4Moms MamaRoo 5.0 Multi-Motion Baby Swing review: the innovative baby bouncer with smart technology

Overall star rating: 4.5/5

Price: £269.99 | Buy now from Amazon

Key specs

Suitable from: Birth to 9kg | Fabric sling removable and machine washable: Yes | Additional features: Bluetooth, toy mobile, sounds | Dimensions: 66.6 x 53.3 85.3cm | Weight: 6.9kg | Batteries required: No

What we like

• Five unique motions and five speeds

• Bluetooth and voice control compatibility

• Overhead toy mobile with interactive balls

• Machine-washable cover

• Fully adjustable recline 

• Four built-in sounds 

• Adjust motion, speed and sound using the 4Moms mobile app 

What we don’t like 

• Costly 

• Doesn’t fold away for storage 

• Newborn insert isn’t included 

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Our verdict on the 4Moms MamaRoo 5.0

• Set up: 4/5

• Safety: 4.5/5

• Ease of use: 4.5/5

• Design: 5/5

• Ease of cleaning: 4/5

• Value for money: 4/5

Suitable from birth up to 9kg, or until your baby can sit up unassisted, this innovative baby bouncer can make your baby feel almost as at home as they do in your arms, with a range of speeds, motions and movements that mimic the way you’d rock your baby in your arms. 

It certainly doesn’t come cheap, but the 4Moms MammaRoo 5.0 is a whole new level of baby bouncer thanks to the range of natural parent-like movements that can both soothe and settle your baby. 

With smart home technology, Bluetooth connectivity and remote operation via the handy 4Moms app, you can easily tailor each ride to meet your baby's changing needs. It also has an interactive toy mobile as well as a range of preprogrammed sounds to offer some welcome hands-free support for parents of clingy babies during nap time or playtime. 

This version is new for 2022 and includes updated Bluetooth and voice control capabilities so that you can stream music as well as use the bouncer with Amazon Alexa and Google Home. 

Read next: The best baby bouncers and rockers

How we tested the 4Moma MamaRoo

• Four months of use

• Tested with a newborn

Luci, a mum of two, tested the 4Moms MamaRoo in her home for a period of four months with her newborn baby, who was just two weeks old when testing began. 

To ensure Luci’s views were consistent with feedback from wider consumers, we also researched tried and tested reviews from Mumsnet parents and scrutinised feedback from consumer reviews on retailer sites.

What’s in the box? 

• MamaRoo base unit

• Back support frame

• Base support 

• 2 x side panel support 

• Toy mobile with hanging toys

• Zip on fabric MamaRoo seat

• Instruction manual

• Adapter plug 

How easy is the 4Moms MamaRoo to assemble?

The 4Moms MamaRoo Swing does require some initial assembly which took our parent tester Luci and her partner around 20 minutes to complete, with a small number of parts to put together but no additional tools required. 

The instructions are image-based and it’s worth flicking through these in their entirety before starting assembly. Luci learned this the hard way. She says, “The instructions are well written but the first page has a list of the items which confused us slightly (didn’t read ahead) so we connected two pieces incorrectly which we then had to work out how to take apart. They were quite simple to follow though and we didn’t need to look at them repeatedly.”

There are no written elements to the instructions, which some may find challenging, but Luci found the images relatively easy to follow. It may have helped to have stickers showing which side was the top on the frames as this did slow down the overall assembly time.  

If you wish to use your mobile phone to operate the speed and motion settings on the MamaRoo, you also need to download the free 4Moms app. Luci had a little trouble linking the MamaRoo to her Bluetooth initially but was able to fix this using the help section on the app.

Read next: The best baby boys from newborn to 12 months

How does the 4Moms MamaRoo look?

Luci’s first impressions of the MamaRoo were mixed. With a modern design, the 4Moms MamaRoo 5.0 has a simple white base and silver frame with a grey/silver cover. Luci felt that the design wasn’t particularly attractive, with the fabric less premium than she would have expected given the significant price tag.

She says, “The MamaRoo has quite a futuristic/contemporary design which is best suited to a modern or minimalist home. It may look a bit out of place in a traditional cottage or rustic property.”    

She continues, “For the price, I think the fabric looks practical and is washable but is a bit shiny and not as premium as I was expecting. The woven harness strap really stands out – it looks cheap compared with the rest of the product.” 

The swing itself though is sturdy and well-made. Despite its technical abilities, with a footprint of around 58cm, it actually doesn't take up a lot of space.

The seat is recommended for babies up to a 9kg weight limit (around six months of age) however Luci noted, “My 11-day old (9lb 13oz) newborn is taking up three quarters of the seat already.” With that said, it may not last you as long as six months depending on the size of your baby.  

Is the 4Moms Mama Roo safe and stable?

The 4Moms MamaRoo feels secure and sturdy with a strong base that provides a solid foundation on any floor surface. Whilst the swing seat itself doesn’t have sides, it slopes up at the edges to create a secure and comfortable cocoon for your baby. 

The swing seat comes with a secure five-point safety harness which, whilst a little fiddly to secure, ensures a safe and secure fit for both newborns and older babies.

For safety, the MamaRoo must be used under parental supervision at all times and should not be used for overnight sleeping. It has been tested and certified to comply with European Safety Standards. It’s worth noting that the historical recall of the MamaRoo (due to the harness hanging down and posing a choking hazard when not in use) applies to a previous model only, with significant updates to the design since then. 

For additional safety, Luci noted, however, that “a parent lock would be helpful, as my five-year-old loves to turn the bouncer on/up.”

What’s the 4Moms MamaRoo like to use day-to-day?

Unlike some more portable bouncers and swings, the MamaRoo is best suited for use in a particular room in your home. Taking up around the same amount of space as a large dining room chair, it has a relatively small footprint but doesn’t fold down or go flat, making it less easy to store than a fold-flat bouncer such as the BabyBjörn Bouncer Balance Soft or Chicco Hoopla. 

While at 6.9kg it’s not particularly heavy, but it is fairly bulky and doesn’t have wheels so is less suitable for carrying up and down the stairs. As such, our parent tester Luci felt she would need to have another basic bouncer upstairs in order to meet her baby’s needs. She says, “It’s not really designed to be portable. It’s not super heavy but it’s a solid piece of kit which you would probably keep downstairs. Not too heavy to move to another room on the same floor but I wouldn’t be taking up and down stairs. I would want another basic bouncer upstairs to pop baby in if I have this one.”

She adds, “I wouldn’t take this away with me unless perhaps I was going away for more than a week or had a baby who would only settle in this as it’s quite large. I would also want to dismantle it before moving it in case it breaks.”

Luci also noted that a longer cable would provide more flexibility for parents, as you are somewhat restricted to the location of your nearest plug socket.

Luci found it easy to lift her baby in and out of the MamaRoo, with an easy clip harness that made adding and removing her baby a breeze. It was also very flexible for positioning as the seat can be raised or lowered on the frame to suit your exact preferences. 

She says, “The MamaRoo has lots of choice of movement and sounds, all of which can be changed remotely via the app. This is great if you want to sit down with a rare hot cup of tea.”

Her baby was calm and content in the seat during the day, with her attention really drawn to the black and white mobile. She was also able to nap in the bouncer with no problem, both with or without the addition of movement and music, although experts recommend that you don’t actually allow your baby to sleep in a baby bouncer.

Read next: Newborn essentials: your ultimate new baby checklist

Is the 4Moms MamaRoo comfortable for babies?

While parent tester Luci found her baby looked comfortable in the MamaRoo, there were a few elements she would improve.

Firstly, there is no newborn insert for the MamaRoo included as standard - this is sold as an optional extra for £39.99, and it would have been good to see this included given the significant price tag. 

Without the newborn insert, there is no additional head support which can make positioning for a younger baby a little more challenging. While she reported that her then 11-week-old fitted comfortably in the swing, Luci felt her baby’s feet would be over the end way before the expected six-month mark recommended by the brand.

The angle of the MamaRoo can be adjusted for comfort as well as safety and the buckles are hidden behind the front of the seat pad. However Luci felt that the straps were relatively thin and the fabric didn’t look particularly breathable - which may make it feel warm in summer. 

What is the motion like?

The MamaRoo has five motion settings and five different speed settings which can easily be adjusted depending on your preferences.

The movements include: 

• Car ride - side to side up and down rocking movements 

• Kangaroo - like a parents rocking 

• Tree swing - swinging from side to side

• Rock a bye - An up and down rocking motion

• Wave - a full circle motion 

Our parent tester Luci found that her baby didn’t show any real preference in terms of movement settings, although she noted that this may change as they get older. 

The movements can be altered via the app or directly on the base and Luci found this fairly intuitive to do. There are five speeds, but when testing the MamaRoo, Luci found most of them too intense for her newborn. At speed four, she felt the motion was more like a ride and therefore didn’t progress to speed five.

There is a slight whirring noise when the MamaRoo is moving but Luci didn’t find this disruptive.

Does it have any extra features?

There are four built-in sounds on the MamaRoo - specifically rain, ocean sounds, a fan sound and heartbeat, the latter of which can provide some familiar comfort to newborn babies. The sounds are relatively subtle and non-offensive, with an adjustable sound level that can be raised or lowered to suit your preferences via the app. 

Should you wish to use your own music or play your baby’s favourite lullaby, you can also connect via bluetooth to the MamaRoo, allowing you to play the music on your mobile device, The MamaRoo also has smart technology, so you can even operate the via smart Amazon Alexa devices, starting, stopping or switching between settings via voice control.  

The toy mobile is a lovely feature, with two sides that can easily be converted between black and white or bright bold colours. The black-and-white option is ideal for newborns who can only focus on contrasting shades, whereas the bold and bright colours will be appealing for your baby as they grow. 

Our parent tester Luci noted that the mobile is quite high up and that her baby couldn’t reach it from the seat, however, there is the option to add a toy bar to the MamaRoo as your baby grows. 

Is the 4Moms MamaRoo easy to clean?

The cover on the 4Moms MamaRoo is easy to remove. Simply unfasten the poppers and unzip the sides before putting it in the washing machine on a cool wash. 

During testing, small stains such as milk wiped away easily, whereas marks such as tomato ketchup left a small residue which then came out entirely after a full wash in the washing machine. 

Due to the thick fabric, Luci found she needed to add an additional spin at the end of her usual wash cycle as the cover was very water-sodden. That said, the cover dried well, looked like new after washing, and was easy to reattach to the base of the MamaRoo. 

The most challenging part of the MamaRoo to clean is the straps, which aren’t removable from the main frame and have the potential to get a bit grubby. As such, these would simply need to be wiped down with detergent to remove any marks or stains. 

Read next: The best toys for 9-month-olds

Is the 4Moms MamaRoo good value for money?

It goes without saying that the 4Moms MamaRoo is a premium product and, due to its relatively short life span, it’s certainly an investment. 

While our parent tester Luci would have expected more luxurious fabrics and a newborn insert included for the price, she found the range of motions and sounds to be very impressive. We think this bouncer would be particularly beneficial for parents who’s baby struggles to be put down, as this would allow some much-needed hands-free time.  

About the author

Lucy Cotterill is a mum of two and a Content Writer at Mumsnet, specialising in baby/child and lifestyle product reviews and round-ups. Having written product reviews on her own blog Real Mum Reviews since 2012, Lucy loves to research and explore the pros and cons of baby products, scrutinising reviews and consumer feedback to help parents make confident purchases that benefit their families.  

Lucy has reviewed a wide range of baby bouncers over the years and as such is well versed to recognise the key features that are beneficial to parents. 

Originally from a HR background with a degree in Business Studies, Lucy developed a real passion for blogging and writing when her children were young, going on to write for several online publications including US parenting site Pregistry and the Evening Standard. When she’s not manically tapping the keys of her laptop, Lucy loves nothing more than to cosy up with her Kindle and enjoy the latest thriller, or compete in Nintendo Switch rallies with her daughters aged six and 10.

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