Philips Avent Express Baby Food and Bottle Warmer
by Philips AVENT
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Our Price: $49.95 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $38.95 (click here) Category: Baby Product See more product details |
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Baby Products Reviews of Philips Avent Express Baby Food and Bottle Warmer
Customer Review: Not as good as the "Avent" name implies
Summary: 2 Stars
I registered for and received the Avent bottle warmer simply because I realy like the Avent bottles and assumed the bottle warmer would also live up to my expectations, especially given the price. However, I was sorely disappointed for many reasons already stated in previous reviews. There is no automatic shut off and I have overheated more than one bottle. Can't tell you how many times I have turned the dial to 3 to warm the bottle (in a hurry for hungry baby of course) only to come back a few minutes later to realize I forgot to plug the machine in OR how many times I have forgotten to unplug it and only realize when I go to warm the next bottle. I understand I could use a power strip that I can turn on and off, BUT it's one more thing on my counter and WHY should I have to go the extra effort? Also, you have to use a separate timer (e.g., microwave, kitchen timer, etc.) if you want to hear a beep to let you know the bottle is ready. In a nutshell, it is missing the on/off switch (mine is REALLY new---must have done away with this switch), hate that you can't leave it plugged in, and it doesn't have an auditory signal to let you know your bottle is warm (IF you remembered to plug it in!). I bought the Munchkin brand warmer out of frustration and research that I should have done before hand and I LOVE it. It was exactly HALF the price, you can leave it plugged in (no need for power strip), has an automatic shut off (no overheated bottles), and has an auditory signal that beeps 5 times when the bottle is warm. It works just as quickly and I have never overheated a bottle. Also, it uses steam instead of boiling water, which I like better because when it has completed warming, there is no liquid at all left in the machine to continue heating bottle. Also, it does not take up any more counter space than the Avent warmer. Don't assume more expensive is better because it is certainly not true in this case.Customer Review: Does its Job Well!
Summary: 5 Stars
For my newborn daughter, only the best will do. Ive tried other bottle warmers that utilize steam to heat bottles quickly and they fall short of perfection. With the Avent bottle warmer you can customize the temperature of your feeding without overheating. One reviewer complained arguing that the Avent bottle warmer is about as good as a microwaved cup of boiling water only more time-consuming and costly. Here are three reasons why this statement is incorrect...1. ALL the top product manufacturers in the industry (playtex, Avent, etc) strongly warrant against using boiling water to warm up milk if you are using a disposable liner system because the liner may burst during consumption.
2. It might take only 2-3 minutes to warm up bottled milk in a cup opf boiling water, however, you must consider the 1 minute or more it takes in the microwave to heat the water in the cup thus making the total time 3-4 minutes.
3. The unit is compact and mobile. Try bringing a microwave with you while you travel. All of a sudden $40 isnt so bad after all.
I have been using this bottle warmer every 2 hours for over a week now and have found that if the unit is simply left in the on position it cuts the warming time by 75%. Therefore bottled milk that has been cooled to about 40 degrees can be warmed in less than 3 minutes. Althought the instructions do say to switch off & unplug the unit when not in use... I figure that it is simply ALWAYS in use and have had no problems with it being left on. The water in the unit does evaporate a bit but not faster than every 3 hours.
After trying numerous other brands... the Avent bottle warmer is by far the most effective bottle warmer when considering reliability, accuracy, consistency, and ease of use. 5 stars.
Customer Review: Don't follow the instructions
Summary: 5 Stars
Do NOT follow the instructions. They try to tell you how to get the bottle warmed up as fast as possible, which is way too hard to time properly (and is pretty much guaranteed to overheat the milk most of the time).
We leave the temperature set to just slightly warmer than the temperature we want the milk to be. We measured it with a cooking thermometer (currently set at about 105F, which works perfectly with 4 oz. acrylic Evenflo bottles).
This lets us put the bottle in the warmer and leave it as long as we need to, but it's always a perfect temperature in about 15 minutes. So, about 15-20 minutes from the next feeding, we put a bottle in the warmer, and it's perfect every time (but if something goes wrong, and it takes 30 minutes, it's still perfect).
Now, some people will complain that 15 minutes is too long, but I'd rather have a consistent 15 minutes than a random amount of time, which is always what we got with the steam warmer we tried first. Sometimes it worked. Sometimes it overheated it to the point that we'd have to run cold water over it for 5 minutes (and, of course, the nutritional value of the breast milk is pretty much ruined by overheating). Sometimes it underheated, and then we have to heat it again (or stick it in a pan of hot water), which takes more time.
So, in conclusion, it works great, just not the way the Avent marketing department want's to hype it (which is mainly to compete with the other fast warmers).
Customer Review: BEST warmer out there!!
Summary: 5 Stars
I had the First Years Day & Night Warmer but the steam scalded the milk and me as well! The little measuring cup w/tight-fitting lid was a big pain. So I had resorted to warming milk the old-fashioned way--sitting in a cup of hot tap water (which took forever). True, this has no on/off button but it works so fast you don't need one! It only overheats if you walk away from it for too long, just like anything else. I turn it on high (level 3) and a full 8-oz bottle is room temp in less than 2 minutes! The milk will heat even faster if you picked it up and swirled it around every once in a while to mix it. It heats babyfood even faster so I just stand and stir it and in 45 seconds it's done!
As for the overflow problem - I put in some water, add the bottle, and just add more water -- there's no indicator or line b/c the water level will vary according to how full/heavy the bottle is. Simple physics!
This is great for people who want their milk heated in a hurry. I just wish I hadn't wasted my $$ on that First Years warmer!!
FOR PUMPING MOMS:
Since I need to scald my expressed breastmilk before freezing it (due to lipase), I use the "overheat" to my advantage - it will heat up to 170 degrees in 20-30 minutes. I just set a timer and walk away. Scalding inactivates the lipase, which gives stored milk that soapy/metallic taste. If you have a lipase problem, this is a Godsend! Thank God I don't have to use that double-boiler anymore!! Now I just scald right in the bottle!
Customer Review: could be warmer oh no too hot !!!
Summary: 3 Stars
I bought the avent baby warmer and whilst not totally disappointed in it I also can not say that it is one of avents best products. To list a few negative points
1- The product has no on/off button and personally I prefer not to take out plugs and leave them on the side when the surface is potentially wet also I have found that sometimes when removing plugs this can cause a spark which would be an unpleasant surprise for anyone however an adapter with an on off button does resolve this problem but adds cost to the product if you don't already have one.
2- The timings are not accurate which means I have to keep checking bottles so they don't overheat and when the bottle gets put back into the warmer the pressure of the bottle going into the water causes the water to overflow no matter how carefully done.
However on the positive side the warmer does heat the milk evenly and to a good temperature when kept an eye on and saves some time.
The best thing about any product is that it is designed so well that anyone can use it safely and effectively, the purpose of a great product is not to find ways of overcoming the products design faults. Having spoken to a many number of friends many of them agree that this product is a nice to have but by no means necessary.
However as with all avent products this is the best on the market so if you want a bottle warmer this is the one to buy.