Baby buggies

There's no shortage of choice

Making sure you pull away in the right buggy is an important decision for parents. There's a huge choice out there.

A pushchair does more or less what you would expect. It's a chair which you push, though it can come in many different variations.

Travel systems allow you to put different bits on the same set of wheels. So if your child falls asleep in the car seat, you just take the seat, put it on the wheels and push them around.

Strollers are the lightweight option of the buggy pack. They don't usually offer much in the way of padding but they do fold up easily.

Prams are the traditional means of transport for babies. They enable the child to lie flat but the pram is often large and can be unwieldy.

Three-wheelers have become increasingly popular. They look flash and are often best suited if you are doing a lot of walking on rough ground.

Whatever the product you are choosing you must check what age and weight the products are suitable for.

Put to the test

We gave our five mothers five buggies to road test and this is what they found.

Isobel Micallef tried out the sporty three-wheeler model, The Urban Detour from Mothercare.

Isobel said: "It's easy to manoeuvre up and down hills. My daughter loves it.

"She likes to sit up high and it's very spacious for her. But it is very heavy and I found it impossible to get up and down the stairs."

---

Liz Schindar tried the Teutonia, a new model from Britax - a pushchair with pushbike brakes.

Liz said: "I found it heavier than the one I have been using. It's sturdy and I felt it would be safe.

"The suspension is good. But, with a lot of steps and struggling with an umbrella, I felt it would be difficult to get around with. Generally too heavy."

---

Nicolette Sorba tried the Graco twin pushchair.

Nicolette said: "I really liked it. It's light and compact and narrow enough to get through doorways.

"It's got padding so I am pleased but I'm worried about whether it would fit into the boot of my car."

---

With a high proportion of car seats fitted incorrectly, Britax has come up with a solution: a permanent base which stays in the car and which the seat slips in and out of.

Elaine said: "I loved the car seat. It was very easy to take in and out.

"I wasn't so keen on the pushchair. I found it hard to manoeuvre and it looks a bit plasticy."

---

Whatever they look like most of our mothers found that the best pushchairs were the lightest - and this is where Maclaren scored highly.

Gill said: "I like Maclarens because they are lightweight and compact. I can fold them up and carry them around and take them on public transport."

Although all our mothers and children liked the look of these pushchairs, when it came down to spending their own money all of them said that the smallest and lightest ones won hands down.