Best carrier for babies under 22 pnds.

Sometimes when you are about to become a new parent, you put things on your baby registry that you think are good but turn out to be not so good. Other times you put something that you are not sure about but turn out to be something you use and love. The baby bjorn with extra large straps is definently the latter.

My wife and I picked out the baby bjorn large straps for our baby registry over the snugli products. Why? I'm not sure I think we just got lucky. This is one of those products I could talk about all day and strongly recommend it but to get down to the details read on. Now onto the review!

Safety: A
The most important category in any child product is safety. Safety in the baby bjorn large straps is great, it is a six latch system. The latch points are two in between the crotch that should be done before the baby is inserted. These two hold the front part to the webbing of the baby bjorn. The next two are clip on type latches for the main torso of the child. These are color coded, one red one blue. I'm not sure why they color code them but they slip into a D shape clip easily. To undo them you pinch them from the side and they slip easily out. When clipping them on they make a satisfying snap sound. The last set of latches is for the head or double set for the torso depending on which way your child is facing. This is a punch type latch that allows a peg on the webbing to be inserted through the middle of the latch.

The design of the baby bjorn allows arm movements of your child but while limiting them at the same time. When the child is facing towards you I feel this product gets a A+, I don't feel the child will fall out in this position.

Now when your baby is facing outwards with the top portion doubled over to give your child a good view I feel that if you were to bend over too far, there is a chance he/she could fall out. This is obvious from the start but when upright there is no chance for the child to come out of it.

I think a good addition to the safety would be optional shoulder straps for when the baby is facing outwards. Currently with the baby facing outwards I would give it a A-, combined with the baby facing towards you it rounds out to a solid A.

Comfort: A
The second most important category in a baby carrier is comfort. Comfort for you and comfort for the baby. First comfort for the baby. I really don't think there is a product out that your baby will enjoy as much as the baby bjorn line of carriers. The padding is sufficient so that all of your babies appendages are comforably held. The crotch support that also bears your babies weight, is rounded and comfortable. I know my babie starts squeeling and flapping her arms when I put her in it. She absolutely loves to face outwards and when she gets a little tired it's great for her to change to facing towards me where she can lay her head against me and sleep.

Now comfort for the bearer. I am 6'3" 220 pnd guy and the baby bjorn is perfect. My daughter is now 21.5 pnds and it is still comfortable to wear. The wide straps distribute the weight enought that the straps don't leave marks nor do they themselves hurt you like some backpacks can. Now my wife on the other hand has a bit of trouble handling our babies weight on her chest. SHe says it hurts her back. Baby bjorn does make a back support model that is designed with a lower back support strap, but I am not sure if it comes with the wide straps.

Design: A+
The baby bjorn is quite simply the best designed front carrier on the market. They were making carriers before the other companies had even conceived of a front side carrier. Other than the fact that with a heavier baby you might experience a little back ache after more than a hour of carrying your baby (for my wife not me), I can not think of one fault of the baby bjorn in design other than the need for shoulder straps for some parents. Everyone else just needs to know that it is the most safe with your baby facing towards you, while it is also designed so that you have the option to face your baby outwards, don't bend over without having a hold of your baby. I don't think this is a design flaw because they warn about it in the manual. Basically just know the limitation of the baby bjorn and you'll be fine.

Durability: A+
While some other models come in different colors, the wide strapped version comes in royal blue with two reflective vertical lines running down the front of it. It is an attractive carrier, this is important though, because it is darker colored it will hide stains better! I don't think i'll be buying anything light colored for a long time but the color choice increases its durability of its looks for sure. Another factor is that it is made with heavy fabric that has tremendous durability. The stiching is done very heavily and I believe with triple stitching. I've had mine for 8 months and although it looks a tad bit worn, nothing has ripped or broken. In fact we are going to store our baby bjorn for our next child. Very durable.

Value: A+
While the baby bjorn lines are a bit more expensive than their competitors models, you get what you are paying for. Just looks at the reviews of Snugli or any other brand of front carriers and you'll see a trend of people loving baby bjorn but always having some problems with the other brands. This is because the baby bjorn is just that good. I think ours cost like $65 or maybe a bit more. If cost is a big concern, go buy one on Ebay, this is a item that you can get used that is just as safe as new.

CONCLUSION
I simply love our baby bjorn, my baby loves our baby bjorn, my wife loved it until our baby got to about 18 pnds. The only problem I can see with it is that you have to be careful about bending too far over with the baby facing outwards. Other than that I can recommend it more.

Questions
A new section modeled after someone elses reviews, here are a couple questions that come to mind about this product that I'll try to answer.

You say there is a fall out danger when you bend too far over, how can it be safe if your baby can fall out?
Well yes there is a fall out danger but that is rather inherent in all front carriers. These aren't designed to be a carseat or a heavy backpack. You have to balance the ability to use for everyday use of just walking around and of safety. The only danger with the baby bjorn is when you baby is facing outwards and the top portion of the front is doubled over to reveal the babies face and upper chest. This gives the baby a feeling of freedom that my daughter loves. Yes it might be a bit safer with shoulder straps specifically for facing outwards, but honestly I wouldn't use them because it is more loose straps.

I don't know, it looks just the same as the other less expensive front carriers, why should I buy this one?
If you look at the other reviews and still are ambivalent about paying more money for the baby bjorn, just go to toys-r-us or babies-r-us and try them on for yourself. If at your still unsure, then buy a cheaper brand but save the receipt. I am confident you will have problems with the other models, either in comfort for you or your baby and will want to return them. Due to the very liberal return policy of these two stores you'll have no problem returning the other brand and paying more for the bjorn.

Hope you liked my review, if you have any more questions write me please and I'll include it at the bottom of this review.