Cot where to purchase? Drop side or not?

[mummyfirsttime]

Im 20 weeks and we have been looking at cots etc already really not to sure where to buy from though. Mamma's and pappa's have lovely cots but a bit pricey Babies r us again have nice cots but are so much cheaper. Would you say in this case cheaper in price cheaper in quality? Very confused as i want the best but do not want to pay 'over the odds' also Drop side cots have been banned in the US, should I or should I get a drop side...

Mamas and papas are far more expensive with everything than babies r us! The price certainly doesn't reflect on quality between the 2 in my opinion, the items I've had from M&P have generally not lasted as long as babies r us items.

I have the Henley drop side cot from Babies r us for my DS, we specifically wanted a drop side cot as I suffered badly with my back during pregnancy and didn't want to be leaning any more than I had to with a newborn. From the research I did online, it appears in America they don't have such strict regulations for cot safety as we do here, so that was why the drop side cots were banned there but not here.

I didn't find a drop side to be necessary while the cot was on the highest setting, but once we lowered it to the middle setting (DS was about 5 months as he was big and starting to crawl) it was fantastic! Also definitely wanted a cotbed rather than a cot, as we wanted a very supportive mattress but didn't want to shell out a small fortune only for it to be useless after around 12-18 months when baby goes into bed! DS is now 13 months and I feel we definitely made the right choice.

Hi, I went for an normal £70 Ikea cot and bought an expensive mattress. The combination worked fine.
Unfortunately because of lack of space I had to sell the cot, and the buyer was so keen on the mattress that she took it too. I was surprised because usually second hand mattress is not what people want. But I must say that it looked brand new, I used mattress protectors from day 1, not one stain, I was flipping it around every week, non smoking and pet free home. And I managed to get 75% of the original price for items that we have used for 12 months. (my DS did not want to stay in the cot anymore when he was 18 months and we bought the cot only when he reached 4 months...). He was moved to a normal bed since and fell out of it once (touch wood), he is now 3.5 yo.
What I am trying to say is that you don't need to spend a lot on the cot (all of them should be OK re safety), the most important is the mattress, comfort and right size are the only things that matter. Or if you fall in love for an expensive cot, you can always resell it, as long as it is well looked after.
Enjoy the shopping

I had a drop side cot and can honestly say that I never used the drop side. Complete waste of time and money.

I have drop sided cots.

Before my babies could crawl, I had the cot alongside by bed with the side dropped to make a sort of cosleeper.

Since they've been able to crawl, I've not dropped the sides at all - it wakes very little difference to the distance you have to lean over.

we rarely used the dropside too - our cot was from babies r us and was very sturdy/good quality. It did have an adjustable base so that you could lower the mattress as they start to get more mobile and it helps stop them from climbing out.

I've only started using the drop side now that I'm 5 months pregnant and my belly is getting in the way. They're probably also a good idea if you're fairly short.

Ikea cot and their mattress. Has served DD very well for first 2 years, was not drop sided but admit that it might have been easier as she has got heavier but hasn't been a big issue. Do buy the plastic strips to go on the top though - the monkeys seem to like gnawing on wood!

Hi, just to add i also have the henley drop side cot, have no idea whether it is good or bad as ive yet to use it (still 31 weeks), but i had a look on babies r us site and they are in the sale at the moment along with a few other cots, i think its excellent quality, also the mattress was from babies r us and i got that for half price which it still is, cant remember which one it is but was around £70.