Choosing a pram

[blue_kat]

I know its very early but I have just been sitting here thinking about the things we will need to buy...

What do you look for in a pram? I dont have a clue what to look for or what I should expect to spend...and which accessories are worth getting and which are a waste of money!

thanks!

 

[goddess25]

I found that i bought one that was within our budget so i decided that first...

I looked at how easy they were to move.... how much room it would take on a bus.... if it would fit into our car.

I would get one that has a good rain cover for it... the one i bought was crap for that and the rain cover for the pram never fitted properly.

The only accessories i would recommend is its nice to have a little cup holder for you.... and its nice to have a large area under the pram for storage space. and lots of space that you can put shopping bags onto too is a good thing to look at.

Everyone is going to have there own idea about what they want for a pram, i also wanted one that our car seat could just snap into easily.

I am in the process of trying to find a new pram.. my current son will just have turned 2 when the next baby is born so i need a 2 kiddie pram.

 

[Surprise]

Hi, we haven't bought or even decided on ours yet, but a few of our criteria are: seat that reclines all the way, for a newborn; not terribly heavy (some of the ones that accommodate newborns are); easy to open/collapse; not terribly bulky. We would also like a carry basket underneath, and adjustable handlebars because I'm 5'2" and my husband is 6'5".

It's such a hard decision, because the ones that I really fancy, and are lighter in weight, are way out of my price range.

Let us know if you find anything promising.

 

[goddess25]

the seat that reclines all the way was in ours too i forgot to mention that... we used the car seat mainly for a long time and now when Euan falls asleep in the pram we just lay him down and its way more comfortable.

 

[3011busyyear]

Not got mine yet, but I think it's worth going to some where like kiddicare where you can see different brands all together and try them out.
Think about size for public transport/getting it in the car.
Easy to fold on your own, lightness and size for pushing round town, adjustable handle if you and oh are different heights, do you need to travel a lot- some car seats can be used as over night sleeping if you buy an extra mattress pad. Erm what else... Oh colour, if you plan to use if for future children don't go all out pink/blue!
Not sure on accesories but as mine is due end Jan a rain cover will probably be a good buy! My friend also said she tried to go out for a walk most days so loved her cup holder so she could sit in the park with a warm drink!

 

[blue_kat]

ahh thanks everyone! Just one of my panicky moments when I wonder if I have made huge mistake as know NOTHING about children/babies

funny I am not bothered about changing nappies etc as I work with animals and deal with some interesting situations daily! ...but the other day I was entertaining a toddler and he asked me to put his socks on - I got in a muddle and started worrying all night about silly things LOL - then came online looking at mothercare website and panicked as all the prams looked daunting

feel better now!

 

[secretbaby]

Budget - First .... no point looking at £600 prams you will fall in love with if you can't afford.... I made this mistake with ds1... never got the expensive pram but always hankered after it.

What are your need?
I needed a lightweight pram (had section with ds1 just incase need another).
Do you need a big shopping basket? (I do!)
Do you want a travel system (I think they are very handy - were only just coming out when ds1 was born!).
What accessories do you need? what are included? how much are they to buy? (my travel system came with free rain cover and the foot muff is only £25).
What features do you 'need' what do you 'want' and what are 'luxury?'

If you look on line - can you see one in the shop? see if it lives up to the promises on the net/reviews? or see if you can see someone with one - mums give very honest reviews!

Shop around price wise - it really varys - you may find a pram just out of your price range cheaper on line (or in a shop) thus bringing it into your budget.

From the mistakes I made with ds1 prams (yes I ended up with 3... and in the end went back to using the original one.. when ds was old enough to get on and off the bus walking when he couldn't it was a nightmare - not many buggy buses in those days). This time i had my list of what I wanted - the only thing mine doesn't not tick was I wanted one that had a seat that could face you - but I thought with the travel system if baby is in the car seat baby can see me and visa versa! It did really help that I knew exactly what i wanted - i do get very carried away shopping.

 

[Mizze]

We just decided on a pram yesterday - this one https://www.babybabyonline.co.uk/britax-b-smart-3-package-2-aurora-green.html

But its taken WEEKS to decide. The hardest thing for me was working out what I wanted. In the end I had a fairly specific list. Money wasnt so much an issue as we are saving money elsewhere so could splash out on the pram if we wanted. (although saying that I was quite glad when DH decided he didnt like the Stokke Xplory after all!)

What I decided was on my list was
Reversible pushchair mode - I didnt want BabyMizze to autmatically have to be facing away from me the minute she went into the pushchair.
Lightweight - try this out some of the prams can be seriously heavy. I needed to be able to fold mine up in the boot of the car easily.
Easy to put up and down - an absolute must for me.
3 wheels if possible so it can go off road a little.
Reasonable sized shopping bag
Carrycot option if required.

Then there were the things I liked but werent essential
Suspension of pram (in the end we compromised on this and went with hard wheels)
compatible car seat - which went with isofix and seatbelt and clipped on the base - although I am not intending the baby to be in it and on the pram that much. But it will be very useful for a quick trip to the shops.

Oh and not all isofix's fit each car so check that too

What I would recommend before you buy anything is to try as many as possible. Really - I changed my mind on my favouite at least 4 times - I also eliminated 2 lovely prams because after trying them they had little things that I would grow to hate
1) Mammas&Pappas Sola - Lovely and lightweight BUT when I adjusted the handle I got my hand caught in the mechanism twice and got my skin pinched - now that put me off
2) Quinny Buzz - loved this BUT the marvellous hyraulic system which makes putting the pram back up an absolute dream was anything but when I was trying to fold it because I was fighting against the mechanism all the time

In the end the Britax was for me the easiest to use that ticked most of the boxes!

You have loads of time so go out and try everything and get to know what you like and hate and what works for you best

Mizze xx

 

[meg79]

I started off reading reviews. Reading threads on forums on prams, looking at what other parents were choosing and why. this was invaluable for me as it gives you somewhere to start from. Price wasn't an issue for us luckily which is just as well as I fell in love with the Stokke Xplory. Pricey, but for me it ticked all the boxes.
Once you have a few in mind, go to a store like Kiddicare where you can test-drive them in one go and can compare side by side literally. Look at other important factors for example, can it fit in your boot when folded, compatable car seat, how long realistically will it last? I would tend to go for a stroller that can be used from birth rather than a pram as it will last longer.