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Silver Cross 3d Pram System Cargo
by PaigeTurner
The huge benefit of buying the Silver Cross 3D Travel System is that in one fail swoop you can purchase a pram, pushchair and car seat combination which will see you through until your baby is of toddler age or weighing 15kg. (You will have to buy a new car seat when your baby is around six months old as the seat provided is not suitable ... for babies weighing over 9kg and will prove inappropriate once your baby can sit up due to its reclining position.
I would admit however that there are other travel systems on the market and in hindsight they may have required closer examination for their own pros and cons before I went ahead and purchased the Silver Cross version.
I was adament I wanted a Silver Cross pram because of the brand's long-standing reputation and for sentimental reasons as my own mother had a Silver Cross pram for myself and my brother.
The Silver Cross brand has moved on significantly in its style since the days when me and my brother were babies and the Silver Cross 3D pram is far removed from the big prams we associate with decades past. The brand has also recognised the need for money and space saving for parents these days by buying into the idea of a travel system.
And at a cost of £300 for the three main items along with a waterproof rain cover, a foot muff, parasol and nappy bag thrown in it is a canny buy.
At first putting the pram and later the pushchair together is a daunting task but once you learn the process it turns out to be only a few simple moves to put them up and down. In the same way it appears a complex process putting the car seat securely in the car but this too becomes far simpler after a few gos.
The pushchair folds down easily to store or put in a car boot for travel but you will need to check the width of your boot as the pushchair is too long for car boots on the smaller side.
The whole of the travel system components are significantly more bulky and heavy than others available. This works in its favour in terms of durability but the pushchair for instance can prove bulky to manipulate into and around shops and up and down steps as well as lifting into cars, while the car seat is a considerable weight even before the baby is in it.
The pushchair would not be suitable for any parent who would like a backwards facing pushchair which enables them to look at their baby as they walk as this pushchair does not have this facility, but this is not necessarily a negative as it is down to personal preferance.
In terms of appearance the Silver Cross pram and pushchair stand out as different to the others on the market as they are far more sturdy and retain a certain traditional aspect. I would say the pram is more visually appealing then the pushchair when compared to others available.
The huge downside would be when attaching the car seat to the pram base to allow you to transport your baby. The car seat does not visually fit very well onto the pram base whilst with other brands the car seat sits on very snuggly and looks like a complete unit. In the Silver Cross version it looks more make-shift like you literally have just put the car seat on the pram base to make do. You could not happily spend a whole shopping trip with the car seat attached to the pram base. It is securely fitted and perfectly safe but the pram base sticks out too far on either side of the car seat and this also seems to effect the maneouvability of the pushchair while it is on.
If you are thinking you will rely on using the car seat a lot to take your baby around do not select the Silver Cross travel system. Similarly if you are looking for a light weight travel system do not purchase Silver Cross. But if you are a traditionalist who wants something sturdy and hard wearing and slightly different to the slim, ultra modern varieties of travel system on the market, buy Silver Cross.
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Graco Mosaic
by kellface
A pram or pushchair is one of the biggest and most important buys when it comes to having children. You want something affordable but reliable, not so cheap that the wheels fall off after a few miles, but then not so expensive you need to take a bank loan out for. It's one of the most important things you buy as your going to be using ... it pretty much every day for at least a year, depending on how long you can make it last, believe me I know people who've had more prams than hot dinners.
I spent at least a few weeks shopping around trying out various prams, travel systems, pushchairs to be honest it was quite overwhelming there really is too much to choose from. After talking to friends and family, I finally decided I wanted a Graco Travel system, they are a well known brand and I was after an all in one system that would suit me from the birth of Freya up until she was a toddler hopefully. Then it was just down to what style I wanted, I shopped around online and came across the Graco Mosaic on Tesco Direct, I thought to myself I could use some of my clubcard vouchers and earn a shed load of points for buying it from them, so I did.
The Graco Mosaic was just shy of £225 on the Tesco Direct website, I had £30 of unused Clubcard vouchers so it cost me just under £200 in the end which I thought was a bargain, looking online today it seems I could have bought it for a hell of a lot cheaper, but hey ho.
Assembly of the travel system was quick and simple, it arrived all neatly boxed up from Tesco Direct, all we had to do was click a few parts together, stick on the wheels and it was done. The travel system was just as described and looked lovely when it was put together, it's quite a compact system when it's all put together. The only difference from the picture on Tesco Direct was that ours had a star pattern on part of the car seat/baby carrier and on the inside of the hood on the pushchair.
The Graco Travel system is suitable from birth up until your little one isn't so little anymore at around 15kg, by which time they will probably be walking and won't want to sit in a push chair. The travel system itself weighs around 10kg so it is very lightweight which is down to it's aluminium frame, it is one of the easiest prams I have picked up and packed away.
Folding the travel system up and away couldn't be easier, its a 1 hand fold you simply pull and twist the handle at the rear of the pram, pull a white ring and fold down. It folds away like an umbrella and a lock clicks into place at the side of the pram enabling you to lift it up and put it away without it opening up again. It fits neatly into most boots leaving plenty of room for shopping and other baby stuff. The only downside to the pram is you need to remove raincovers and such before folding the pram away as with a rain cover on it doesn't lock into place on closing, meaning that it could re open whilst your picking it up or you could trap your fingers. When your putting the travel system back up, you simply unclip the lock at the side pull up the handles and place your hand/foot on the back clip and push down which locks the pram into place and off you go.
The car seat is just as simple to attach and remove from the travel system, just one click and it is attached to the pram itself, to remove it you simply pull underneath the car seat on the red handle and it comes undone from the travel system. There is a removeable head rest inside the car seat and you can adjust the seatbelts on the inside of it to coincide with your growing baby. Fixing the car seat into your car is another simple task, the cars seatbelt goes securely across your little ones lap and around the back of the seat in-between the safety latches and clicks into the cars seat belt holder. The car seat handle can be adjusted by pressing onto the red buttons on either side and then pulling the handle forward or backwards depending on where you want it. There is also a hood on the car seat to keep your little one shaded from the sun.
The Graco travel system has a storage net/basket underneath which snuggly fits in Freya's bag which has all of her nappies and bottles in, plus a little bit of shopping but it's certainly not going to fit your weekly shop underneath it.
I have yet to use the actual pram part - i.e have Freya sat up in the actual seat, as she is too small at the moment so she still sits in the car seat when we're out and about but I'm guessing that it is still going to be just as simple and easy to use as everything else on the travel system.
One of the most important parts I should probably talk about is moving the travel system around. Well it is pretty effortless really, because of its lightweight frame it is quick and easy to move around with it. The front wheels have clips to enable you to have "4 wheel drive" which enables you to push the pram around like a rally driver! It's brilliant. The brakes click on and off quickly and smoothly by simply pressing the button down with your foot. Last but no means least the travel system comes with a sun hood which has a viewing window on the back of it to see your little one through, it also has a pocket which is good for keeping dummies safe or popping in your mobile phone.
Yet another mammoth review from me it seems but there really was a lot to talk about when it comes to the Graco Travel system. I'd give it 5/5 it's an absolutely flawless system and I'd recommend any mum to invest in a Graco product to suit you, it's a well known and trusted brand which hasn't faulted me yet. We walk at least a mile or so each day and the wheels are still in brilliant condition. You get a lot for your money, and accessories are easy to buy - like footmuffs, rain covers etc. Overall it is an amazing travel system which I will never regret buying.
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