Our first pram, stroller, buggy...?

Rachie_B

digitalphase wrote: »

The Stokke's are really ugly though IMO :rotfl::p;)

I agree and soooo expensive!

Trazy

I bought the Stokke for my first Grandchild, told Son and Daughter in law to choose whatever they wanted. It's a great pram and my daughter in law can get it easily into her Fiesta, Son has a 4x4 so just lifts the whole lot up as it is and puts it in the back of his car

PinkLipgloss

I heard good reviews about the Stokke, however it's interesting to note that it does not make the "Which? Best Buys" list (which I am currently obsessed with as they seem to assess/test everything!)

brazilianwax

PinkLipgloss wrote: »

I heard good reviews about the Stokke, however it's interesting to note that it does not make the "Which? Best Buys" list (which I am currently obsessed with as they seem to assess/test everything!)

The review Which did is flawed. Firstly they only tested it as a pushchair and didn't use it with the carrycot attachment. So they say it can only be used from 6 months, which is untrue.

It won't ever score highly when they fail to read the manual and note that it flicks into 2 wheel mode for steps and escalators. As for not being good for public transport, if you can afford a stokke you probably don't get buses very often!

It doesn't fold down very small, but it is extremely easy to drive. I live on a steep hill and can push it one handed very easily. It has a tiny turning circle and a massive shopping bag. DD has used it as a cot as well as a pram.

I love that she's up high, closer to me and away from exhaust pipes, cats and dogs.

I wouldn't swap for anything else.

digitalphase

brazilianwax wrote: »

Well, you're the first person to say that! I get nothing but compliments when I'm out and about! I love it.

It's horses for courses really. People have said my car is ugly, but they soon shut up when I put my foot down :rotfl:

What car do you have?

oda

With my first child I had a second hand Chicco (don't even know the model), and just hated it. It was difficult to steer and baby didn't feel comfy. But it proved to be unbreakable! It was used for 2 children before was given to us, and for 2 kids after (not mine lol), so 5 in total, and still looks exactly the same as when I first saw it!

I've got Maclaren Triumph as soon as my child could sit unaided. It was and still is brilliant!:T Very lightweight, easy to steer, folds down easily (we didn't have a car so I had to rely on buses, and managed to fold it with one hand). Our child loved this buggy and just refused to be in any other. It has been everywhere, woods, beaches and shops, and never failed. Now our second child enjoys it, may be even more than her Mamas& Papas Sola. The big drawback is the brakes! Very unusial construction, I never could make them work.

For the second child after deep research I've decided on the Mamas&Papas Sola. It's a pleasure to steer, not too big when folded, suitable from birth, seat faces both ways, Sola can be used with Maxi Cosi car seat and a child seems to be comfy in it.
The thing is that now I don't feel that Sola is going to last for ages.
After just one month of use it has stopped to unfold properly and needed a good kick while doing it, then started to jam when folding down, but again a good old kick in the right place helped (my husband had to ask me to fold it as he didn't work out
where to kick lol). I really thought about returning Sola but couldn't manage without a travel system. Then suddenly everything went back to normal! On one of the forums I've red about a similar problem. In their case M&P admitted that the frame was skewed
as a result of having a changing bag on the handle.:shocked:
After next couple of months one of the front swivel wheels jammed, a good clean and some oil fixed it. So not a negative experience after all, just not sure whether I would buy it again if given a choice.

money_honey

Another vote for the Bugaboo Bee! I originally bought a Mothercare MY4, then a Silver Cross Pop and finally the Bee - and I would never use any other buggy again! It's sooo light and small, takes up hardly any room in the boot (I have a Renault Clio and DH has a VW Golf), adjustable handles, fully reclining etc etc... so manoeuvrable in the shops. I sail past the women with their huge buggies trying to push them down narrow aisles... By the way I can't remember if you were considering the M&P Pliko - the Bee is much smaller than it. Oh, and the suspension is great, it has springs which absorb all the shocks as well.

caelshorn

Alright, we finally made it to the pram shop.

We went to The Pram Centre in Glasgow. They also have an online shop now. They have a price-match promise, and the prices in the store are even lower than online. The young girls were very helpful and friendly, despite being totally overrun with pregnant ladies and their reluctant partners.
We looked at three prams:
Bugaboo Bee Plus
Stokke
UppaBaby Vista

The Bugaboo ticked all the right boxes. But when we saw it IRL it was ridiculously low down. Even 'though the handlebars are adjustable, I just felt really uncomfortable pushing it. It looked as if my baby would be sooooo faaaaaar away from me. So yes, it's a great pram, handles well, light, easily collapsed, good road handling but... not for us.
Next was the Stokke. Wow. It looks a lot more space-age IRL than in the pictures. I like modern, but this thing looks as if it's going to launch your baby into orbit. It also does look a bit like a tip-risk. I'm sure all that has been tested, but it just looked top-heavy to me. And it was still quite bulky when collapsed. I liked that the storage underneath zipped up against the elements, but you have to remove it before you can collapse the buggy. So, also not for us (OH vetoed it on looks alone straight away).
Then we tried the UppaBaby. Another handsome pushchair. Also ticked all the right boxes. And it was a nice height. We tried it out in different combinations, tried it all around the shop (with a few "beep beep"s thrown in) and put it up and down a few times. Without any attachment (carrycot, seat, carseat) it's only 8.3 kg, which I can manage alright. The attachments all click on and off easily. So this is the pram of our choice.

I really do recommend doing the research and then going to a place to try out your shortlist. I'm so glad we did that.

Good luck everyone with your pram hunt!

koalamummy

This is the pram that we chose too from the same shop and for the same reasons! :rotfl:

What colour did you pick?

caelshorn

I'd like the red one, but we haven't bought it yet. Nowhere to put it yet. And I'm hoping they'll have a sale on at some point before August