Hellobee

Following on the heels of my last budget gear post, here’s a review of the stroller we just got Scribble a few days ago: The First Years Ignite!

Warning! Ancient iphone pics ahead!

When we started looking to upgrade from our Chicco Keyfit Caddy, my goal was to find a hybrid of a full-sized stroller and an umbrella stroller.  So far we don’t require anything more complex.  We use a stroller only when we are taking Scribble to a store without buggies or on daytrips.  For walks and when possible on daytrips, we babywear.  Plus, as he approaches walking, he is less interested in staying in a stroller for long periods of time.  And naps on the go are out of the question!  I needed a stroller that was lightweight enough that I could get it out of the car and set it up in a parking lot alone, that was small enough to maneuver in a cramped shop aisle, and that I could keep in our hatchback’s trunk at all times. I didn’t want to buy a smaller umbrella stroller in addition to a full-sized one, so I needed to find a hybrid that we could use in all situations.  I also needed some features that are usually reserved for full-sized strollers: a wide sunshade, a storage basket, and a parent cup holder.  I kept on running into positive reviews of the First Years Jet, which is a less expensive, more lightweight version of the Ignite, and considered buying it. But for less than ten dollars more, the Ignite offers some upgrades that seemed really useful.  We’ve had our stroller for a few weeks and have already exposed it to the most grueling test of all: walking the golf course! Here are my impressions.

Handling: The stroller rides pretty well.  Unlike the Jet, the Ignite offers front wheel locks, which means it handles rough terrain better than its sibling.  I found that it did great on pavement, well on gravel, but poorly through tall grasses in the rough. It was fine on the fairway though!  If walking the golf course were something we did frequently, this wouldn’t be the stroller for the job, but it will come through in a pinch.

Construction: The Ignite seems to be constructed very well.  It is weight rated for up to fifty pounds, although I think by that time a child would be too tall to comfortably sit in the stroller.  There is an additional metal cross of support behind the seat; this feature is not present on the Jet.  The material seems tough and easily washable/wipeable.  The wheels do look a little wimpy, but time will tell if this is an issue.

Design: The Ignite features a wide sunshade that can be lowered for younger babies, which is a great feature. It also offers a recline feature, although the recline is pretty limited.  The stroller has a very secure five point harness, which I appreciate.  It does have a cloth parent console with a cup holder and a zip pocket. The cup holder tends to jostle on bumpy surfaces, but is otherwise fine. The Ignite does not have a cupholder or snack tray for the child. I don’t see this as a minus yet because we are still trying to avoid giving Scribble snacks as a method of entertainment (I’m sure that will come eventually!), plus one can buy little snap-on snack pods or simply give one’s child a baggie of snacks to reach in and grab. The under-stroller storage area is pretty small, especially in comparison with the large storage area I was used to in my Keyfit Caddy.  But the size is acceptable for a small purse or a diaper bag with only the essentials.  The most annoying thing about the storage area is that the back support X prevents me from easily taking items out of it!

The stroller is reasonably attractive. We got the Black Stripes model, although I prefer the City Chic model, which is pure black.  However, at the time we purchased it, the City Chic was a few dollars extra, which put the overall cost of the stroller more in line with other more premium umbrella strollers, like the Chicco Capri. I wasn’t willing to pay extra for a special color when I could pay a little more for a more luxe stroller altogether! I was nervous that the red piping would look garish, but so far I like it! Plus where we live, red and black is a popular color combination here since they are the team colors of our college and local high school too! Taking Scribble to games is a must this fall and this stroller will be perfect for that. This week the City Chic model is the same price as the others, so now is a good time to buy!

Use: The stroller is easy to set up, but the latch that breaks the stroller down is a little hard to unclasp with a bare foot or one in sandals.  A silly thing to mention, but in Georgia we wear flip flops nine months out of the year! I wouldn’t say it is easy to set up or break down the stroller with one hand, but it is possible to do so.  It is 14 pounds: 3 pounds heavier than the Chicco Capri and the Keyfit Caddy. I was surprised that the stroller feels heavy to me; this might be because my last stroller had a handle, which made it easy to carry around. This one doesn’t, so it seems a little more unwieldy and therefore its weight is more annoying.  But it is certainly not heavy by any stretch!

I think it would be possible to kick the wheels if I were in a full stride while using this stroller, but so far it hasn’t been a problem, and our whole family is a little on the short side, so it isn’t something I worry about!

Overall, I’m very pleased with this stroller, and I think it will be our only stroller purchase for Scribble, assuming our lifestyle doesn’t change dramatically.  We hope to have another baby eventually, and would prefer to save the money for a double stroller at that time.  Even then, this stroller would be a truly useful backup to have in instances when you are out with only one child, or one child wants to walk and the other to stroll, or one is being worn, etc.  I could see myself wearing an infant while strolling a child in this for sure!

In my last budget post I mentioned how much I loved my Chicco stroller frame.  That being said, if I had to do it all over again, I probably would have purchased the Chicco Liteway Plus from the very beginning.  For $179, you get a sturdy umbrella stroller to which you may attach an infant car seat, then continue to use after. The Liteway Plus is slightly more expensive than the Chicco stroller frame plus the Ignite, but would have offered a few benefits, like a viewing panel on the sunshade, better seat recline, and supposedly one-handed folding, although without having the Chicco here to review I can’t speak to the veracity of that claim!

What type of umbrella stroller do you have? Do you find that you use it more frequently than a full-sized stroller? When do you find that you need a more heavy-duty stroller?