I
will officially be kissing the back wheels of my StriderPlus goodbye forever
(Thank GOD.) I could have started that line off so differently with a whole
arrangement of swear words and colourful language, as my hate for the Strider
Plus runs very deep.
As
of a couple of weeks ago the Bugaboo came in my life, not for keeps but just
for review. But since this my life has changed, and I actually finally enjoy
going to the shops rather then stressing and hanging by a string with the
Strider not knowing if it will fall apart under my daughters butt.
The
lovely Sophie from Bugaboo stopped on by my house on a Friday to drop the
Bugaboo Chameleon3 off for trial and review and also gave me a little
demonstration. Where she also asked if I would like to try out the Bee… Which planted a little seed
in my brain and created the idea for an article. This idea was to put these two
prams to the test and compare the two with PROS and CONS and putting it all on
the table to weigh up which one I would love to have as a pram.
So
the first pram I will put under the microscope was the:
Bugaboo BEE
$899
I felt like a little girl again with her baby dolls with this
pram, and in the isles of the shop I was so tempted to “buzz” around.
The steering is absolutely amazing and you can literally steer
with ease with just the one hand.
I was given the Bee in Cream/ off white for review but not to
sure that is the colour I would use as my kids got older. But that is the fun
thing with the Bee. If you get bored of the colour you can easily go in a
change up the canopy colour to a huge array of colours. Which also means as
your family goes on, and you have girls or boys the pram can easily match.
The handle can easily be raised with the flick of two buttons,
so this pram is great for tall or shorter people.
Buttttt my favourite thing by far would have to be the almost
one touch collapse system. All you need to do is hold in one little button,
push up the levers on each side and the pram does the rest of the work for you.
I remember the first time doing this, I had to almost pick my jaw off the
ground… This was nothing like any pram or stroller I had used.
The only thing, this Bugaboo Bee was more like a stroller for me
not an actually pram. But can easily go from newborn through to toddler as the
seat can sit right up or lay completely flat. The Bee also grows with your
child as you can pull both the backing and the bottom rest out and up, giving
the child room to grow and be comfortable.
It is super light-weight and takes no effort at all getting in and out
of the boot. This pram is known as a traveller’s pram as it
would be perfect for that travelling family and take up hardly any space.
Which is probably the reason why this pram would not be for this
family, we really like a bigger pram and this is very much on the small side.
Not to mention my partner and I seem to breed larger children with my youngest
daughter weighing in at almost 10 pound when she was born!
The next pram to be put to the test was the
Bugaboo
Chameleon3 $1399
A tear comes to my eye when thinking I could be pushing around
this pram instead of the shitty Strider I now call mine (excuse my language but
I just could not help myself, this thing gets me so angry.)
This pram is so easy to use and can be used in soooooo many
ways, which is where my love for this pram started to blossom.
The main reason for buying the Strider is so I could have my
daughter facing me or be around the other way to see the world. I will never, EVER forget the time my eldest
daughter almost choked on her own vomit, even turning blue in the pram. This is
why now, when I have a youngen in the pram I have them facing me at all times,
just in case! This pram can do that and
with so many more benefits, which I will explain down below.
Firstly if you like you can turn the seat around forward or
backward facing but just pushing in two button either side of the seat. Or if
you would like you can just flip the handle to the other side with the flick of
a button. This is also greta because means you are also switching the wheels
over. When you have the child facing you when changing the handle over it means
the big wheels are at the front, which is great for those rougher terrains
allowing the wheels to easily get over little rocks and bumps in the ground.
This mode is also known as park mode, as you can easily get around the park
with the big wheels at the front.
A cool bonus when buying a bugaboo you can easily jump online to
http://www.bugaboo.com/learn/bugaboo-cameleon and have a
look at their easy to watch and learn demonstrations on how to use and work the
pram online. I was watching them like my girls watch Mickey Mouse, ohhing and
ahhing with my eyes glued to the screen.
Now another thing this pram has that I was extremely
disappointed in with my Strider is a seat that can fully lay down, so your
child actually looks comfortable when falling asleep in the pram rather then
looking all curled up and squished. But the thing I LOVE about the Chameleon3
is the seat can also be sat upright, and I am talking right up properly like a
seat, which is something the Strider Plus4 NEVER could do and really frustrates
me as my children are older. So when my daughter jumped in for a ride she didn’t have to hold
herself up in a sitting position and could sit back and relax, while the
chameleon sat her up. It is also a much smoother ride then the other pram and
there is no need to worry about air in the tires as they are made from a type
of solid foam.
Another really nifty thing that will really come in handy when
going to QLD is the pram has a beach mode.. Where you pop the seat in and
collapse the pram up without the front wheels on, and you just basically drag
the pram along for an easy ride in the sand.
But for me the selling point would have to be the seat that can
also double as a feeding chair (genius and don’t know why all
pram companies don’t do this.)
You just take the chair off the pram and then you can easily sit
it on the ground like a mini highchair or rocker and then have the child down
with you on the picnic rug eating and watching away.
Just like its little sister the Bee you can also change the
colours up on the pram, so if you get sick and tired of the same old colours
you can just buy new ones rather then buying a whole new pram. I am in love
with this burnt orange shade that was sent to me though and could go with
either a little boy or girl and is very much a unisex colour. This pram also comes with a bassinet, where as
the Bee does not and your advised to buy like a cocoon and pop it in there for
the newbie babes.
It is so hard to pick which one I would love to have as a pram
as they both have their pro’s and cons and would be suitable for
different families. But after a really long debate with my partner we decided
that if we were to pick one of these prams we would certainly go with the
Chameleon3. For me this is the pram I only dreamt of, and am kicking myself now
I spend so much money on a Strider Plus4 two years ago, only to have it fall
apart under my family.. So much for spending more money on a pram that was
meant to last our whole family through… and we are only half way GRRR!
To give a little Daddies touch to the review, the reason why my
partner like this pram is he found it was much easier to steer being over 6
foot. And found if he took a corner a little fast in the Bee he would almost
tip the pram (rev head much?)
He also like the different ways he could use this pram and how
easy it was to work it. So for him not too much thought had to go into picking
the Chameleon3 over the Bee.
I wonder if Bugaboo would notice if I sent the Strider back
instead of the Chameleon3 hahah. Of course they would because theirs is all
quality where as the Strider is all arse!!
