Playtex Embrace Breast Pump System
by Playtex
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Product Summary
Manufacturer: PlaytexBrand: Playtex
Release Date: 2006-10-30
Model: 6537
Product features:
- Double electric pump
- Soft comfort breast cups
- 5 levels of speed
- 5 levels of suction
- Breast cups are dishwasher safe
Description of Playtex Embrace Breast Pump System
The Playtex? Embrace? Breast Pump System combines ultimate comfort with state-of-the-art efficiency, including a double electric pump, stylish tote bag, and all the accessories you need for long-term, daily pumping.Baby Products Reviews of Playtex Embrace Breast Pump System
Customer Review: I preferred the Embrace to the Pump In Style
Summary: 5 Stars
I was in a unique position to compare the Playtex Embrace to the Medela Pump In Style, because I was in a scientific breastfeeding study comparing the two. My baby was between ages 3 weeks and 7 weeks during the study. I got to choose which pump I liked at the end of the study, and I kept the Embrace for over a year of pumping. I think different people could disagree about the comfort comparison, depending on their bodies, but if I had to tell someone to bet on one or the other being comfortable, I would bet on the Embrace. And I know it worked better for me. I used it while working as a P/T lawyer taking depositions at many different locations I had to travel to. Most of the time, hotels and office buildings had plug-ins in the public restrooms. When they didn't, I used adjacent rooms that were currently vacant (with a sign on the doorknob), or the car adapter, or the Avent Isis as last resort. But Playtex, if you're reading this, get us a battery pack, please!
The Playtex felt to me like it stimulated let-down better, because it had a silicone cup that was sort of massaging my breast, more like the baby's varying suction, as opposed to the Medela PIS, which just had cone-shaped hard plastic funnels. I thought the Playtex was noisy... until I tried the Medela! The Medela is so much noisier. Other women in the rooms adjacent to me would remark on how quiet I was, compared to the Medelas they used. (Maybe reviewers are disagreeing because they used the Medela on a lower suction level? It gets a lot noisier when you turn the suction up to at least just below medium level). When I started, I used the Playtex on only a "2" out of "5" for suction, and gradually worked up to about a "4" later on, so I never had a problem with not getting enough suction. I liked adjusting the suction with buttons, vs. the dial on Medela. I thought it was more comfortable to hold both suction cups with one forearm and hand, and have the other hand free, with the Playtex, because of the flat surface on the backs of the cups. Both pumps were clear enough to see the streams of milk. Both had advantages to their bag set-ups, but I liked the Playtex bag better. Playtex, if you're listening, I'd like an interior bag that fit both suction cups fully assembled including the bottles; that would have saved valuable time during my quick pumping breaks, since I could have pre-assembled them completely each morning.
The Playtex pump is more hygienic, because the pumping air is separate from the areas where milk and the air next to the milk go. This is why the Medela warns agains biohazard with two users, because the milk can actually get up inside the tubes and even into the pump casing with the Medela. (Maybe it's to Medela's advantage to make everyone buy a new one). So I like that I could share the Embrace with my sister later if she ever needs it. I rinsed the parts out, removing the silicone part and the valves, after each pumping break. I used the Avent Express steam cleaner in the microwave nightly, and then the dishwasher whenever I happened to be running the dishwasher. I called Playtex about why the manual said not to clean it in the microwave steamer, and they said they just hadn't tested it that way. After I had the Embrace awhile, I realized there's this little tube-shaped area at the base of the cups that is too small to get your little finger in. This makes it difficult to clean and dry without a tiny brush. I used Q-tips, actually, though I think pipe cleaners might be more durable.
My baby preferred wide-based Playtex nipples to Avent. I like the Playtex Ventaire bottles, but since I was using the wide-neck ones that curved, and since it took up less space, I decided to pump into ziplock bags inside the Playtex plastic open-ended nursers. Gerber bags worked, though they were a little tight and once in a rare while leaked. Then I switched to Lansinoh, because the milk antibodies etc. don't stick to the plastic as much, because they don't put the relaxers in the plastic to make it stretchy. Anyway, they also fit. With the Playtex drop-ins, I felt more milk was attaching to the harder plastic. I liked the soft Playtex bags better, but again, preferred the Lansinoh.
The first pump I ever tried was the Avent Isis hand pump (before the study), and I think it is the most comfortable of all, but I just used it as a back-up pump (during an evening at the theater after enjoying some wine I could pump and dump in the restroom, for example). And electric pumps vs. hand pumps are the difference between 10 minutes pumping both breasts at the same time, and 15 minutes on each side with the hand pump.
I was ambivalent about returning to work, and I never would have done it without this pump. I think without the study I would not have gotten in the habit of pumping, and it would have been hard for me to shell out the money without knowing I liked an electric pump. But an electric pump was crucial to my being able to take short breaks and do my job.
After 18 months, my pump died. It seems a lot of other reviewers had this happen to them. But Playtex overnighted me a new pump, which impressed me. The warranty is voided by multiple users, unfortunately. But I think this one would last me (or my sister) through another child. And if I had to buy another pump, I'd buy the Embrace again.
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