break the bank prams- showboating or necessity?

[smokey]

I coulnt care less about the buggy, MIL bought it for us and tried for ages to get me to look at different ones and they all just looked the same to me.
We where at the baby show and she was looking at one and asked me what I thought (by this point I didnt feel I had a choice anymore) so I just said " yeah it moves and its dark so I dont have to keep washing it" and that was that.

I wouldnt mind a light weight one though because lugging this one up and down 3 flights of staires is killing my back

 

[angelandbump]

I was an ebay queen when i was pregnant looing for a pram on there to save money but as my parents told me and OH they were paying, they told me it had to be brand new and of decent quality... now my mum is VERY materialistic and when i showed her cheaper prams she said they looked cheap

I ended up getting the M&P switch combination for £400 including the carseat and base and the only reason she was o with it being so cheap as it was on sale lol!

I have since got another 2 from ebay haha!! but i use my M&P one mainly x

 

[wishuwerehere]

I always wanted the perfect pram because my mum used to go on and on and ON about her big old silver cross pram like it was God's gift to mothers, and she clearly loved it to pieces, so I want one I love that much!

Maybe I should try a big old carriage style lol

 

[Sarahkka]

Haven't read the whole thread, so apologies if I'm repeating a point, but for me it's a bit the same as clothes shopping:
I use the $ spent:times used ratio to figure out the true cost or worth of the item. So for example, spending $20 on an ugly pair of sandals that I wear only once is a worse waste of money than spending $100 on a pair of jeans that I wear 3-4 times per week, that look great/feel good/etc.
If the cot is getting used everyday and is meeting my needs really well and means that I get out with baby and am getting fresh air and exercise, etc, then a higher price tag can be justifiable. Particularly if that higher price tag goes with something robust and durable. I think that's a better use of money than an awkward, cheap pram that just sits there because I avoid using it.
Having said all that, I'm also a crazy bargain hunter so I would never pay ridiculous money for a pram. I would scour ebay, kijiji, all the secondhand listings until I found what I wanted for a fraction of the price! I'm cheap that way!

 

[sequeena]

I like mine because of its looks, reviews and because it's the style I wanted.

 

[tallybee]

Honestly, I see nothing wrong with buying the best one can afford. It's hankering after stuff we can't afford that's the problem. I managed with next to nothing with both my children, most things were second hand and nothing was high-end. I'll admit that at times life could have been made easier by more user-friendly items (the double buggy I had was so hard to push that it was useless lol) but a lot of the stuff people slap the word 'necessity' onto are anything but.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

I have never got the issue with prams, I had one and that was it lol. I had a decent enough one. It was not like we could not afford a better one but I cant be doing with loads of prams to store all over the house lol.

We dont have any now. Yey.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

Am I the only one who thinks all prams look pretty much the same? I would have no idea if one was expensive or not! Oh I haven't quite entered the world of motherhood yet have I?!

Mine are older now, out grown prams and I still dont know. In fact, some expensive ones, I have thought were cheapies. I dont have a clue.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

This is always something I have been confused about. Don't get me wrong, I like nice things and to look nice, and wouldn't want an ugly or impractical or poor quality pram, but I never saw the reason why my friends Bugaboo was worth £300 more than my Mothercare Mychoice. Yes, the Bugaboo had a few features that were better but not £300 worth?? However, money is not an issue for my friend so maybe she just looked at the more expensive ones because she assumed they were the best, I don't know.

Because you pay for the name! Its silly. xx

 

[midori1999]

We spent quite a bit on a pram because that's how much it happened to cost and for us it is one of the most important purchases, as we walk an awful lot in all weather with our dogs and we wanted a pram with a large carrycot that would be cosy and also last plenty of time. Some of the cheaper prams (and even those in the same price range) that did have carrycots (and not that many do these days) had quite small carrycots and I doubt they would have lasted five minutes.

 

[discoclare]

I wanted a Bugaboo Cameleon but felt I couldn't really justify to myself paying that amount for a pram. I have a M and P pram which was A LOT cheaper (about a third of the price) but I hate it. Even though it is supposed to be their kind of lightweight city pram it is much more difficult to manouver than my friends bugaboos and bulkier. Bits of it don't work properly and I just can't see it lasting for another baby. I wish I'd got a Bugaboo Bee now which aren't as dear as the Cameleons but are so light and easy to push, plus they are nice and narrow and would be so easy for the bus. So I used to think they were a rip-off and showboating but now I'm starting to think my cheaper pram is a false economy and I should have spent a bit more and gone for the quality high-end product.

 

[MrsBandEgglet]

Hmmm, I can't make my mind up on this one. We got the Oyster and if I'm honest I can't remember exactly how much it was because we bought the whole lot together; maxi cosi cabrio fix and Isofix base. I think it was in the region of about £650 altogether That seems quite reasonable to me because it really was a fabulous travel system. I sold it this week and I've quite emotional that it's now gone If they did a doubles kit for it I would have been over the moon!! I went through quite a few choices for a double and have finally settled on the Baby Jogger City Select, which has come in (with car seat adaptors) at £770, not bad for a double imo

There are so many prams I like and I've had a push of quite a few, such as the Bugaboo Chameleon, which I'm sorry to say I think is overrated. I calculated it up and you're looking at over £800 minimum and I just don't think it's worth it. Saying that I haven't actively used it for long but no, for me it didn't work the magic I expected it to. I recently had a go with the Sola though and I think I'm in love It's fab! I wish I didn't need a double now I love the Stokke though but I remember somebody saying it's quite plasticy and a bit of a bugger to dismantle. I think, aesthetically, it's the nicest looking pram though, very unique.

Right now I'm making do with a light stroller for LO until my double arrives (later this month woohoo!!) and I'm not loving it I have to say. It's the Mothercare Xoob and it cost £70 so for the money I shouldn't complain really. For anybody planning on having their LO's close together though and therefore eventually needing a double, I would say look for a pram that you can later convert to a double because it'll be a lot cheaper. The Baby Jogger I'm getting can be used as a single and I do like it so I wish I'd bought it originally. xx

 

[xolily]

i don't think it's a "necessity". i wouldn't begrudge anyone whatever pram they wanted, but more £££ definitely doesn't make it more necessary.

i had the silvercross linear sleepover for Laila, cost me about £650. i loved it as a pram but after 2 months in pushchair mode i packed it away and bought a £150 luna x

 

[xolily]

just looked up the Stokke Xplory that people have mentioned.. that looks like the most uncomfortable pram i've ever seen! both the bassinette part and the pram part look like flimsy bits of plastic with a sash of material stuck on an office chair base..? am i missing something?!

 

[Laura2919]

I wanted the Icandy Pear when I was pregnant with the girls. It would have totaled about £1000 or more. 1, we couldnt afford it and when both our parents offered to pay I couldnt and wouldnt let them pay that amount and 2, OH didnt like it.

I ended up with a Cosatto you2 and I love it. I'm happy and for £240 2 years on its still going stong! I dont use it half as much as I used to but its still there and working when I need it.

I dont think its showboating I think if you can afford an expensive grand buggy then get one if you want one.

If I had a singleton I'd have loads lol. So many to choose from

 

[Laura2919]

Oilily its the ugliest buggy I have ever seen It does look like an office chair

 

[SKATERBUN]

just looked up the Stokke Xplory that people have mentioned.. that looks like the most uncomfortable pram i've ever seen! both the bassinette part and the pram part look like flimsy bits of plastic with a sash of material stuck on an office chair base..? am i missing something?!

TBH I dont see what benefits the Stokke range has, its the highest top of the range goods you can buy commercially, so do people who do have money to burn buy it for the hell of it (maybe??)
The highchair also looks uncomfortable. Is it a smart marketing gimmick by the manufacturers I wonder - soon as the hype machine is running, people will buy one regardless thinking its expensive so it must be good when in fact they just want to boast to their peers that they have something that is maybe unobtainable by them? e.g a celebrity buying something out of Joe Publics price range just so they can be different.

Its like an item of designer clothing imo, I guess all well made prams and pushchairs do the same at the end of the day cheap or expensive, LO couldnt care less about materialistic value as long as she/he is safe comfortable, warm and dry. Its ridulous to think extra money can buy that. Its more likely making the parent feel better about themselves in some way

 

[Sarah10]

I wanted the Icandy Pear when I was pregnant with the girls. It would have totaled about £1000 or more. 1, we couldnt afford it and when both our parents offered to pay I couldnt and wouldnt let them pay that amount and 2, OH didnt like it.

I ended up with a Cosatto you2 and I love it. I'm happy and for £240 2 years on its still going stong! I dont use it half as much as I used to but its still there and working when I need it.

I dont think its showboating I think if you can afford an expensive grand buggy then get one if you want one.

If I had a singleton I'd have loads lol. So many to choose from

My friend is having another LO (close age to ds1) and she is getting the cosatto you2, the crocodile one, i love all the funky designs.

 

[peanut56]

I just looked up the Stokke Xplory...it looks weird! It DOES look like an office chair!

ETA: I think if someone has the money and wants to spend it on an expensive product, then they should go for it! Some things do leave me scratching my head though...my SIL wants this high chair:

https://www.westcoastkids.ca/Bloom---Fresco-Loft-High-Chair

It's $600!!! I can't imagine spending that much money on a high chair, whether I had the money to or not!

 

[SKATERBUN]

^ If I won the lottery and was mega rich I probably would buy that chair just because it does look very comfortable and ergonomic, but theres just some things I wouldnt buy just because they are 'trendy', I would be going against my principles