The uppababy pushchair? Good/bad? How does it compare to the Bugaboo?

[carpetlover]

Hi,
We had a look at these yesterday. DH very impressed especially by the height as he's tall. We had originally planned to get a bugaboo cameleon but on seeing this we are now not sure.
It seemed really easy to use and the carrycot bit was nice and big and comfy.

Does anyone own one? Is it reliable and easy? How does it compare to the Bugaboo apart from being a bit cheaper? I know lots of people who love their bugaboo and this seems a bit of an unknown although I read the Which? report which was really good.

Also wanted to ask about the toddler bit. Is it big enough? Do they seem comfy in it? Oh and the woman only sold grey cosytoes things but said they also come in red but not the same red as the pram. Is this true cause it seemed strange. I really liked the yellow pram or maybe the silver. If we go for the silver could maybe use the grey but not with the bright yellow.
More concerned with how the pram runs though so any reviews would be great.

Thanks girls!

[harassedandherbug]

This is my thread from a while ago and there's a great review of the Vista from a lady who also had a Bug. Hope it helps..

[Tiggywunkle]

I had a Cameleon and currently have a Vista sat in a box in the hall. I probably won't unbox it for another week or so but when I do, I will let you know what I think (if that's not too late for you).

[carpetlover]

Thanks, both of you. The Bee gets great reviews but tbh, I don't need it to be light and easy to get on and off buses. It looked a little insubstantial to me and Ive also got my heart set on a carrycot.

Tiggywunkle, what made you buy an uppababy if you already have a cameleon? Have you been unhappy with the cameleon? Ideally, I'd love to see them next to each other but cannot find a stockist who sells both. Without having used the Vista, how do you think it compares?

Do either of you know anything about the cosytoes issue. It's not a deal breaker but I found it strange that they don't do it in the colours of the prams.

Harassed, I'll have a read of that thread. Thanks.

[Tiggywunkle]

No, I don't have a Chameleon at present but I had one last year. I can't comment at all on the Vista because I haven't even undone the Sellotape on the box although I am itching to see the colour (red). I am waiting for the Rumble seat to arrive. I haven't looked at the cosy toes, but if it works out for us then I will have to have a look!

I think Monkeys is the best person to talk to right now - she's around somewhere. I see them as quite different beasties TBH....I loved my Chameleon - it was cute and good. But my DD at only a few months old already had her head sat on the hood fabric and I didn't like the idea of her not having a hood by say 18 months. The footrest is fixed as such too. I think I would be finding out like you say how a two and a half year old looks in the seat. Have you trawler Google images? I found the basket/bag hard to access especially in carrycot mode and it was a relief in the end to swap it for a proper basket. I didn't like the flex in the handlebar. Plus with the cosy toes, hood & bumper bar on, it was always bigger than I wanted folded. The Chameleon is a good investment though. I made a profit on mine when I sold it due to price increases. My worry for the Vista is it looks tall and huge! I like small and cute! But the basket and seat size look fab.

[carpetlover]

Thanks again. Posted a big post which has disappeared! If your Vista is red there is a matching red footmuff.
My babies tend to be on the chunky side so I'd be worried about space too tbh. Let me know when you've given it a go! I'll bump in the next week or so!

[Tiggywunkle]

Mine are tall and a good size too. I will talk to you soon about it :) I just want to open everything together to try!

[suzie38]

I've had both a Vista and a Cameleon...I personally prefer the Cameleon as the handle goes a lot lower and i prefer low handle...Also i felt the suspension was very stiff/non existant on the Vista...Now the Cameleon i used had air tyres though i bought solid foam ones...The Cameleon pushed better with air tyres in my opinion but then i'm also a sucker for air tyres so it had good suspension...But i did like the one piece fold on the Vista and i'd have loved the snack tray, that you can buy...A similar pushchair is the Brio Sing which is almost identical to the Vista...The carrycot on the Vista is far better than the Cameleon for the simple reason it's totally seperate and you can swap between the 2 when you're baby gets older ie if going for a sleep walk then pop the carrycot on...If for aninteresting walk then the seat serves you better...With the Cameleon there's too much faffing to keep changing...Cameleon you can 'snunkie up' easily whereas Vista it'd just be seat liners you can change.

[carpetlover]

Thanks Susie and thanks again tiggy. Susie, I think one of the reasons I don't like the cameleon is because it's so low. That's a big plus for the vista IMO. I've read that some people don't like the suspension but when I tested it on the wooden floor of the showroom it felt fine to me. Not as bouncy as my 3 wheeler but then no worries about punctures! But thanks for the tip as I'll have another bounce around with the wheels.

[carpetlover]

Just wondered if anyone else was around this evening who knew anything about the Vista.

[MonkeysPunk]

I have the yellow Vista with the grey cosytoes, they look fab together. The grey cosytoes matches the frame on the yellow vista (the yellow one has a darker ltd ed frame).
I think you could snunkie the hood of the vista if you wanted, because you can unscrew the hoodrods to remove. However you wouldnt be able to zip in the raincover if you did that. You could get an inexpensive throwover raincover if you went that route.
I find the suspension on my Vista very good. I am using my Vista with a three year old. Maybe it depends how big your kid is as to how active you feel the suspension? I also mostly use rf.
The seat on the Vista has more leg room and a higher seat back than the cameleon. It is slightly narrower too.
The foot rest on the Vista is adjustable, its not on the cameleon.
The brake on the Vista is wonderful and easy to use. The cameleon brake is also easy to use, but if you rear face your toddler they can reach it and mine used to randomly put the brakes on for fun! Not good.
The vista toddler seat has 4 positions compared to the cameleons 3. Reclining the Vista seat is a simple one handed clasp at the top of the seat. With the cameleon its a two handed recline using buttons either side of the seat.
The bumper bar on the Vista seat can be undone and dropped open like a gate either side, so its easy to let toddlers in and out. The cameleon bumper bar is a tight fit and using two hands you would need to remove completely.
The basket beneath the vista is much larger than the cameleon and stronger. It's stronger because it attaches to the frame at more points, the cameleon basket hangs only from the front and central bars by small velcro tabs.
The seat unit and carrycot on the Vista sit quite a lot higher than the bugaboo ones.
The front wheels of the Vista don't have the suspension of the cameleon ones, but to their advantage the Vista front wheels have brilliant ball bearing units which make them extremely quick and manouverable plus they are much bigger than the cam wheels and can handle grass, gravel, mulch, woodland without any need to swap to all terrain wheels or go into two wheel mode!
The Vista rear wheels also have great ball bearing units too. The wheels and their attacment system on the Vista seemed better quality to me also. I did not like the thin wire butterfly clips that held the bugaboo cam rear wheels on at all. They felt cheap and fiddly.
You can add a piggyback board to the vista, for a toddler, and soon the rumble seat will be available in the UK, that's a clip on second seat. You dont have that option with the cameleon.
The Vista folds in one piece and takes up less boot or storage space than the cameleon.

[MonkeysPunk]

In the usa they sell colour change packs for the Vista, which I believe consist of toddler seat and hood fabrics only.
I bought the yellow Vista to get the darker grey ltd ed frame, and with the thought I can probably get a colour change pack sometime in the future.

[carpetlover]

Thank you, Monkeyspunk! Lots of useful info there. This is our third and final baby so not worried about the extra seat. Plus I also have a P&T doubles set.
It is really the carrycot stage that I'm interested in as I want a rear facing, flat pram for the first few months. I was very impressed by the Vista carrycot as it seemed both bigger and cosier than the bugaboo.

I think I'd still use the P&T when we go walking though as we tend to go a bit off road and it was always fab for that so as long as the wheels are fine for pavement and park then I'm happy with that.

I will not be getting the grey cosytoes thing though as the combo just looked weird to me. If we go for the silver I could probably use my P&Ts one, otherwise I may just get a fleesy one.

Thanks for all the info. I think I've made up my mind.

[lemonpoppyseed]

I love my Uppababy vista. The carrycot was wonderful; DS happily slept in there until he was about 4 1/2 months old. He is now in the stroller seat, and I love the way he is up so high (when we eat out you can just roll him up to the table, and he's at the right height). Just an aside - I live in a North American city, and would say that Vistas outnumber Bugaboos by 2 to 1 ( by my very unscientific observation) in my neighbourhood.

[mrbigdaddy]

we bought the uppababy vista and to be honest ,its fault less,we had a bugaboo for our eldest a few years ago,which in fairness was ok however the uppababy is far more robust on gravel/tarmac paths and the hight of the handle can go quiet high ,which is perfect for me as im a tall chap,the uppababy is also very stylish so its perfect for my wife to push around the trafford centre on those retail theropy days out with the girls.10 out of 10 for both male and female.i think the baby likes it too.