The Babyzen Yoyo Buggy

After my Twitter rant last week about how annoying large pushchairs are on public transport, (sorry!), I was excited to hear about a new lightweight and foldable pushchair on the market.

Apparently, the revolutionary new Babyzen YOYO travel buggy has been flying out of the shops since it launched here in the UK 3 months ago.

The feature that really caught my attention is the weight: it is only 5.8 kg! This is half the weight of most buggies and less than the Bugaboo Bee at 8.5kg, which I purchased mainly because it was one of the lightest  on the market, (amongst other things.) Although my Bee is fairly easy to manoeuvre on public transport, it is still pretty heavy to lift up and down stairs at stations with no elevator, especially with a toddler sitting in it! This is even more relevant now that I am pregnant again! Those extra few kg can make all the difference!

At £309 RRP it is also very good value (my Bugaboo Bee cost £500, before accessories). Of course, you could just get a cheap stroller if you have a toddler, but it won't have a lot of the features of a proper buggy, especially the following:

The major plus of the YOYO is that it is the first buggy in the world to fully comply with size recommendation for cabin baggage. Anyone who has flown with a young child will also be familiar with the hassle of having to get the buggy packed away into the main luggage hold as it is simply too big to take on as hand luggage. The YOYO is truly compact buggy (52 x 44 x 18 cm when folded), great for planes, as well as squeezing into a car boot etc. (The Bugaboo Bee is 88 x 43 x 31).



Just like the Bugaboo Bee, the folding mechanism on the YOYO allows it to be opened and folded in seconds with just one hand, and it can then also be carried over your shoulder with the detachable shoulder strap. You can see the video demo here: http://www.babyzen.com/video-yoyo.php.

BabyZen list the other key features as follows:

• 4-wheel suspension.
• Exclusive "soft-drive" system: no need to lock the front swivel wheel, even on rough terrain.
• Reclinable backrest, removable and washable fabrics

.

You can also buy some accessories (similar to the Bugaboo's) such as the cup holder, footmuff and brolly.

Unfortunately, the buggy is only suitable from 6 months and  up to 15kg. (The Bugaboo Bee is suitable from birth.) The seat is also not reversible (as the Bugaboo Bee is), and the seat is forward facing, which is really more targeted towards toddlers than babies, who like to keep their parents in view! It is also not possible to replace the seat with a compatible care seat as you can on the Bugaboo I'm afraid, a useful feature for Mums about town getting taxis. However, if you live in a big city, you can always put the whole buggy into a black cab. TOP TIP: The new Hailo phone app has been a lifesaver for me on this front, enabling me to travel in taxis without the car seat, and enabling me to hail a cab in minutes wherever I am, via the app, rather than standing out on the street trying to find one.

The handlebar is not adjustable as the Bugaboo is, but thanks to its curved and 106 cm high handlebar, it is comfortable to drive a YOYO, no matter how tall you are.


The YOYO is available in red, black and blue and the new Grey and Pink editions have been launched and will be available from the end of July. Covers are interchangeable.



So for all you keen travellers and Mums-about-town- get your hands on this great value portable buggy right away!

There is a full list of stockists on the babyzen website, but if you want to buy online try www.huggle.co.uk
or www.pramworld.co.uk

Visit their website for more info www.babyzen.com