 Wish we would have purchased one earlier |
| Review Date: July 29, 2010 |
| Reviewer: lcole, |
| This product is perfect. I spend many hours researching all products and reviews and finally purchased this pump. This works very well and we wished we purchased this before the two manual phillips pumps that failed after a few times. |
Great pump with minor annoyances
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| Review Date: July 19, 2010 |
| Reviewer: S. Chale, Gainesville, FL |
I work full time and pump 3x per day at work in order to send breastmilk with my son to daycare. Previously, I had been using an Ameda Purely Yours, so that is the only pump I have to compare. With the Ameda pump, I usually pumped 3-4oz during a 20-30 minute pumping session, however I still felt that it wasn't emptying my breast properly. I decided to take a chance on this Avent pump based on the mostly positive reviews and the unique design that gives you total control over speed and suction. I am so glad I did! I now regularly pump 4-5oz in 15 minutes, and have pumped as much as 7oz on a few occasions. Yes, many of the complaints noted in other reviews are valid, but for me, these are minor issues that I can deal with because the bottom lines is that it does a great job at extracting milk. I am no longer stressing over my pumping output and that is far more important to me.
CONS:
- At first, setting up the pump was a bit intimidating compared to the Ameda. There are lots of cables and tubes, and I wasn't sure what was supposed to go where. I've been using it now for a month and a half and the setup is now old hat. I actually keep it partially assembled inside the bag itself so I don't have to worry about most of it.
- The box I received from Amazon was missing many parts. I see other people complaining about this as well, so I have to assume it is a fairly common experience. CALL AVENT! From my experiences with their support, I believe they will make it right. I was missing the 2 9oz bottles, the parts to convert it to a manual pump (handle, top, 2 manual diaphragms), and the spare parts (6 extra white valves and 2 diaphragms in addition to the 2 while valves and 2 diaphragms that I did recieve). They shipped everything to me the same day that I called, and I had it within a week. Nothing that was missing prevented me from using my pump.
- You cannot get larger flanges for the pump, so to compensate for this I do not use the massage cushions. If you use the pump with the massage cushions, the flange measures 24mm. If you leave off the cushions like I do, it measures 27mm. In comparison, the standard Ameda flange measures 25mm. I also use some lanolin on my nipples just in case they rub against the sides of the flange.
- Milk collects underneath the diaphragms when you first start to pump. When it fills up that small space, it then starts to flow into the bottles. The first time I used the pump I didn't realize this, and I spilled milk when disassembling the pump. Now, I just make sure to carefully pour this "extra" milk back into my bottles when I'm done.
- I don't like or use the cooler or cool packs that comes with the pump. Like another reviewer mentioned, my cool packs cracked and leaked blue gel (Avent replaced those for me too). Each cooler can fit 1 4oz bottle and 1 9oz bottle. I pump into two 9oz bottles, and I'd have to use BOTH coolers to fit my bottles with one bottle in each bag. Seems like a big waste of space. I use a Playtex fridge-to-go instead, which fits great inside the very generously sized carrying bag.
- The bottles are definitely unsteady when attached to the tubing, and the bottle stand that comes with the pump does not fit the 9oz bottles. Again, a little extra care is required to make sure they don't topple over. I just make sure to unhook the bottle as soon as I am done pumping. I don't trust it to set it down on a surface for more than a couple seconds if everything is still attached.
PROS:
- I get lots more milk in a shorter period of time than my previous pump. This by itself outweighs all the items on my list of cons!
- You have total control over the speed and suction of the pump. You can get speed/suction combinations that I don't think are possible with other pumps that require you to manipulate dials. I believe this primarily accounts for my increased output.
- I love that the controls are right in your hands at all times. It makes it so easy to change up the pumping rhythm whenever you want. No more balancing the bottles on my knees while I reach for the dials to adjust.
- I really like the carrying bag, even though it looks a bit like a piece of luggage. The bag is large enough to fit all parts to the pump, my playtex cooler, plus some extras like a towel, lanolin, small purse etc with lots of room to spare. It's attractive and seems like it's made of quality materials. I've even gotten compliments on it. I keep the pump motor in the front zippered pocket, along with the tubes and power adapter already hooked up to the pump. It's a tight fit, but it all fits in the front pocket.
- The included documentation that came with my pump states that it carries a 2 year warranty, which is double what I've seen for other pumps on the market.
- Closed system pump, so it is not possible for milk to get into the tubing and you never have to sterilize the tubing.
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More thoughtful than medela, ameda
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| Review Date: July 14, 2010 |
| Reviewer: emamatank, |
I have been pumping full time for five months and this is my third pump. I also have the medela harmony (manual) and the ameda purely yours (double electric). Of the three, I like this one the best, by far.
As a side note, I looked at the medela freestyle when I was shopping for a new pump (my ameda's crappy loud motor has already worn down), but it was much more expensive and it had a lot of whistles and bells that I didn't really feel I needed. So, having not used the freestyle, I can't really say which is better.
PROS:
- It is quieter than the ameda, but it's no mouse. My husband sleeps through it fine.
- I like being able to control the suction.
- This pump may have more parts, but they are so easy to clean! This pump is much easier to clean than either of my other pumps. It's the main reason I got this over the medela pis (which is set up about the same as the medela harmony) -- I have washed it by hand and in the dishwasher. NO PROBLEM. Just to demonstrate the difference, the way the medela pump is set up, you cannot get the some of the inner parts, not even with the little nipple brushes. If you don't clean the medela pump right away, it gets awful. I have to use a toothpick to clean parts of it. With this pump, though, you can easily reach all parts.
- This pump is made very very well. The parts for my other two look/feel very cheap. These parts are so much more durable. If I weren't pumping exclusively, I wouldn't feel I needed to buy any spare parts (see below in the cons section).
- This pump has covers! No more throwing the open pump parts around! You can cap off the open flange and where the pump meets the bottle. Much more sanitary!
- I've read reviews by people who say that using this pump gets messy because milk puddles around the massage petals. Well, a little bit of milk does pool, but I have that problem with any pump. I wear a pumping bra, and I find that when I release suction, the milk gets caught between the flanges and the petals, which hold it in there. I find that if I remove the petal and hold the bottle under it, the milk drops right into the bottle! Bottom line: this is less messy than any of my other pumps.
- I can pump more in slightly less time. There is a learning process for this pump, as it's different than my other two, but once you get it, it's more efficient. And complete control of the speed and suction is excellent!
- For this price (I got mine on sale for $210) they really did put a lot of thought and consideration into this pump. They thought of almost everything.
CONS:
- My other pumps use standard size bottles, and Avent makes it clear that their pumps are not standard size. I knew this beforehand, but I'm still a little sad about it. They make you use ALL of their equipment, and their bottles are much more expensive than the cheap little gerber ones that for some reason are my daughter's favorite. Also, I'd like to be able to pump directly into storage bags, but since Ameda does not make any, I cannot.
- WARNING: not everything listed in the box comes with this pump! There are no spare parts for the pump (there are extra lids for the bottles. It does not come with all the parts needed to make it a manual pump!
- There is a trick to using this pump -- you have to have it set up perfectly or you'll get really frustrated really fast. You need to pump next to a table where you can put the bases for the bottles so they don't come over, and you have to be sitting on a relatively flat surface. So although the bag for this pump is excellent, the pump isn't very portable. I can't vouch for using it in a pumping room at work, because I never have...
- This isn't that huge a deal, but as a side note: I was so impressed when I saw that this pump comes with completely removable insulated milk storage bags and cold packs--I thought "they really did think of everything!" Then I used my cold pack in my diaper bag (it has those typical side pockets for bottles, so I stuck a thin gerber bottle and the pack in it for a short trip). When I removed the bottle, I found that the cheap cold pack had broken and leaked the blue gel all over my bottle and my diaper bag! My diaper bag is machine washable, and I had to wash it to get out all of the blue goo. So yes, the pump is great, but be careful with the cheap cold packs!
Overall, this pump was excellent for what I'm using it for (pumping in one single spot at home multiple times a day). You can tell it's made with nicer materials than any of my other pumps. It just feels sturdier, and it's more sanitary, and they really did think of almost everything. DEFINITELY the best pump for this price! |
love this pump
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| Review Date: July 12, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Kari, |
| I have been using this pump for 8 months now. I love it, very easy to use and you set your own pace, can use one or dual pumps! Definitely more comfortable than I thought it would be, makes pumping very easy. I pump at work twice a day, five times a week, and also at home 1-2 times a day, typically after my son has gone to bed. I haven't had any issues, except the sterile bags to hold the pump during travel have split and I had to throw them away, but I just use a small diaper bag now to hold the bottles, pumps, and ice packs in the cooler at work. I motor does seem to be getting a little louder, but the suction works great and I do use the pump frequently, at times I was pumping 6-8 times a day to help keep up my supply as my son has nursed less as he got older, which makes it easier to fill all his bottles while I work. I do nurse him whenever we are together, and only use bottles while I work, because I didn't want to waste my time to pump to only give a bottle, twice to work for the same feeding. |
Product is great...but some items were missing !!!!!!!!
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| Review Date: June 25, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Luli, |
Loved the pump, really fast, comfortable & discrete.
Unfortunately, some items were missing, namely: 2 9oz bottles, 4 gel packs & manual parts. This is really annoying !
The pupm is great un any case, but I will never buy from the same provider again.
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