My husband and I have been looking at the Orbit stroller and car seat system. I'm wondering if anyone has it and what they think of it. It is pricey but seems really convenient. Is it worth it to do a travel system like this or better to buy a nice stroller with a car seat adapter - and what brands??
My friend had a Wiggleworms woman come to her daughter's first birthday party to sing and it was great!
It looks like the Orbit baby system would have only lasted us 6 months, and we would have to purchase the next kit. If I understand the Orbit system properly, the "Baby System" is just an infant seat. A bassinet is a separate purchase, and you have to buy another "Toddler Seat" once you're out of the infant seat/ bassinet stage.
We went with the Bugaboo and love that it was one purchase that we can use until our son is out of a stroller, and of course future kiddos can use it too!
We like our Bugaboo a lot, and we got the car seat adapter for our Graco carseat (prob. an additional $200 or less). I've done a ton of air travelling with our son by myself, and it's been great. It's really easy to push and steer (even one-handed) through airports. You can check the frame at the gate and carry the carseat onboard.
It's super light, so it's an awesome city stroller if you're downtown and getting in and out of cabs or on the train. When we were shopping around last year we were told it was the lightest on the market at the time. The whole thing folds almost flat - important for us as we live in a small place.
The only drawback for us has been that it's not a jogging stroller. If you plan to jog a ton, I'd probably get an inexpensive and super-basic frame that can hold a carseat to use exclusively for the first few months and a jogging stroller for everything once your little one is ready to sit up a bit.
The "bassinet stage" is relatively short. Our son only barely tolerated it for a couple of months, then wanted to be able to see out (not to mention he started rolling over very early!) We used the carseat on his stroller much more than the bassinet. That said, our son is a big guy and started to outgrow his infant seat faster than I would have guessed he would (around 6 months.) He's 8 1/2 months old now and right at the infant seat limits, but they're not supposed to go in the next stage of carseats until they're over the limits AND over a year old. So, he still has to sit in it for infrequent car trips (we're downtown and don't own a car) and when we're out of town, but he seems cramped and gets fussy in it now. At around 6 months (maybe sooner?), we definitely had him in the regular stroller seat, slightly reclined.
It's definitely good to have a stroller that can face out or toward the person pushing. I'm not sure when you'd have baby facing sideways - maybe if you're at a restaurant and have the stroller up against your table. All in all, I do think the Orbit looks really cool - great feel, materials, etc., but you'll end up buying a lot more than the starter kit to get the same use out of it as a Bugaboo. I know if I'd have bought it, I'd have been ticked to only get 6 months of use out of it!
Good luck to you!!
We've got the Orbit stroller system and LOVE IT! We are not usually early adopters of technology (and we've often been disappointed when we took the risk), but the Orbit has been one of the best decisions we've made, in terms of baby equipment. We were initially philosophically opposed to the whole idea of a $900 stroller, but this item has really been worth it. Plus, as I did more research into the Bugaboo and Stokke, the Orbit had the best design to fit how we'd use a stroller. With the Bugaboo, we would have had to buy a separate infant car carrier from Graco or Peg Perego, plus an adapter to attach the carrier to the stoller.
First, the integrated car seat to stroller system is really convenient. We do a lot of city sidewalk strolling and quick trips in the car around town -- it's perfect for this. We bought an extra base since we've got two cars. So, we can easily pop the car seat into either car.
Second, the large wheels handle bumpy sidewalks really well. Third, the best unanticipated feature is the 360-degree rotation. I didn't think much of this idea till we actually started using the stroller. We're often in restaurants or cafes where we try to move the stroller in as close as possible to the table and get it out of the way of servers (or risk death stares from other patrons). Once you wedge the stroller in, a lot of times the baby is facing away or it's inconvenient to reach over to him. But, the rotation allows you to turn the baby to wherever it's most convenient. Trust me, this is a really handy feature.
Fourth, this system is very easy to travel with. We took two roundtrip plane rides to NYC. The car seat works easily with the safety belt on the plane and in taxis.
Fifth, I've been incredibly impressed with the customer service from this firm. There's a two-year warrantee on the system. We had the fastener on one front wheel break off during transit when we gatechecked the stroller bottom. I made one call to Orbit Baby and they sent out two brand-spanking new wheels immediately. We also had a side indicator on the base in my car that seemed to be stuck. Orbit Baby sent out a new base, plus a shipping label because they'd like us to drop off the old one so they can examine what went wrong with it. This is a fairly new company and everyone there seems to be very concerned with getting feedback on how their products perform under real-life conditions.
We did not buy the bassinette, so I don't have an opinion on that piece. But, we are planning to buy the toddler car seat and stroller seat once our baby gets to that stage.
Hope this helps! As you can tell, I'm an unabashed enthusiast of this product. I think you can take it for a test drive at Galt Baby in 900 North Michigan.
We have the Orbit and love it. It was the best baby shower gift that we got!
