neutral look that can pair well with any home design. It certainly achieves both of these things. The mini sound machine would fit in stylishly on any changing table, bedside shelf, or even on the floor. Plus, it’s big enough to turn on and off easily but small enough to not take up too much space. Personally, I appreciate its smaller size compared to its predecessor The Hatch because we use it in our guest room where our daughter naps during the day. It’s easy to store away but if it gets left out, it’s far from an eyesore for any guests who may spend the night. That said, I’ve found that the product’s concave curvature at the top—while minimalistic and even futuristic in design (an interior design mom’s dream, perhaps?)—makes turning it on and off by touch a little challenging. If you don’t hold the middle down for quite long enough or touch in the wrong spot, you might not get your desired result.
Usefulness
The things I like about the Hatch Mini are the same things I like about the Hatch, which we use in our toddler’s room: You can turn the device on and off, play with the volume, and change the type of sound via an app. You can even set alarms and time sounds to play at certain times. I regularly use the app to adjust the volume of the machine and sometimes even the type of sound. For parents of more than one child, this is particularly useful. For parents who are housing their baby and toddler in the same room, it is super helpful to be able to crank up the white noise from your phone when the baby goes to bed without trying to adjust a device in the dark. I’ve also found it useful for caretakers to have access to while they’re watching the baby. If someone forgets to turn the device on, there’s no need to go back into the room. Just use the app. Given the affordability of the product and the ability to control it from afar, I’d recommend this to any new parent looking for an easy and techy way to lull your baby to sleep with white noise.
Features
The Hatch Mini lets you do a lot more than simply play white noise. You can choose from eight different sounds (a heartbeat, the sound of water, white noise, a dryer, the ocean, the wind, the rain, and the sounds of chirping birds), set a timer, and control the volume from an app. You can also name the device to make it clearer which device you’re controlling (“Downstairs” or “Baby’s Room,” for example). Utilizing these features is easy—especially from the app. That said, when I first opened the app to access the new device, it was a bit confusing to choose between the sounds available for free and the premium features (one of which is at the top of the app). It only took a few minutes of learning the app before everything became clear.
Price
At $39.99, The Hatch Mini is the most affordable of Hatch’s baby and kid sound machines (the Hatch Rest+ is more than double the price). I can certainly see why design-forward friends, budget-conscious buyers, or frequent travelers would choose this option—it has all of the same features, it’s smaller, and it doesn’t look like a kid’s product.
Compare
Personally, I like the original Hatch’s ability to change colors (and so does my toddler) and it’s easier to turn on and off via touch. But these are certainly not strong enough selling points to spend more if you don’t need to. Unless you’re sold on features like a nightlight, a time-to-rise option, or a two-way audio monitor and clock (available on the Hatch Rest+), The Hatch Mini delivers Hatch’s top features without a hefty price tag.
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Cassie Shortsleeve is a skilled writer and editor with a decade of experience reporting on all things health and parenting. She’s the founder of Dear Sunday, an online platform for new and soon-to-be moms (@dearsundaymotherhood), where she regularly guides new moms and moms-to-be through the ins and outs of motherhood, and a mom to two-year-old and three-month-old daughters. She has spent the past two years researching the best ways to get her babies to sleep.
