best baby playards

A hefty playard, but a fairly well thought out one, December 8, 2010

By 

Geoff Lodal (Fort Collins, CO) – See all my reviews

  

I’m an engineer, and as such I like things that are well built and well thought out. I’ve spent way too much time in the playard aisle at BabiesRUs checking out the options. I’ve shaken them, disassembled them, stressed them, and the Chicco was the obvious winner. Side note, don’t buy display models from BabiesRUs .

I bought this after the price dropped notably even though our baby is still a few months out. We already have the matching high chair and travel set, we’re just acquiring things a few at a time to help spread out the cost and keep me entertained. It was at the front gate when I got home yesterday and I immediately hoisted it up on my shoulder to take inside. As others have said, it’s hefty, and I won’t be doing that again. Smaller moms should take note, this is a bit of a hoss to move around a lot. I opened the box and upon seeing the case it came in, I was sure I would never get it all back in. More on that later.

The mobile (not mobile at all btw), changing table, bassinet, and some hardware for them store in a side pocket of the case. The folded playard is actually wrapped in the folded mattress (which has a convenient pocket for the manual) and then slid into the case so the wheels protrude out the bottom and the whole thing can be rolled like a piece of luggage. It takes some practice figuring out the right configuration to pack it up into, but it’s not that bad. I put the actual playard together first, which is very easy and could be done in under a minute. When locked into place, it’s quite sturdy, which was one of the selling points. Yeah, it’s heavy, but you’re not going to be carrying this thing around all day, it’s supposed to be a safe place for the baby to play. The wheel locks were flimsy, they could be a potential problem in the future, but I think I can get by without them. It won’t fit through a standard sized door, but did anyone really expect it to or measure? If you need to move it, you should find a safe place for your baby in the mean time, don’t try to one hand it.

The bassinet was next, and after one time through became much easier. You have to pay attention to orientation (it has a remote pocket that gets covered by the changing table if it’s on backwards), but I’d say about 5 minutes or less to assemble that after the first time through. Seems plenty sturdy and simple. The changing table came after that, you have to attach two frame pieces which are a bit cumbersome and irritating, but allow it to be way sturdier than competitors. Once assembled it zips on and attaches with 4 buckles and the frame is fully supported by the playard frame. This was and continues to be one of the selling points, it’s the only one I’d consider usable from those that I looked at, the others were too flimsy for me to consider safe. It also stores quickly and easily by undoing the buckles and flipping it over the side. The pockets on the side aren’t huge, but are enough to stuff the case and maybe some other small things into.

The two “gimmicky” things are hit or miss. I like the light/music/vibrating device, though as most have said, the vibration is pretty light. So far it works as advertised. The mobile will probably never get used, it’s not easy to attach to the mattress (4 velcro straps on the bottom of the mattress), has to be removed to used the changing table, and as I said, doesn’t move at all. We’ll probably ditch it for something that’ll be more visually stimulating. Not necessarily a bad thing, it’ll save room in the case, which leads me into my next topic, repacking.

As I said, the task was daunting, but easier than expected. The playard folds as easily as it unfolds, and once the awkward wrapping of the mattress is done, it’s easy. It took three times to get the orientation right (the handle needs to be 90 degrees clockwise from the wheels to line up right in the case) but I think I’ll remember from here on out. Sliding that assembly into the case is the worst part, I’d suggest having someone help or inverting the entire thing and sliding the case over the wheels from the top. A little tucking, stashing the electronics in the top, zipping, and the hard part’s done. The other pieces all go back into the side pocket without too much of a struggle (even less of one once you ditch the mobile) and you’re good to go.

Packed up, this is about the size of a kids golf bag, so by no means small. Combined with a stroller, it’ll fill most of a trunk, but it’s still relatively portable. I’m guessing we’ll be leaving the changing table and bassinet at home most of the time, which will allow about a 30% volume reduction. Durability remains to be seen, but for the price I paid, I’m happy with my purchase.

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Great for the price!, May 9, 2009

I picked this up at Babies-R-Us for 9 in the tan/cream colors that were not offered on Amazon. That design may be an exclusive to Babies-R-Us. The play yard is pretty easy to set up and it probably took me about 30 minutes from start to finish. So far I’ve left the changing table up 24/7 and let the baby sleep in the bassinet. My baby loves to look at the stuffed animals that hang from the top (elaphant, zebra, lion, giraffe, and rabbit…which of those doesn’t fit with the theme?).

The changing table is vinyl and its easy to wipe off if you have an accident while changing. There are three mesh bags hanging off the side of the changing table to store changing supplies. This is my biggest complaint about this product. This isn’t the best design for storing supplies. It’s ok, not great. The changing table is sturdy and feels secure enough. It’s attached to the play yard with a zipper and four buckles.

The removable corner unit controls the music/volume, light, and vibrate features. There is also a remote control and everything uses AA batteries (6 total). The music is ok and it has decent sound. The light is ok (we rarely ever use it) and the vibrate feature hardly even vibrates the mattress. My baby does seem to like it, so it must do something. Every feature times out after 6 minutes, which is nice, and the remote control can can turn everything on or off.

Pros: looks nice, sturdy, remote control, ease of use

Cons: hardly any storage for wipes, diapers, etc…, only a few songs, vibrate function barely vibrates the mattress

Overall the pros outweigh the cons and I’d recommend this product to anyone who is shopping for play yards.

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Great for playing, not great for packing, December 17, 2009

By 

S. Hogan (Orange County, CA) – See all my reviews

  

This play yard is chock-full of bells and whistles and pretty much does everything except wash your dishes and sort the laundry, which as a new parent I thought would be fabulous. As an experienced parent, I can now say that it’s overkill. The biggest problem I’ve had with this play yard is its lack of portability. It’s big and clunky, but the worst part is that if you don’t carry all of the accessories, there’s a ton of extra space in the bag and the playard moves around and becomes a real pain to carry. To break down the accessories:

Bassinet: Works well, only good up to 15 lbs. like other playard bassinets

Mobile: Attaches to the four corners of the mattress, so if you want to use the changing table you have to take it off. Can’t be used when the mattress is in the lowest position

Light/Sound/Vibration Thingy: Vibration is too weak to vibrate the mattress, sounds are annoying, light times out so you might as well just get a night light in the room.

Remote Control: Neat idea, but you have to point it directly at the unit, in a very specific, hard to hit spot, or it doesn’t work.

Changing Table: Good as long as your baby fits in it. It goes across width-wise and is actually smaller than the whole width. Our son outgrew it by 3-4 months.

Extra Pockets: Just okay, only room for 2-3 diapers in each.

Carrying Bag: Practically useless unless you stuff it with everything

Padded Mattress: Just barely

Other problems are that it doesn’t fit through doorways, which I didn’t realize would be something I really wanted until after I had to break the thing down to move it from room to room.

All of that said, it’s attractive and nice and roomy inside, so there’s plenty of space to play. I also have just used standard playard sheets like the ones made for other brands. It’s a great place for keeping the baby safe and occupied while I do chores, but we bought a second super-cheap, no-frills playard to use as a portable crib. I wish I’d saved the money.

*******Update January 4*******

Something else to be aware of–our son is teething and likes to chew on the edge of the playard (and his crib, and pretty much everything else), and his teeth are getting snagged in the fabric around the edges. It hasn’t harmed his teeth at all, but he’s literally shredding the fabric and it sounds kind of alarming when he pops some more threads. I wouldn’t call it dangerous, but it’s pretty ugly-looking, and since one of the only things this playard had going for it was being nice-looking, it’s definitely a negative. Our cheapo playard doesn’t have the fancy fabric around the edges and is impervious to the Teeth of Doom. Once again, I really wish I’d saved the money.

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Flimsy but serves its purpose…, October 21, 2007

Pros:

1. It is taller than others, making it harder to be climbed over.

2. It serves its purpose; we couldn’t live without it with twins crawling in 2 different directions.

3. Compared to others that aren’t as flimsy, the price is right. The other option is metal and it’s 2 times the price for half the size.

4. We added the extension and it’s the perfect size for both our twins. They both have plenty of space to crawl around and all their toys.

5. Door.

6. Does fold up well to take with you

7. It does provide a safe place to put non-walking infants while you shower, pee, make dinner, etc. We use it everyday. I recommend the Step2 blue mat to go under it to avoid bumps.

8. It is easy to transport since it is light-weight.

Cons:

1. It is a little bit flimsy. You have to keep the door closed and latched or the whole thing will fall over when baby climbs on it.

2. Holes are perfect size for baby to stick hands/feet in and climb. By 9 months, my twins were able to climb half way up.

3. Only one door, others I’ve seen have a door on every other section, but this isn’t a big issue and would probably make it even more unstable.

4. The biggest downer is that when my twins were only 8 months old, they could already move the entire thing around, including off the mat. I can only imagine how they will move the thing around when they can walk. It will defeat its purpose then since they’ll be able to take off with gate in hand and get to what they want. It’s too light-weight.

5. I only recommend it for babies not walking yet. Unless you tether it down to a piece of furniture or hooks on a wall, it’s not useable for very long since they can slide it around when they start walking (see # 4). I would like to get more use out of it.

6. The “handle” is useless to carry it with. It’s just a strap that you snap around it. The minute I picked up the gate with it, it came unsnapped. It needs something permanent.

7. It does look like a cage. I wish the slats were vertical…it would make it harder for them to climb and take away the cage-look. Who wants to “cage” their children like animals??

Overall, for the price, I would recommend it since it does serve its purpose. I’ve done my research, and for a plastic gate, this is the best one out there since it is taller and can be made larger with the extension. A metal one I’ve seen wouldn’t be as flimsy, but then it would be too heavy to make it portable like this one. I guess there isn’t such a thing as the “perfect play yard” all around.

**UPDATE**

My twins are now 15 months old and we are still using this play yard everyday. They are walking now and can move it around but because all the toys are in the way, etc., it keeps it somewhat in place so they never go far with it. They just move it off the mat a foot or so which still keeps them refined to one area for safety’s sake. They don’t like staying in there by themselves as they prefer their freedom now, so I have to get in with them while they play or they cry. There is plenty of room for me, the two of them, and TONS and TONS of toys! My biggest complaint now would have to be the holes – they are the perfect size for little feet to climb. My kids can get all the way to the top so we can’t leave them unattended at all. Since my kids prefer their freedom now, I think we will be packing it away soon (or using it as a large single gate across an entire room instead of an enclosed play yard), but it has been a life saver and I got more/longer use out of it then I ever thought I would.

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Serves it’s purpose, July 12, 2007

By 

N. Shore – See all my reviews

  

Works well to temporarily house an infant/toddler and toys when I need to disappear to the loo or remove something hot from the oven. The folding process takes a bit to get used to and the knobs you are supposed to tighten in place and loosen to fold don’t really do anything. It is only stable in the hexagon configuration. It comes in handy, especially while caring for two, and I am glad we have it.

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Keeps my twins safe!, July 13, 2007

By 

A. Kengla – See all my reviews

  

My twins learned to sit up, crawl, pull to stand and cruise within a 2 week period when they were 8 months old. It was sooo hard to keep them out of trouble and from climbing on furniture. We got the Surround Play Safe Play Yard and it has been a lot easier for us. They play in there and can still see me when I’m in the kitchen. Then, when company comes over, it is easy to put away.

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First one I ever bought.., April 27, 2011

The product itself is not bad at all.. Im just excited because its the first crib/playard I ever bought. It comes with a travel bag. The product is big but folds down to a compact size and everything fits in the bag without any hassle..There is only one problem though.. the mattress I think should’ve had more padding.. But nonetheless I think overall my girlfriend and I are happy to use this product for our first born baby girl.. She wanted polka dots..

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