Buying the pram is one of the main purchases when expecting a new baby - along with the cot it's probably one of the most expensive too. There are so many practical and design features to consider too:
Weight (think of lifting it into the boot)
Boot size
Steering
Basket space
Handle height
Design
Existing children
Compatibility with car seat
Ease of folding
Does it convert as the child gets older?
How sturdy is it/suspension/wheel thickness? Will you be pushing over pavements or cobbles or fields?!
And of course, the price!
There's probably loads more to think about too!
Cosatto
Before I knew we were expecting a baby boy (and when I was certain we were having a girl) I had my heart set on the Cosatto Giggle in the GoLightly design.
Obviously, the most striking thing here is the unusual design. I didn't want a plain black pram and so this really caught my eye. It also had the carry cot to use from birth but easily converted to a pushchair for later on. I saw it as something that would last until baby was walking so we didn't need to buy another. It was a reasonable price and lots of websites offered deals for the whole set - including the car seat and changing bag.
I read loads of reviews and they were mixed. Some loved it but a few found it wasn't strong enough.
It's also good to check out reviews on YouTube as they often include demonstrations.
I went to a shop and tried it out and found it handled well - smooth cornering and lightweight feel. It was also really simply to change from forward facing to parent facing or from carry cot to pushchair and the car seat could be attached too. I was sold!
However, a few weeks later we were told it was a boy and I just had to accept this wasn't a boy design! They do offer several other designs but I just wasn't as keen so I started looking elsewhere.
Icandy
I had heard a lot about ICandy but they were quite hard to research online. They don't sell online - only in shops and so don't publish prices. Probably a good job too as when we got to the shops we realised you were looking at a minimum £800 for brand new.
I really liked the iCandy Peach (they all have fruity names) in grey:
A lot of the reason I liked it was for the same as the Cosatto. It was easy to use and adjust, had pram and pushchair features and I liked the design. However, Kieran wasn't keen as he felt they were trying to be a bit too trendy and the high price tag wasn't justified.
Silver Cross
We then looked at two from Silver Cross; the surf and the wayfarer. I liked the idea of Silver Cross as to me, it's a classic pushchair brand and just seems reliable.
There wasn't much between the two prams - the surf was slightly more expensive (but nowhere near iCandy level) coming in at around
£575 (there's an
offer on to order with a free car seat at the minute). I loved it in aubergine:
Again, it was a travel system and seemed really sturdy in the video demonstrations on the website.
We also looked at the Wayfarer in blue:
Again, this met our travel system requirements and the RRP was slightly cheaper than the surf at £495.
We went to a shop and tried both out. Going back to our original checklist this is how they matched up:
| |
Surf |
Wayfarer |
| Weight (think of lifting it into the boot) |
Lightweight
but maybe slightly heavier than Wayfarer |
Lightweight |
| Boot size |
Easily
fit in Ford Focus boot |
Easily
fit in Ford Focus boot |
| Steering |
Easy
to manoeuvre |
Easy
to manoeuvre - very lightweight |
| Basket space |
Couldn't
really access as carry cot sat right on top |
Good
space and easy access |
| Handle height |
Adjustable |
Adjustable |
| Design |
Good
colour options but plastic finish |
Good
colour options and metal looking finish |
| Existing children |
n/a |
n/a |
| Compatibility with car seat |
Silver
cross simplicity car seat fits on |
Silver
cross simplicity car seat fits on |
| Ease of folding |
Very
easy |
Very
easy |
| Does it convert as the child gets older? |
Yes |
Yes |
| How sturdy is it/suspension/wheel thickness? |
Good
suspension - advertised as all terrain |
Not
much suspension - more city use |
| And of course, the price! |
RRP
575 |
RRP
495 |
After weighing up the options we decided on the Wayfarer for a couple of reasons.
1. We felt the finish with the metal frame looked better than the plastic frame of the Surf
2. The basket on the surf seemed pointless since it was impossible to access
3. The price!
4. We figured we would mainly be using it to pop to the shops so robust suspension wasn't a big need and the wayfarer was sufficient. It was also slightly easier to push and steer.
We bought ours from a local store and were able to pay £425 so it's definitely worth asking for a discount!
Another point to mention with the Wayfarer - and possible the Surf but I'm not sure - is that you buy the frame, carry cot and pushchair and then the covers separately. Although this was all included in the price what it means it the foot muff and hood are actually separate and can be purchased for around £100-£150 in other colours. This means you can update the pushchair for the seasons or if we have a girl next we can just buy new covers in a different colour!
The only word of warning with the Wayfarer so far (I've not actually used it with a baby in it!!) is the hood is difficult to adjust to fit on the pram. Once it's on, there's no problem but you have to hold it between open and closed to move the clips to attach it which is not in the instructions!!
We are really pleased with our purchase - especially Kieran who couldn't believe I actually liked the cheapest option best!! He can't wait to push the baby in it so maybe he will have to write the next review!
