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98 of 98 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Quiet, comfortable, and efficient, June 7, 2009
This review is from: Philips Avent BPA Free ISIS iQ Duo Twin Electric Breast Pump, White (Baby Product)
I had a Medela Pump In Style Original that I used for about 3 months before it suddenly seemed to lose suction/power and I could no longer pump as easily as I once had. I was already pleased with all the Avent products I had - bottles, pacifiers, the microwave steam sterilizer, and the bottle warmer - the Avent breast pump seemed to get good reviews and I liked the idea of pumping straight into the feeding bottles, so I took the plunge. It *is* a lot of money, but so is any other dual electronic breast pump. I only wish now that I had bought this one first so I wouldn't have wasted money on the Medela.
I've been using this pump for two weeks now and I just hope it's lifespan is longer than the Medela because I absolutely LOVE this pump!
*** UPDATE *** It is now March 1, 2010. I've been using the Avent pump for nine months now and I still love it just as much as I did when I first got it. The connection between the hose and the pump motor housing is the only thing that has worn out - it's a little plug like a telephone jack and the little tab broke off. It still works, but I can see the potential for it to come loose during a pumping session so I plan on ordering a replacement before it actually becomes a problem. Based on others' comments, I know I have to order it straight from Philips and it can take a while. But other than that, it still works great, it's still in great condition, I haven't needed to fix or replace anything else, and I still LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT!
Compared to the Medela PiS the Avent Isis Duo is:
Quiet
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The Medela was like a piston engine. One of the ways I new it was losing power was because it was no longer as noisy as it used to be. The Avent pump is MUCH quieter. If I wanted to, I could probably pump right in my cubicle and no one would be the wiser.
Comfortable
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Again, the Medela was like a piston engine. I felt like a cow hooked up to an automatic milking machine and it certainly didn't feel like my baby nursing. All the suction was concentrated on the nipples, not the areolae and, while not necessarily painful, it wasn't comfortable. It was supposed to have the two-phase suction that simulated the early, light sucking that stimulates letdown, followed by the deep, nutritive sucking, but I can't say I ever noticed a change in the suction or the rate. Sure, you could adjust the speed and intensity of the suction, but only to five specific presets.
The Avent, however, has the cushions that "massage" the areolae and I think this really does help with letdown and subsequent flow. If you know anything about proper latch-on, you know that baby is supposed to get the areola in his mouth, not just the nipple, so the Avent is much closer to nature in that respect. Plus, the intensity and duration of the suction are completely customizable and can be reset at any time. So you can really mimic the quick, soft letdown sucking before moving on to the long, deep sucking. I've gone entire pumping sessions without really feeling the suction, which is just like nursing - it doesn't generally feel like the baby is trying to tear your nipple off, but that's what the Medela felt like!
Efficient
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So Medela only had the preset speed and suction options and no matter what setting you chose, the suck part of the pump was the same duration as the release. But because you can completely control the rate of the Avent pump, you can do a very long pull (the instructions even say to depress the handle that creates the vacuum and hold it there for 3 seconds). The first time I tried this, I was amazed! The milk poured forth, a steady stream for the whole 3 seconds! It was really satisfying to hear the plop of all that milk fall into the bottle over and over again. I can finish a pumping session in much less time than I ever could with Medela. Also, because you can reset the rate at any time, you can restimulate letdown or change to a longer pause between pulls as you get to the end. With the Medela, I used to be able to still hand-express milk after the pump had long since stopped producing any, but I seem to get every last drop with the Avent pump!
Other things to keep in mind:
- The Avent funnels have more parts to disassemble, clean, and reassemble than the Medela funnels. Factoring in cleaning and assembly, while the actual pumping takes less time, my pumping sessions are overall the same amount of time from start to finish as they were with the Medela PiS.
- The Avent funnels are easier to clean by hand. When I'm at work, I use sterilizing wipes between sessions and I can actually reach all the places milk touches with my fingers. I couldn't do this with the Medela funnels.
- The Avent pump isn't integrated into the bag and it's cord is longer. This makes it a little more portable.
- The Avent tubes are stiffer than the Medela tubes. Be sure to use the bottle stands or those tubes will pull them right over.
- Avent includes funnel covers and screw bases that seal up the funnels between uses to keep them sterile. BIG plus over Medela in my book.
- The trigger and button for adjusting suction and speed are right at your fingertips instead of on the pump housing. With Medela, when you were double pumping you had to start the pump with one hand and then try to position that funnel over the breast while it was sucking, and you also had to try to break suction while the pump was still going and both hands were full - not easy!
- The included Avent manual pump is FAR superior to the manual pump included with Medela PiS.
All in all, if you're considering Medela, do yourself a favor and get this Avent pump instead! Your breasts will thank you!
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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Easy to use, February 2, 2009
This review is from: Philips Avent BPA Free ISIS iQ Duo Twin Electric Breast Pump, White (Baby Product)
I read a lot of reviews before buying a breast pump. Many people complained about how hard it was to figure out how to set up this breast pump. There are a couple of things to connect, but the shapes of the connections make it obvious what goes where. I didn't even read the instructions - just looked at the pictures. The pump works great!
It was uncomfortable at first, but you can adjust the pumping speed and pressure easily and figure out what is most comfortable for you. If I have the pump push as far down as it can go, it hurts, so I just don't do that. I love being able to stop and adjust the pumping after a few minutes so that I can get every last drop of milk out. All you do is pump manually and then push a botton, placed right on top of the pump handle and the motor takes over for you. Push that button again to stop it.
Cleaning is quick and easy. It's a closed system, so you never ever need to clean the tubing. I wash all of the pieces in the dishwasher.
I haven't figured out how to pump and have both of my hands free at the same time. But it's nice to have the pump running on automatic while I read.
The bag is compact, there's a place for everything, it's easy to travel with and it looks like you're carrying a big purse.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
awesome pump, don't know what i'll do w/o it, December 18, 2009
This review is from: Philips Avent BPA Free ISIS iQ Duo Twin Electric Breast Pump, White (Baby Product)
these pumps are great. as a first time mom, i didn't know what to buy. i used the medela pump at the hospital and the first week when i took my newborn home, but wasn't too crazy about it. i read a bunch of reviews and decided to give avent a try. i'm so glad i bought these. my baby couldn't latch on properly, and i ended up pumping exclusively, so a good set of pumps is really important. i prefer avent b/c:
1. the hand controller lets you pump at ANY speed you choose
2. they're really comfortable (w/ the medela, i was getting sharp pains)
3. the motor is quiet
4. the motor still works great (i pump four times a day, 20-30min each session, for about 5 months now).
5. the suction doesn't touch the milk directly, so breast milk won't get into the tubes
6. the bag is designed to hold all the parts (motor, cord, adapter while you pump, so it's easy for working moms
7. comes with two 9-oz, two 4-oz bottles, four cold packs, and two insulators
8. the carrying bag is sleek, so you carry it to work and it just looks like a fancy computer bag.
the only thing that could be improved is that the power adapter is too big and heavy. would be great if avent can make it smaller and have the adapter fit right on the plug, so that it'll save an extra cable too. it's not a big deal if you leave everything in the bag while pumping, but if you want to take it out, then it is a bit bulky.
Update: Four months later...
I've been using these pumps for 9 months now and they still work great! Never failed on me once. The motor is not as quiet as before, but it is not loud either (i.e. if i pump downstairs, my baby and husband can't hear it from upstairs). One factor that i forgot to mention before is that you can simulate a "let-down", which is fantastic. Also, the suction is just right so that it doesn't hurt, but gets a lot of milk out. I didn't realize how important this is until I have to pump at work. I can get 6-7 oz. of milk in 15min. And to my point #8 above, I actually had a coworker walking up to me one day when i was going to the 'mother's room', she asked where i got my 'work bag' which looks really sleek. she had no idea what it was. i appreciate these pumps even more now, b/c they are efficient and discreet :)
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