Soft toys aren’t recommended in a cot until a baby is at least 12 months old, so Ollie will need to be kept out of reach of your sleeping baby until they reach their first birthday, but it can still be played with during the day. My dog loves it— Weird flex IK, but we're all obsessed with our pets, right? Well, mine sleeps in my bedroom (okay, sometimes on my bed, I admit it) and since using this machine he has been out like a light. He's a proper snorer but will wake at the slightest sound and bark to alert us. And while he will still wake at loud noises, he recognizes when it's sleep time thanks to this white noise machine. He even stays snoozing when I wake up in the night to empty my tiny bladder (several times, TY baby!). The buttons on the Dreamegg D11 are very easy to use. They are large enough to be easy to find in the dark, clearly labeled, and you don’t need to read the instructions to work out how to operate it. I’ve already mentioned that the D11 is small, but it’s worth reiterating. I really like how portable this one is. It also comes with a small rope and plastic loop, so you can hang it on door handles or other places in the bedroom.

White noise machines that plug into the wall obviously need to be kept out of reach of your baby’s cot, due to the hazardous wires. Usually, this isn’t a problem – as long as the white noise machine has an adjustable volume, you can even place it across the room and it can still help your baby to sleep. There are a couple of things you'll want to think about before deciding on the best white noise machine for you. The former hide a white noise speaker within a huggable form, while the latter are more likely to be propped on a surface outside the baby’s crib. There are benefits for both: cuddly toys can become a favourite of your child, but the smart speaker setup might have easier controls for adults and is much more likely to have main power. It’s also important to note that teddies and soft toys should not be placed inside a crib or attached to the side within a babies reach when they are under one year of age. This can put them at greater risk of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). How we test white noise machines Ewan the Dream Sheep is perhaps one of the most well-known white noise machines for babies, with its cute and cuddly sheep design. Its features are fairly basic, with just four different sounds to choose from (including white noise and lullaby music), which are each accompanied by the sound of a resting heartbeat. The Momcozy is subtle when it’s switched off and vibrant and beautiful when illuminated; it’s a joyful little thing. This soft-touch gizmo connects to your WiFi and Bluetooth so you can adjust it from your phone if you like. I did, because I want to schedule gentle wake-ups. But you’re not tied in.You can control the sound via a Bluetooth app. Once you’ve started the white noise, you might just want to leave it playing all night without making any changes. However, if you want to turn the volume down once your baby’s fallen asleep, for example, this remote feature could be really handy, and might make it worth the higher price.

But if you’re looking for a good sound machine to play to your children, I think the Dreamegg D11 is the better option because of the nightlight, the additional sounds intended for kids, and the smaller size. 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. You can set timers — We tried not setting timers for a couple of nights, but I really didn't like waking up to the noise of this machine at 7 am. It reminds me of sleeping so it wasn't the most motivation when it comes to getting out of bed for the day. So being able to set a timer is a total game-changer. It's small and lightweight — We have limited space on our nightstands as they are floating ones and we each have a bouquet of dried flowers on there from our wedding, too. So one of my must-haves with a white noise machine was for it to be small. This one is just four inches wide and it's so light. I can take it from room to room and I could even take it on vacation, but I do have two portable ones for that purpose so I won't need to do that after all.As well as Bluetooth connectivity, the myHummy Mini comes with all the other features you might want in a white noise machine. There’s a timer setting, which you can set to fade out after 10 minutes or more, or it can play continuously. It’s neat and portable, with a strap to attach it to a pushchair or car seat. And the cover is even machine-washable, once you remove the battery powered insert. Personalising your routine is straightforward. I love snuggling down to blue-hued rainfall, it takes my mind off the tinnitus ringing in my ears. There are three fan noises: floor, wall and regular. They’re not notably different from each other, but I appreciate the versatility.