Nature's Window

LUMATRON was founded in 1973 to design, produce, and market goods that will make their owners' lives more pleasant, more comfortable, and safer. LUMATRON is a family-owned and operated business, and all our products are hand-wired and hand-assembled. We make sure your Nature's Window is perfect when we send it to you. We also occasionally sub-contract out some of our work to sheltered industries, believing that we are helping our handicapped friends earn a living and help provide for themselves. We take a personal interest in our customers, and encourage your feedback. We design our products with our customers in mind, so we want to hear how you are enjoying them. 

Rave Reviews from a Foremost Birding Expert

Syracuse University Professor Emeritus and bird expert, the late Ben Burtt, reviewed Nature's Window in his birding column. Following is an excerpt of his article.

BIRD COLUMN FOR May 16, 2004
By Benjamin P. Burtt

Topic: The last migrants of the Spring

and

How to listen to birds outside when the windows are closed, a review of a device that really does this very well

. . . an excellent unit is now available. It is called "Nature's Window" and I have been using one for the past six months. It consists of a small amplifier and loud speaker in the house that is plugged into an electrical outlet. A wire connects it to a water-proof microphone that is outdoors near the feeder. The outdoor sounds can be heard clearly without any interference. I heard my first wood thrush this spring when its song came through my loudspeaker on May 3 at 7:00 AM. It was right on schedule! A moment later a robin sang and was interrupted by the calls of two Canada geese flying over. Sounds of crows could be heard in the distance. Although the windows were closed the room was filled with song.

My microphone hangs just above the big platform feeder. A female red-winged blackbird was picking up cracked corn there when she was disturbed by a blue jay arriving to feed and she had to step aside. She made a horrible squawk which was heard clearly. A cardinal also uttered a harsh note of protest when it had to give way to the jay.

Even with the windows open, there are faint sounds that the unaided ear cannot hear. Last summer a blue jay family was at the feeder. Over the speaker we heard these birds communicating with each other with some soft "murmuring" sounds. One day a strange croaking sound on the speaker brought me to the window in time to see a great blue heron moving by at low altitude with slowly beating wings.

After dark, it brings in the sounds of frogs, spring peepers, crickets and owls. The microphone has certainly added a lot to our enjoyment of the birds and other creatures near our home.

The Equipment to hear the Sounds outdoors.

The more recent model, called "Nature's Window", has a wire connecting the microphone to the box. I will refer to this as the wired model, in the discussion below. The wire with the microphone on the end is passed through an open window that is gently closed over the wire.

The new wired model, the first of its kind, called "Nature's Window", has a wire connecting the microphone to the amplifier and loud speaker in the house. It is more sensitive than the wireless type. Even for a distant bird it gives a clear and distinct sound with no static or hum.

The distance between the box and the microphone is limited by the length of the wire which is about 6 feet. Thus the microphone picks up the sounds from a point just outside the house and brings them in clearly.

If you would like to have a longer wire for the microphone, for example, so that you can place the microphone close to a feeder, ask the store to order one with a "custom probe" that has a wire of the length you specify. It will be sent to the store in two days.

I ordered mine with a 20 foot wire so the microphone could hang just above the feeder. I wanted the microphone to be able to pick up the faint sounds that birds make as they feed. It still does a fine job of getting all the other natural sounds.

There are no batteries needed since the box plugs into a nearby electrical outlet in the house.

Limited Warranty

NATURE'S WINDOW is fully warranted for one year against any defects in workmanship within the actual unit itself, so long as the unit has not been opened or otherwise tampered with. All external parts and normal wear and tear are not warranted by us.