M&P Sola, iCandy Cherry, or Babystyle Oyster?

[VeronicaSpeedwell]

First off, I know people have posed similar comparison questions before, and I have read and digested those threads, so this is really just trawling new wisdom and any advice you can all offer which is particular to what we need. I am 25 weeks with DC1 and really quite clueless.

The shortlist of three has come about because they tick all our boxes, which are:

• Carrycot option for tinies (I know you can get away without this on some - pushchairs, but we really want a proper carrycot at first)
• Not massive, but reasonably solid
• Reversible seat
• The option of using the chassis with a carseat, though I do think this would just be used for pretty rare swift errands.

We will mostly be using it around a pretty congested town, though might also want to do some longer walks on pavements and would hope to tackle outdoor walks on paths (think National Trust garden stroll rather than fell running). We're unlikely to be on public transport much, more likely to take it on trains than buses.

We were impressed by Which reviews of the Sola, but haven't been able to see it in the flesh yet. The only place we could get it, other than online, is about an hour's drive away. This in itself is a downside, because I worry about the inconvenience of either of those options if we have a problem with it. Our local Mothercare stock the Oyster, and we could get the iCandy from John Lewis with a 3 year guarantee.

The price difference between these isn't really material, though if two are equally good I wouldn't say no to some savings. We aren't really interested in any kind of pram kudos, and I think all of these look good enough for our requirements.

I'd definitey rate longevity and quality pretty highly -- we'd really like not to buy another pushchair for a good while. With that in mind, I'm probably most wary of the Oyster, having read lots of reviews of all three.

Any thoughts? I'd be really grateful for any views!

I have an iCandy cherry which I've been very happy with, we used the pram as DD's bed for the first 9 weeks because we were moving house and had the cot delivered to the new place. It rear faces, which is lovely but bear in mind that it doesn't have an addition to convert to a double buggy like the peach, with the peach blossom kit. In retrospect that would have been better for us because we'll need a new double buggy now.

The foot muff is brill but the parasol isn't worth it. Get a fabric buggy shade instead. You can fit a car seat to it, which is useful if you don't want to wake a sleeping baby.

It does collapse in to two pieces though, which is handy for the boot but it means you can't fly with it. Most airlines require a buggy that folds in to one piece. We got a Chicco as well to fly with. Also it really isn't an off roader, I use the Chicco for gravel or muddy paths it's a lightweight city stroller and it does that job well. Go for the matt rather than shiny frame because the latter scratches badly.

I hope that helps.

Thanks HappyCamel, this is really useful! We hadn't really considered the Cherry until last week when we had a demo, so this is very welcome.

Good point on flying -- I hadn't thought about that, but we do travel quite a bit. I wouldn't mind buying something cheaper for that though, I don't think I'd put anything I was too bothered about in the hold. We should also think properly about the double possibility. We feel so lucky to be on the way to having one baby that it feels strange to shop with a second in mind, though I can see it makes sense.

All points on chassis and accessories duly noted! Thanks!

If you have time then I have two of these here at present and hopefully the third coming as well. I opened the Oyster yesterday and it's had it's first run today and so far I am very impressed. In fact I am struggling to fault it which is rare for me. It's easy to open and close (if you remember to remove / not use the bumper bar which I forgot and looked a lemon trying to fold it earlier!). Its a one piece fold with the seat in either direction with a lock (chunky forward facing or flatter rear facing). The seat seems a good size. My 18 month old has bags of room. I need to try my 3 year old in for size but the seat measurement was in the upper range for pushchair seats. I loved that the seat is easy peasy to swap around - a breath of fresh air after the Bee. Great basket - so easy to drop a wet painting in from nursery and not get it everywhere, and room for my handbag without having to squeeze it in! The hood has a flick out sun visor and importantly slides up the frame to give more head height for an older child. I am not a fan of the seat liner from the colour pack - i can see me removing it - but I love the fact you can change the hood. With the air tyres on, I bet it's super to handle. The handlebar is foam and easy to use. It's narrow and neat. Theres apparently even a built in insect net under the seat. It's got the right balance of light with sturdy. I think so far it's a cracking little pushchair! Ask me again next week when I have used it more. I will use the Oyster for a few days then will swap to the Sola for next week.

Ah. thanks a millionm Tiggywunkle, this is really great. I definitely have time to wait for your verdict! I am really cheered by your Oyster review, as I thought that was great at first but have read quite a few negative remarks in the meantime, plus Which reviews, which made me cast further afield. I also keep reading more and more stories of buggies going wrong, which has make me start to value guarantees/ease of return a lot more than I did at first. I'm really encouraged by your report about fitting older children in. I'll definitely check in with you when you've put it through its paces for a bit longer .

We've had an oyster for dd2 since birth, she's 2.4 now. I've loved it, and apart from the fact the brake broke a couple of months ago, it's been great. Easy to fold and put up, great steering, big basket. I'd recommend it. Where did you read bad reviews?

Guarantees / ease of return do depend on the retailer and how efficient and easy they are to deal with.
I am trying not to read reviews and will write my own, but I can usually sniff flaws out but there's nothing really so far that is leaping out at me. Give me a nudge maybe at the end of next week and I will swap to the Sola at the weekend.

I'd get the Oyster myself.

I'm not a fan of the look of the Cherry and I don't like two piece folds, but not everyone is bothered by that. I think it's a lot of money for what it is.

The Sola seems very good, but nit-picking, I think the basket is too small and weirdly shaped and the hood isn't as big as the Oyster's, but not many hoods are!

The Oyster is light to push, turns well, is very narrow, can be customised, has a massive extendable hood, good adjustable handlebar, big easy access basket and folds both ways (I think the Sola does that too). I would buy the additional air tyres as they really make a difference to the sispension and make it even easier to push.

I've just posted a very similar question :) It seems that there are pros and cons to each but I definitely need help too :)

If there's a possibility of number 2 I'd get a Baby jogger city select. It is fab for one, fits all your requirements and can easy be accomodated for number 2. Then I'd buy a second hand baby jogger city mini or maclaren XT for travelling/buses/ease of putting in the boot. That would mean you would be pretty much done with buying pushchairs, and not have to go through 6-7 like me

I've got a Sola - it is quite good but if I could go back I would get a BJC Select or Maxi Cosi Elea. If you do go for the Sola don't waste money on the foot muff which only comes up to mid thigh! You can tuck it through the bumper bar but this also comes across the baby's legs so prevents her kicking.

It does have it's good points but I regret buying mine as I don't think I thought it through properly.

I also wouldn't recommend getting anything with an expensive carrycot as DD outgrew hers in ten weeks.

Ah, thanks for the updates! Sorry I couldn't get back, I had to do my proper job and then went straight to bed.

gin, glad you like your Oyster. We'll hopefully be able to see one this evening, and I'm now veering that way. Regarding bad reviews, I know to take these with a pinch of salt (and I don't want to prejudice Tiggywunkle!), but it was really just a few which commented on its durability. I know all buggies will have some duff reviews though, so I'm not overly worried. If it's lasted your DD till 2.4 that's great. I imagine people rarely go back and write good reviews of things they've had for a couple of years, which is why this thread is so useful to me in balancing the picture!

Soozy I read your thread! We did play with the Strawberry, it looks great but I didn't like the way you had to keep paying extra for all the components and it's probably too big for us. I hope you find an answer!

Hypatia, I totally agree on the Sola basket. It's the kind of thing that's easy to disregard when you don't have a baby yet, but now we're seriously thinking about this and imagining walking around with the thing, I think I'd find that annoying.

Saf and Sick, thanks for all the tips, and also for suggesting alternatives. I hadn't thought about the BJC Select at all, so will have a look!

I have had a week trying the Oyster out now (bearing in mind a) it is only a week but b) I have had many many pushchairs through my hands now and I do play with them thoroughly) but a day or so now with the Sola, but there is absolutely no doubt to me that the Oyster is superior to the Sola.

Even just instantly looking at the two side by side the Oyster looks better quality. It is nicely finished with attention to detail. Its maybe hard to explain without seeing the two side to side. But the Oyster just feels and looks better.

The fabrics on the Sola dont feel that hard wearing but the seat fabric does remove to wash. I dont like the "jigsaw puzzle" buckle. I dont want to be faffing around when my baby is wriggling, although I suspect you get good at it like most things!

There is more headroom in the Oyster - my 3.4 year old can barely get under the Sola hood but the hood slides upwards on the Oyster and she has loads of room. The footrest on the Sola is not placed for a toddler to put their feet on - the Urbo is the same but probably worse. Why put a footrest on a pushchair if a toddler is unable to reach it because its too far underneath for them to get to? The Oyster footrest is perfectly placed and gives support.

The basket on the Sola is an ok size. Its certainly not big though and its faily shallow and an odd shape. I could probably get my two Pacapod Pods in their on their side which is the same as I could get under the Quinny Zapp. I may be able to get three in if I stood them on end. But I doubt I could get more than two bags of shopping in there. The Oyster to be fair doesn't have a much bigger basket but its a more sensible shape with a high lip. I have easily had my medium sized handbag and a swimming bag for example stacked one on top of another without falling out. I bet if I had put them in sensibly that I could get another bag or even two in there. Maybe 3-4 bags of shopping.

I am finding the recline on the Sola very "ratchety" whereas with the Oyster its easy and smooth. Everytime I try to pull the hood up on the Sola when reclined, the seat comes up too!

The Oyster folds fairly neatly in both directions - it is long but fairly flat when folded parent facing or chunky but neat when outward facing. The Sola folds flat when outward facing but although you can fold it parent facing it isnt neat and its better really to remove the seat unit. The Sola feels longer folded. But the Oyster outward facing I am sure is chunkier. I will check though.

The tyres are better on the Sola - they are more rubbery than the Oyster.
The handle on the Sola rotates - I think into 3 positions whereas it extends with the Oyster. I personally prefer the latter as I like some distance between me and the pushchair. When the Sola handle is at its highest you are almost walking on the hood. The Sola bumper bar swings away which I like with an older toddler. The Oyster bumper bar is trickier to remove and I find it trickier to put back on. I have left mine off.
Both brakes are fine - they flick on and off easily.
The hoods are both good sizes. The Oyster has both a flick out visor and a zip out panel but I see nothing wrong with a good old fashioned pull out hood like the Solas :) The Oyster hood annoyingly doesn't lie flat though. I keep pulling it back and it doesn't go!

The Oyster can be personalised with the colour packs which I have to say I love. However I am not a fan of the liner - mine slides down and I have to hoik it up to get the shoulder straps back over my child's shoulders each time. I am on the verge of removing it. There's also a small ledge at the back of the Oyster seat - like 3 sides of a hexagon ie down, diagonal and then flat on the seat. I think this is causing my children to not sit quite right. I am hoping that removing the seat liner might help but this is one downside of the Oyster for me. Having said that I don't think my children necessarily sit right in the Sola either. I had to keep asking my eldest if she was sitting straight. At least the Oyster footrest helps an older child sit themselves better whereas my eldest is just really 'hanging' from the Sola seat if that makes sense. If she could get her bottom further back in the Sola seat then the lack of footrest wouldn't be so much of an issue.

So, out of these two, I personally prefer the the Oyster - just because it feels better all round - more sturdy and better quality. Apart from the hood and the seat position / liner I can't really fault it. But the Oyster feels like a good quality product. The overall feel and use of the Sola is letting it down. Whether the Oyster lasts the test of time, I dont know, but even new pushchairs can go wrong.

Ultimately both pushchairs do what they say on the tin and neither are bad pushchairs and both are well made - believe me I have seen worse! I think the choice is really personal preference between them.

The Cherry arrives on Monday :)

Tiggy, I am totally in awe of your post, thank you, so, so very much! It is unbelievably useful to have such an expert view, I am so enormously grateful for all the time and effort behind your post .

I have been away from MN all weekend, but am slowly digesting everything you have written. You've really helped us stop wondering whether to drive for an hour to see the Sola. We checked out the Oyster yesterday and did like it, but our only worry was that it seemed less robust than the Cherry. If the Sola is v similar, but seems less well made than the Oyster, then it's probably not what we're looking for. DH now wants to check out the Uppababy Vista as well, though I am afraid it might be too big. We'll revisit the Cherry this week, so of course your view on that will be very welcome!

Sorry not to respond on more detail to all your points; it means a great deal to me that you wrote all that to help us out. We are so clueless about all this, and the view of somebody who really knows their pushchairs is more useful than I can ever say . We are going to reread your verdict with great attention before making any decisions!

Lolol, I am sure someone else can put their twopence worth in too :)
I have to say, pushchairs can be much of a muchness when you name the right ones! There will always be pros and cons to them all. The Cherry arrives tomorrow and I could be biased (I will try hard not to be) because I do love iCandy pushchairs and I would buy the set if I could!
The Vista is excellent and well worth a look. I can not fault it apart from a couple of minor details and probably in reality it is currently the best pushchair there is based on function, spec, seat, basket, what comes in the box ie everything you really need apart from a cosy toes. The carrycot is absolutely gorgeous. It free stands when folded. It's great.
But going back really to your original query, all these pushchairs would probably serve you well. It's the feel when you stand behind and push that it's important. Do think too about basket space if you shop etc. I need a good basket! I am not keen at all on the M&P car seats if you were considering using a travel system. Plus the Maxi Cosi ones easily transfer to any other pushchair if you decide with no 2/3/4/8 that you want a change ;)

OYSTERRRRR!!!! Wipes the floor with Sola. If you want more info I can post tomorrow as I am on phone now.

Babystyle's customer service is fab too.

And BTW have been using Oyster for 15 months. Used carrycot, Britax SHR and now just seat unit.

Im happy with my oyster too. DD is 12 months and i had the carrycot and now she is happy and comfy in the buggy,love it,no complaints.

at StuckUp. I guess you like it, then? Great to see that both you and Ledkr are still happy a year on and more. Did you buy online or from a 'real' shop?

Tiggy, I look forward to your totally unbiased review of the Cherry...

First impressions of the Cherry are very good. Its familiar territory - the seat unit in a lot of ways is similar to my beloved Peach. My son sits in it the best of all the pushchairs. The harness is really adjustable. The chassis is very light and easy to fold. The basket is really large - larger than the Oyster. The negatives are that the handle bar height is fixed. Its perfect for me at 5ft 6ins but could be an issue if you are smaller. It pushes brilliantly and feels great. Plus you have to remove the seat to fold. The chassis is quite large when folded - not huge but I had to fit it long ways in my car whereas the Oyster and the Peach fit shortways leaving half the boot free. The seat unit is easy to use - the seat rotation is two handed though - its a simple button on the Oyster and a slightly harder to use button on the Sola.
But I think where the Cherry shines is really in the finish and the feel. The fabrics are lovely, the hood sits perfectly, the harness is easy to use with good seat pads.
Personally I wouldn't get the Sola. Which I chose from the Cherry and the Oyster (remember these are first impressions but I can come back later and update) would depend on how important it was to have a one piece fold which is partly decided by how large my car boot was, plus whether an adjustable handle was important to me. Spec wise the Oyster is probably a bit better and it feels more solid. But looks and fabric wise the Cherry wins for me. I have zero idea of how much each is to buy - well I have a rough idea and I suspect the Oyster is better value for money. But even though the Cherry is a 2 part fold, I think its easier to use - theres no hoiking liners up and I like to push a hood right back which you can't do on the Oyster. I also can't ignore the fact that my children both dont sit completely right in the Oyster because of the ledge between the seat pad and upright back.
At this point I have sat back and pondered which one I would actually choose and I think the answer is either. I am a bit torn because if the Cherry had an adjustable handle and so folded a little smaller, there is no doubt I would choose that. So I think for me I am slightly leaning towards the Cherry on styling, quality and seat position, and a new car boot to put it in ;) (No its not that big but I dont like to fill my boot IYKWIM) I have no issue with two part folds and in fact its probably no different to folding the Oyster seat down first.

Does that help at all or confuse more? I will take photos of all three side by side this week for you.

Wow, again... .

This is tremendously useful. DH and I are now totallly content to rule out the Sola. I smiled at the way you just liked the finish of the Cherry better, because I feel that tugging me back too, even though the Oyster has a better spec in many ways, for a fair bit less cash. At the same time, I'm still reassured by your Oyster review, and it's still in the running on the strength of that. We spoiled ourselves a bit by seeing the iCandy first, so the Oyster somehow didn't seem as nicely made, though if it outstrips the Sola it must be more than good enough.

Height wise, I'm 5'6 too, so the non-adjustable Cherry handle isn't a problem. DH is 6 foot, so not ginormous, but he should probably try it again if we're going to seriously consider that. When we first saw the Cherry, we were a bit put off by the two-piece fold, but now we've seen the Oyster folded it all seems less important. We're unlikely to be on buses, and I found the Cherry easy to deal with even in two parts. Frustratingly, we haven't upgraded our car yet, so it's not clear exactly how much boot space we'll have (our present car is titchy and has to go anyway). The point about the ledge is really interesting, because obviously I have no DC of my own to try these out! Many thanks to the little Tiggys for being guinea pigs! I will look again at that when we see the Oyster. Comfort into toddlerdom is pretty important, I think, though obviously there are lots of happy Oyster users and I don't think I've ever read that criticism before.

I'd really love to see them pictured side by side. We're going to revisit the Cherry soon, and see the Uppababy at the same time, but the Oyster is annoyingly in another shop on the other side of town, so I'm finding it hard to do proper comparisons. My feeling was that, even though the Oyster and Cherry both handled really well, the Cherry did slightly better steering round a shop. I bumped into stuff with the Oyster, which never happened with the Cherry. Obviously I still have my 'L' plates, so I'm sure that wouldn't happen once I'm used to whatever we get!

Phew! Back to my real job for a bit...

Lol, I am glad you feel the same re the fabrics. I have taken a set of Sola and Cherry photos side by side today - there is no comparison at all. In fact the Sola will be the first on my list to EBay once I am finished :) the fold is probably the best thing about it because it does slide nicely to the floor and the seat does lie very flat (I haven't looked it up but I assume its suitable from birth because of this?)
Lol re the little Tiggys.
Like you say it's hard to see pushchairs side by side which is why I madly do what I do. I hope it helps someone somewhere.
I think the Vista v's Cherry is interesting. You get an awful lot of Vista for your money. Do ask to see the carrycot. Its beautiful. I think spec wise the Vista comes out top by miles above any of these. The Vista is more comparable with more top end pushchairs like the Apple, Peach, Silver Cross Surf and Cameleon and really still comes out top for spec and the package. Plus you have the double option (as do the Apple and Peach) should you ever need it.

I'm making progress here, though still seem to be adding to the list as fast as I rule things out... Back to the shops for a new round of inspections!

Good luck :)

Tiggy you are a-maz-ing. Thank you :)

I liked the Cherry when I looked at it, I want to line up the Cherry, Strawberry and Oyster to see which I prefer. And possibly the UppaBaby Vista too.

I am about to post a question about the Cherry - do you know if the carrycot has a d-ring or similar to use optional harness?

Again, you are a star!

According to this it does: www.icandyuk.com/download.php?d=icandy_cherry_carrycot.pdf My understanding is (but am not sure) that all Britsh approved pushchair seats and carrycots have to have D rings on them so you can add a harness.
Do add a Vista into your line up. There is quite a specification difference between the Cherry and Strawberry and this is reflected in the price.