Customer Reviews

Fisher Price Cradle n Swing, My Little Lamb

5 star:		(148)
4 star:		(86)
3 star:		(32)
2 star:		(25)
1 star:		(31)

 

 

I was looking through the Fisher Price Cradle n Swing products, and decided on the My Little Lamb "color." I didn't realize that it didn't come with an AC adapter or jack for one. Well, I guess that is my fault. It takes D batteries, and it seems to run forever on them. We have had it running for approximately eighteen hours a day for two weeks, and it is still running well.

The swing and the mobile are both very loud. The mechanics inside the device click and grind, and you can hear them from the other end of the house. I have to max out the music volume just to hear it over the machine. We don't even use the music often, because the swing is so noisy.

Our daughter is only six weeks old and weighs just under ten pounds. Even on the first speed setting, she weighs so little that the swing goes super fast. It looks like an amusement part ride, and she gets scared and cries. We put a blanket over her that reaches down and touches the flood. The added weight of this blanket and the floor contact help keep the swing at a comfortable speed. She'll enjoy the swing and the mobile, and she'll eventually fall asleep happy. She doesn't seem to mind the grinding sound, but we do.

This swing takes up quite a bit of floor space. This is for stability, but it is good to know that it is just over four feet wide and just over three feet deep, once it is set up. The legs collapse to allow you to move it around. That is a real nice feature, because we move it to the living room and the bedroom every day. The swing isn't too heavy; My wife moves it without complaint.

Overall, I say it is average. The swing's footprint can't be helped, because it is for safety. The loud mechanics need to be improved, and a jack for an AC adapter needs to be wired in. The style is nice, the controls are easy, blah blah blah. If it had those two improvements: mechanics and power, it would be an easy five stars. As it stands, I give it three out of five for being useful but average.

Some reviews have complained about the motor noise; we've found it's only noisy if you try to start the swing moving yourself. You have to turn on the swing with the swing standing still or the motor will be fighting the incorrectly timed motion you started.

My noise complaint comes from the frame and case. With our 13 lb. baby in the swing it frequently squeaks, loudly, as the frame flexes from the motion of the swing. If I go re-position the legs the noise stops, but soon returns. It's also noisier on hard floors, as the feet on one corner or the other tend to raise up when the swing is on one side, then tap the floor when it swings to the other. It has yet to wake our son, but it is extremely annoying when it happens.

Other than the aforementioned frame-noise, we've been very happy with the swing, and the changeable swing direction is fantastic.

We originally had the graco sweetpeace swing which was the worst purchase EVER. We went through 4 of them before I was like that's it! I decided to pick this up and I am glad I did!! My daughter is 10 months and still fits in it but we put it away for the next baby. But this was the best, it's so soft..the motions are so soothing. It's an overall really good product. I'm sad to hear that other reviewers had a bad experience but everyone I know has this swing with no issues. Fisher price has one of the best customer service I have ever seen so they will exchange out for a new one asap. I highly recommend this to new parents- you won't be sorry!

This swing was fairly effective, but the Fisher-Price My Little Snugabunny Cradle 'n Swing is better in every possible way (except it is slightly more expensive). Here are all the ways the Little Lamb is worse:
1. The swing is noisy and wakes the baby up - Snugabunny is much quieter
2. Even the lowest setting swings extremely fast, whereas the Snugabunny's lowest setting is much more reasonable
3. Turning the swing off makes a "click" sounds that wakes the baby up, which is not the case for the Snugabunny
4. Only runs on batteries, which need replacing at least once a month - the Snugabunny has an AC adapter option
5. The head rest is thick and leaves a dent on the back of the baby's head, but the Snugabunny is much thinner
6. Doesn't seem as sturdy - for example, the mobile broke after a short time and the swing got louder over time
7. Only has a waist restraint, which I've heard of babies flipping out of, but the Snugabunny has an optional 5-point harness

The only reason this gets any stars at all, is that my baby will sleep in this swing. He enjoys watching himself in the mirrored mobile as well.

However, I have several problems with this item that I think parents should know before they purchase it:
1.) It eats batteries. There are very similar swings on the market that have a plug-in option. If like us, your baby sleeps best in the swing, you will want an option that plugs in. Several hour+ long naps and the batteries are dead.
2.) The motor is loud. I've compared our swing to our friends who also have this same model and they all are loud; it's not just those with a bad motor as I've read in some other reviews.
3.) The legs need to be constantly readjusted so that they stay on the ground when the swing is in motion. I was not confident in the quality of the swing's manufacturing when I frequently saw the legs of the swing coming off the ground as it was in motion.
4.) The activity tray is clumsy and difficult to open and close - we just took it off and never used it.
5.) Now about 3 months into having the swing we are encountering all kinds of squeaks, creaks and clicks when we use the swing... perhaps this is related to our son being heavier than when we first started using it.
6.) Now that my son is 3 1/2 months old (in 50th percentile for weight and height), he has basically outgrown the swing's lap belt - on one side! The strap that goes over one of his legs is longer than the strap that goes over the other leg. We would have hoped to get another month or two use of the swing before he was able to sit up and it would become too dangerous for him to use.

Bottomline, there are much better swings available in the same price range, and I wish we hadn't purchased this one.

This was given to us by a relative who had used it for their daughter. Even though their daughter had grown out of it by 6 months, they did have great luck with it and told me I had to give it a try. Boy am I glad I did!!

My daughter only slept 7 to 8 hours a day for the entire first month of her life because of reflux. We were on the verge of going insane. Then we had this thing, and ALL THAT CHANGED! The gentle rocking helped her to go to sleep and stay asleep. When I watch her, I realize that the swing makes it impossible for her to stay focused on any object, so her eyelids just get tired and slowly shuts!! When she wakes up from reflux pains (or any other small discomfort), the swing is also able to rock her back to sleep! Now she has gotten a lot more sleep, her reflux has gotten so much better as well!! We used this item for all her day time naps and most of her night time naps from the time she was 1 month to 2 months. She is 2.5 months now and we are weaning her off of it a bit so she doesn't develop a crutch, and she seems to be ready for the transition, which pleasantly surprised me. Now we use it for about half of her daily sleep.

With that being said, let me explain the ins and outs of this swing based on my personal experience:

This swing can withstand heavy usage - we work it day and night, and so far it still looks like new and works the same as when we got it. It is easy to use and assemble - we got it used without instructions and we put it together no problems. Also, the manual is available on line if you really need it. It takes 4 size D batteries, and has no AC adapter option. With brand new Duracell Coppertop D batteries, the swing lasted a month and a half of heavy use.

AS FAR AS PEOPLE'S COMPLAINS ABOUT THE NOISES, HERE'S WHAT I'VE FOUND THAT HELPS:

There're two types of noises coming out of this swing, one is the motor noise, which can't be eliminated, the other is the squeaky or tapping noise coming out of the legs, which can be avoided. The motor noise can be minized by turning on the swing before you start pushing it as someone else had previously mentioned. Still, this noise is quite annoying to me - I can't sleep with it. But it seems to put the baby right to sleep! Now the leg noise. I find that the legs need to be spread apart ALMOST as far as they would go. This ensures stability and stops the legs from coming off the floor. If your swing's legs are coming off the floor when the swing is in motion, SPREAD THE LEGS FURTHER APART! The other thing that causes this noise is uneven floors or having one leg on carpet and one on hardwood. You most likely won't have this noise at all if you use this swing on carpet.

Another great thing about this swing is that it's very easy to operate. The swing has a dial which controls on, off and 6 different speeds, a switch to turn on the mobile, and another slider for the music and sounds. In my opinion, the "6 speeds" is somewhat a false advertisement. All 6 speeds are quite similar, and the fastest speed seems to be quite wearing on the batteries. I also don't see anyone ever needing a higher speed than the slowest - it's plenty fast enough. The songs and sounds don't do anything for my baby. The mobile captivates her - she likes staring at them from time to time. This swing has two positions, one in a reclined seating position, which is GREAT for reflux babies, the other is a flat position designed for sleeping. The swing is advertised as swinging in 3 ways, when assembled the seat swings left and right, but you can also turn the seat basket to the left or to the right, which swings the baby similar to if you were rocking her in your arms. Turning left or right gives you the same type of swinging really, just a different scenary for the baby. Do be careful with this type of swinging - when the baby is in the flat position, the swing swooshes the baby up so much that her head is a bit lower than her feet, which can cause spit-up.

This swing is very stable. When correctly assemebled, I don't see the swing having any possibility of falling over. I also appreciate the two-leg design. It allows you to step very close to the swing without the possibility of tripping over one of the legs - great for clutzes like myself. I also love how the swing looks. The material is very soft and I'm sure comfortable - or my baby wouldn't fall asleep so quick in it. When you place your baby in the swing, it looks like she has big lamby ears - absolutely adorable! I also like the size of the swing. It can be fit through standard doorframes without taking anything apart. It's light enough that even I can move it, albeit a bit clumsily. The swing can be fit in an economoy vehicle by taking off the legs, which does not require any tools.

Pros:

Does a great job of what it's supposed to do, which to me is rock your baby to sleep
Looks totally adorable
Stable, high quality
Easy to move or transport

Cons:

No power adapter option - 4 D batteries only
When I put my baby in the swing, the animals from the mobile like to brush over her face which tends to wake her up
If you want to buckle your baby, you can't swaddle her

I had a Fisher Price Papasan swing with my daughter in 2008 and loved it, so when I learned I was expecting again in July 2011 - a Fisher Price swing was a must have. Not only did Amazon have an AMAZING deal on this swing, plus free shipping... (I got it for a good $80 less than retail stores in my area) I received it in perfect condition, and much sooner than I expected! It is very simple to assemble, and sturdy. I've seen my friend's Graco swings that make me nervous! This swing not only has a ton of settings and comfort features for my son. he loves it and always seems very comfortable. Fisher Price always seems to make the best products, the only thing I can think of that may need a change is the lowest speed setting for the swing still seems a bit fast for a newborn. While the baby is still small, we don't run the swinging option... just the mobile and sounds.

My wife and I purchased this swing after reading several reviews. We also compared swings in-person at brick-and-mortar stores like Buy-Buy-Baby and Babies 'R Us before purchasing this one. The "My Little Lamb" swing is a really nice looking and great feeling swing that operates well. The swing is extremely easy to setup (according to directions) for anyone who even knows what a screwdriver is; and they include the proper size allen-key wrench in the package!

Pros include: high-quality fit/finish (moreso than even other Fisher-Price models), great price-to-value ratio, soooooo cute for a boy or girl to use, relatively quiet operation (some mild startup noise as the motor and cam get the carrier swinging, but not very noticeable once in-motion), light weight and easy to move, efficient and long-lasting 4x D-cell battery operation, and overall happiness effect on children!

Cons (very few) include: relatively similar swing speeds ('slowest' setting is not really slow, it's sorta fast; 'fastest' setting is not super fast, it seems very similar to the 'slowest' setting! Although don't worry: your kid will not go flying out!), and no AC-adapter.

All-in-all, you will LOVE this swing for your child. Makes eating dinner an easier affair for both parents (or any task where you need to set the child down for a short bit and still want to observe/watch them). For the price it can't be beat. Spend a couple extra bucks compared to the cheaper swings, and let the good times roll (or swing) for your child!

Superman had Kryptonite and my baby has swings. This one is really a peach. Its motions are completely irresistible to even the grumpiest sleep-avoider. The music is nice. The materials are very soft to the touch and the color scheme is not achingly ugly. My girl is 2.5 months old and large (15 pounds) but she fits in this thing perfectly just now. I put this swing together in 15 minutes. No lie. It's 4 screws and an allen key (supplied) and otherwise snaps together. You'll need a cross-head screwdriver for the battery compartment. It's that easy. I had been putting off getting a swing because they are expensive and I felt my girl would outgrow it very quickly but I was not getting anything done trying to keep her occupied and I cracked, ran out and bought this. She's been sleeping sweetly now for over an hour and went to sleep the instant she was placed in this device. Worth every dime.

This review is for the new Little Lamb Cradle swing.We had a fisher price aquarium swing- motor burnt out- 2 free replacement motors sent by fisher price- both had something different wrong with them. Fisher price then sent full refund on that swing so we could get this new one. We are very pleased so far with this swing. Good battery life and you don't even have to turn on the moving mobile because it wiggles on its own when swinging so can save battery life there! The mirror in the globe entertains as well with no battery usage needed! The music is beautiful and I love to listen to it myself! Swing is strong and sturdy...it has no trouble swinging my 18 lb 7 month old baby girl and that's not even on the highest speed yet!! The seat is comfortable and well padded- very plush and soft to the touch. The toys are a little bland- not colorful so we just added some of our own colorful toys for our baby to play with...easy! Tray comes on and off easily...seatbelt can easily accomodate chubby tummies...we also like that the seat can lay way back for tiny newborns and sleeping babies or sit up really well for older babies who want to play. We really love this swing and our little princess does too! This swing is going to outsell every other one because it is soooo nice.