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2nd Trimester
Need help. Stokke Xplory vs. UppaBaby Vista vs. Bugaboo Cameleon
Hi there. We are currently torn between these three strollers, and I'm wondering why you might choose one over the others.
What we like:
Stokke: Design, easy to fold up, solid construction, look
UppaBaby: Design, steering, easy to fold up, look, bottom basket, ability to add car seat converter for first ~6 months, ability to add parts for potential second child.
Bugaboo: Design, steering (best option by far), bottom basket, ability to add car seat converter, parts for second child, ability to "off road" in it.
The biggest drawback to the Bugaboo is that you have to take the seat out to fold it down. I will be using it to walk into town and around my neighborhood a lot, but we will also be taking it in and out of the car often. Is this a deal-breaker?
Would love to hear any and all thoughts!
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Re: Need help. Stokke Xplory vs. UppaBaby Vista vs. Bugaboo Cameleon
i don't have any of them, sooo, my advice is fairly limited, but i do have friends who have both the uppa baby and bugaboo and love them. IMO, i would opt for one with a carseat adapter, i say this because my DD loved her carseat, and whenever we took her out and about, she'd fall asleep instantly. It was so nice to just take the car seat in and out and place it on the stroller. Also, i've seen the Stokke's and the basket in the bottom is tiny. When i went shopping with LO, i would put blankets, toys, sometimes shopping bag in the basket, so the basket was important to me as well.
We are having a second LO, and i did look at the uppa baby vista for the rumble seat (second seat). It doesn't face out, which i think would bug my DD, so that was the only reason why i wouldn't use it for the second child. I would just choose a stroller that would have a high resale value, rather than choose one that would hold a second child. You could just sell whatever stroller you have and get one that would fit your needs later.
We have a Bugaboo Cameleon and love it. Although I would also prefer it to be a one piece, I don't think it is a deal breaker. I think that the advantages outweigh that inconvenience (which is the worst at the airport after the baby is out of the carseat). I'd say if you had to go up and down stairs a lot with a stroller, I would suggest a one piece and a lighter stroller. For folding it up to get into a car, it takes like 10 seconds longer.
As DS got older, we also got a Bugaboo Bee off of eBay for the smaller size and portability. I love it too for different reasons, but probably won't use it for DD until she's older (like 2).
We got the Stokke 2011 off Craig's List. I don't have a baby yet, but I really like it. It is really easy to push and turn with one hand, and I like how it it good for tall people (like my husband) and shorter people (like me). However, my FAVORITE thing about it is its height- the baby/child can sit a lot higher, so for things like going to the zoo (where there are fences to see over), it seems a lot better. Also, it means that there is less bending over to get to the baby, which for tall people is much easier.
The bag at the bottom doesn't seem too small at all- but then again, I haven't really used it yet. Also, I tend to pack light, so I am not too concerned if it cannot take everything but the kitchen sink.
It is not tricky to fold/unfold, but it is a bit big. If you had a smaller car, it could easily take up most of the boot space. We won't be using it as our travel stroller- it's just too bulky. We will be using a Quinny Zapp for air travel (it fold up really, really small).
One of the nice folding features is the ability to fold the back two wheels in to make it a "two-wheeler" to go up and down stairs and on the beach (though, I haven't tried it on the beach yet). We are not too concerned about "off roading" because we will probably just use an Ergo pack for things like hiking.
I've always wanted a Bugaboo-it's really the only brand name anything I've thought about getting for the baby-but just couldn't swallow the prices. I then looked at every other stroller, but finally admitted-I really wanted the Bugaboo.
This past weekend, I got myself on Craigslist and found a Frog in great condition for $200. It came with the bassinet, upright seat and carrying case. I know it's not the Cameleon, but I think they are darn close in design. You do have to take the seat off the frame to fold it up, but dh had it down in 3 minutes flat, and this was a guy who had never folded a stroller before. It's light and fits in our car very easily.
Anyhow, I'm in love. It's in the soon-to-be-nursery, and I still can't believe we actually have one. I don't think the seat removal is a big deal at all!
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I have the Bugaboo Cameleon and love it. But, I don't have a car (we live in city) so I can't speak to that. I have friends that do that, though, and they don't seem to complain about it. We live in the city and it is great for that lifestyle (basically walking everywhere and maneuvering curbs/sidewalks/people). Also, the infant bassinet is awesome.
By parts for a second child, do you mean the buggy board? DS will be a bit over 2 when baby arrives, and I still think he is too young for the buggy board. I think it would be a nightmare getting anywhere b/c he would be hopping off all the time! Just a thought...
I am considering getting the Bugaboo Donkey (the double) but might just keep the Cameleon and see if the new baby likes being carried in an Ergo/Moby for awhile until ds is old enough for the board instead. DS hated all the carriers, though, so not holding my breath! Anyway, my vote is for the Bug Cameleon.
We have the Bugaboo Cameleon. We too live in the city and don't have a car, so folding wasn't a huge problem for us. I thought I would like the bassinet for my first baby, but she hated it. She preferred to be in the sling.
I liked using the car seat adapter on the bugaboo though when we did travel- that was very helpful.
Later on we bought a City Mini which was great and also a cheap umbrella stroller. I have since sold the City Mini even though it was a great stroller- just didn't feel like having 3 strollers in our small place.
If I had to buy a stroller, I wouldn't immediately go for the bugaboo. I would research all the options especially because it is quite an investment. It's true the steering is awesome, the ride is super smooth because of the shocks and the front/rear facing option is great. I would like a better sun shade on it (especially in bassinet form)- as well as better folding options, but if these don't matter so much to you, then the bugaboo is great.
dx: LPD & low progesterone 11/2011
BFP #1 August 23
We just bought our Stokke Xplory and absolutely love it. Baby hasn't come yet but we've set it up and pushed it around and practiced folding it up and taking it apart and it works like a dream.
We were comparing the Stokke, iCandy Peach and Bugaboo Cameleon. Hubby didn't like that the bug used the same frame for both carrycot and seat and thought velcroing the seats on the frame cheapened it. We also found with both the iCandy and bug the carrycot felt a bit unstable if you wobbled it where the Stokke stayed in place.
I love the fact that the baby is so close to you and that it can be used as a high chair. We don't even have the baby yet and have already gotten so many comments on it from friends.
Its definitely an eye catcher. I also love that an older child can ride on a skateboard at the back.
If you can afford it, I definitely recommend it!
here is a comparison chart i found, comparing the vista (which i plan on getting) and cameleon. https://site.pishposhbaby.com/blog/2012/08/14/uppababy-vista-vs-bugaboo-cameleon-vs-baby-jogger-city-select/
i hate the stokke look. it looks like the stroller will fall over
Stokke: I have a friend who has one. She doesn't put it in the car any more, just uses an umbrella stroller if she uses a stroller. It's a PITA to fold and put in the car. It has no suspension so if you do any walking anywhere but on a paved sidewalk or the mall it's really bumpy. The bassinet feature is not very big and quickly out grown. I also think that the seat has to come off if it's in the parent facing position to fold.
UppaBaby: I no experience with this, the only thing I can say is it looks a bit cheap to me.
Bugaboo: I love that the bassinet and the toddler seat are on the same frame, less space taken up. Steering is great, car seat converter is good, love the way it handles cobblestones etc. It's not AMAZING in the woods but much better than the Stokke. Taking the seat off for me wasn't a big deal at all and I *think* that the Cameleon 3 is coming out soon with a new fold, I think it'll be more like the donkeys fold which doesn't require the seat to be removed.
I did read a review that stated that the stroller wasn't super stable because of the high hight of the baby.
Believe it or not, my husband and I have both the Uppa and the Xplory. Each has its uses. My husband and I work both work pretty long hours, so when we're home and with the baby, we really want to be with the baby. For that reason, we love the Xplory. Even when taking care of a simple errand, such as running to the pharmacy, we like to have the baby up high so that we can chat, sing songs, and generally look ridiculous to anyone watching us on the street. Also, we go out to eat a lot, and the Xplory is great in restaurants. We just lower the seat and pull it right up to the table. We did get extra stroller hooks so that we could hang shopping bags. For our needs, I give it a solid A.
I don't find it difficult to fold, but we rarely fold it. I think I'd find it a pain if I had to fold it frequently. Also, it's huge even when folded. We rarely use a car, but when we do, we often take the Uppa. The Uppa is still actually quite high and allows us to be similarly interactive with the baby. It has a fabulous basket, which we can just throw things into, and a wonderfully large sun shade (the Xplory's isn't nearly as good, and the umbrella gets in the way of the interaction). I'm pretty pleased with the Uppa as well, and if we didn't have the Xplory, would happily use it as our every day stroller, also giving it an A.
Comparing these strollers are like comparing BMWs to Lexuses. At the end of the day, they're all fine. The baby's happy in both. The most important thing is probably to make sure that it suits your needs. If we lived somewhere we had to drive more frequently, we'd probably have neither of these strollers. We'd probably have a G2 or else something that's more compact. Also, my husband and I both enjoy our work and both work. If I didn't have the income but perhaps had more time to spend with my child, I'd probably not worry about using walking time as bonding time. If I couldn't comfortably afford it, I certainly wouldn't stretch to buy a pricey stroller. There are so many more important things that are far more worthwhile, such as not having to go into debt in order to pay for college. I'd save on the stroller and give the kid the money to help pay tuition.
All three of those were on my list when I got my single, I actually went with the Orbit G2. I absolutely love it! The spinning seat is the best. I am in and out of my car a few times a day, taking the seat off takes 2 seconds, not a big deal at all, especially in the beginning when you are using the infant car seat on the stroller anyway.
In the end, I was between the Stokke and Orbit (they hadn't changed the Bugaboo yet and it was still a 20 step close) and the Orbit is much easier to open and close. Also, because of the spinning seat, we use it as a high chair in restaurants. It's also so much easier to have a spinning car seat (we have the Orbit car seats as well).
Seriously, go look at the Orbit, I really, really love it. The only reason I'm not getting the Orbit double is because I want a side to side, I'll probably get the Bugaboo Donkey.