Baby sensory lights to stimulate your little one

baby sensory lights

by Hannah Carroll |
Updated on

Baby sensory lights are supposed to stimulate the brain and keep your little one engaged, which is why products like light projectors for babies are so popular with parents.

Children learn through exploring the world around them whilst using their senses (smell, taste, touch, hearing, and seeing) which is why we buy baby sensory toys. It is vital to your baby's development as it aids to stimulate their sensory system, which helps them develop. It also helps to strengthen their cognitive skills, such as recall and hand-eye coordination.

The best baby sensory lights at a glance:

Best overall sensory light toy: Karrma Ltd. Set of 4 Spiky Bounce Balls - View offer on Amazon UK
Best sensory light toy for the bath: Aofentop Dinosaur Light Up Bath Toy - View offer on Amazon UK
Best baby sensory light for the house: Global Gizmos Disco Light - View offer on Amazon UK

Unlike a child's night light which is designed to make your little one's bedroom a calming space to fall asleep, baby sensory lights help to promote eye coordination as your baby tracks the movement.

Sensory lights are fantastic to boost development and also a great tool if your little one has been diagnosed with vision impairments or a cognitive disability. If you are looking to engage with your little one through sight, baby sensory lights are a great place to start.

Best baby sensory lights

Best overall sensory light toy

We love these Karrma Ltd. Set of 4 Spiky Bounce Balls because they are great for popping on your baby's activity mat whilst they play. They are durable, and the spiky design adds another level of sensory play (feel). 

Mother&Baby Parenting and Lifestyle Product Writer, Hannah James said: "I think this is one of my favourite sensory toys. Even though my children range from 18 months to five years old, they all enjoy playing with them. Unlike a lot of toys, these can fit in my changing bag and offer some entertainment when we are travelling. "

Pros

  • Durable
  • Waterproof
  • Tasteless
  • Premium quality rubber
  • Good for stress relief

Cons

  • Batteries cannot be replaced
Product Dimensions:‎31 x 24.5 x 11.2 cm
Manufacturer recommended age:‎3 years and up
Number of pieces:4
Weight: 30 Grams

Best musical light toy for toddlers

These Glowhouse LED Light Up Maracas are great for children three and above. We also loved using them in front of our babies. The added sound sensory element is great for babies as you can watch them trying to track the light whilst enjoying the music. 

One parent reviewer said: "I bought these as they use them in our Hartbeeps class and baby loves them. They are pretty durable as baby has hit these onto hard floor many times and although casing pops open slightly you can just pop back together easily enough."

Pros

  • Batteries include
  • Create noise
  • Different light modes

Cons

  • Batteries don't last very long
Package Dimensions:‎23.8 x 12.2 x 7.6 cm; 140 Grams
Batteries Required:‎6 LR44 batteries (included)
Manufacturer recommended age:‎3 years and up

Best sensory light toy for the bath

Make your little ones' bath time more engaging with these light-up dinosaurs. This set of six Aofentop Dinosaur Light Up Bath Toy is made of ABS-safe material, so they are safe for bath times. The LED light will automatically go out once you leave them on the side after bath time. Unfortunately, the batteries cannot be replaced; however, the battery can usually last 2-3 months.

These are perfect for use in the bath as well as outdoors for water play activities.

One parent reviewer said: "These are small but great. Our little one normally hates baths but now we can't get him out he loves them. He carries them everywhere"

Pros

  • Waterproof
  • Great for encouraging bath time
  • Toys float
  • Gender neutral

Cons

  • Not rechargeable
Product Dimensions:‎17.5 x 13.2 x 5 cm
Manufacturer recommended age:‎5 months - 3 years
Batteries Required: No
Weight:200 Grams

Best baby sensory light for the house

You can turn your little one's room into a mini-disco with this light. The Global Gizmos Disco Light is small and lightweight, making it ideal for travelling. We think this disco light is great for transforming your little one's nursery into a sensory room - just remember to do this a few hours before bedtime. 

One parent reviewer said: "This is a great little battery-operated disco light! I bought it as a gift for a little girl. Installed batteries and tested it worked before wrapping and wow! I have a mains-operated light myself and this was just as good as mine, but with the added safety of not having a plug to worry about. It is also handy if no sockets are available. I would definitely recommend it."

Pros

  • Reflects red, blue and green light
  • Engaging
  • Bright lights
  • Dome shape

Cons

  • Difficult to change the batteries
Product Dimensions:9 x 9cm
Weight:70g
Batteries Required: 3 AA batteries

Best baby sensory light optical illusion

This Infinity Mirror Tunnel Lamp sensory light is an optical illusion, creating a sense of a never-ending tunnel of light. It is an ideal size for hanging on a wall. We think this is a fantastic addition to a sensory corner.
One parent reviewer said: "This Infinity Mirror Tunnel Lamp is ideal for the sensory activity board we made for our grandson. He loves the lights changing colours and it is solid enough that we are not afraid of it breaking if he bangs on it."

Pros

  • Rechargeable
  • Great for a sensory room
  • Can be hung on a wall
  • LED bulbs

Cons

  • Not fully robust
Product Dimensions: 24.1 x 24.1 x 6.4cm
Weight:490g
Batteries Required:3 AA batteries

Best musical baby sensory lights

This flashing tambourine is a brilliant toy for a musical-loving tot. There are three modes to choose from, fast flashing, slow flashing and colour-changing mode. We loved using The Glowhouse Flashing + Light up Tambourine toy in front of a new baby - although babies should not use this toy unsupervised. 

One parent reviewer said: "My little one loves music and lights. He has this in music class and I'm so glad I found one for him. One happy baby!"

Pros

  • Batteries can be replaced
  • Musical
  • Engaging

Cons

  • Not suitable for children under three
Package Dimension:‎22 x 13.5 x 4 cm
Manufacturer recommended age:‎3 years and up
Batteries included:Yes
Weight:160 Grams

Best baby sensory light sticks

These LED Premium Foam Glow Sticks batons take us right back to school discos. These are excellent for little ones as they are soft, lightweight and flexible, and can be enjoyed by the whole family. These are also great if you are planning on hosting a baby play date, as you can order various amounts. 

One parent reviewer said: "Bought for my 1.5 year old as a sensory sort of thing and he really enjoys playing with them! he figured out how to turn them on and off really easily too! They did start to run out quite quickly but to be fair there were times where they'd been left on a while and you can change the battery, they're not single life."

Pros

  • Can be re-used
  • CE/UKCA compliant
  • Soft foam material

Cons

  • Have to order in packs
Batteries Required:‎3 AAA batteries (included)
Colour:‎Blue, green and red
Package Dimensions:‎17.2 x 17.1 x 5.1 cm
Weight:‎180 g

Best baby sensory light for variety

From stars and planets to birthdays and Christmas, this Night Light Projector with Music has plenty of themes to memorise your little one. It has a choice of light colour, which can be made as dull or as bright as required. You can also set it to a timer to help your child drift off. Although this is a projector, we love the musical element and that it can be used with different coloured lights. We found this was great for creating both a calming and engaging atmosphere.

One parent reviewer said: "Lovely little lamp. I was a bit sceptical about buying this at first, as it was a lot cheaper than other lamps like this. I wasn't sure it was going to be bright, but I was so wrong. It's lovely and bright. It can also be dimmed when my little one is asleep. It lights up the whole room and we have quite a big room. I would definitely recommend this product"

Pros

  • Rechargeable
  • Comes with an infrared remote
  • Sweet design
  • Can be used for bedtime

Cons

  • The music can get repetitive
Product Dimension:11 x 11 x 12.5
Weight:390 g
  • 6 light scenes
  • 3 light modes
  • 8 levels of brightness

Are sensory lights good for babies?

Have you ever noticed your little one focusing on a particular spot at home or when you're out and about? This is because they are in the early stages of their development and are trying to work out what things are. Giving your baby something appealing to look at, like a sensory light, will help to improve their vision and focus. It will also help to strengthen the muscles in their eyes.

Baby sensory lights will help to improve your baby's levels of concentration and awareness of the world around them, but they are fun too. These light projectors are designed with bright colours and funky patterns to occupy your little one for hours on end.

Do I need a sensory light?

Sensory lights have lots of benefits for babies and children. Whilst, indeed, they aren't crucial for development, they are a great way of strengthening muscles around the eyes as well as helping to promote eye coordination.

Hannah James is a Parenting, Lifestyle and Home Product writer, specialising in product testing and reviews. With three children, Hannah loves testing the latest industry products on her own family.

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