Medela Freestyle Hands Free Breast Pump - Medela 67060.
List Price:
$379.99
Our Price:
$347.99
You Save:
$32.00 ( 8%)
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Product Details
Product Length:
15.75 inches
Product Width:
8.25 inches
Product Height:
9.0 inches
Product Weight:
5.8 pounds
Package Length:
13.7 inches
Package Width:
11.7 inches
Package Height:
7.6 inches
Package Weight:
10.5 pounds
Average Customer Rating:
based on 198 reviews
Features
Double Breast Pump
Includes 2 Breastshields
Perfect for Moms On-the-Go
Small and Lightweight, Memory Button, LCD Display
2-Phase Expression Technology
Customer Reviews
Average Customer Review: ( 198 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
178 of 180 found the following review helpful:
Simply the best for working moms Mar 24, 2008
By Amy R. After a few weeks of feeling like a pack mule dragging my Medela Pump in Style from my first child back & forth to the office and using the Avent hand pump when I traveled, I finally splurged and bought the Freestyle. It is so light and easy to use it was worth every penny. I have now used it at home, in the office, in the car, on airplanes, at airports...
Why I love it: 1) It's superlight...the entire Freestyle pump feels like it's about the same weight as the power brick from my Pump in Style. 2) The fact that you can take the unit and put it in any bag you want is terrific. 3) The valves and tubes are easier to deal with than the Pump in Style (esp. the valves). 4) The digital display with timer is surprisingly useful. 5) The rechargeable batteries make it easy to pump in places where there may not be outlets.
The only negative: I think the hands-free mechanism is kind of convoluted, but I just use the Easy Expressions Bustier (which looks ridiculous but is nonetheless effective).
71 of 72 found the following review helpful:
Not worth the risk Sep 02, 2011
By Ombret You may, like me, be a dad perusing breastpump reviews in order to decide whether the Medela Freestyle would be a nice gift for your wife. No...? Am I the only one...? Well, whoever you are, please read carefully, because as my old boss used to say: "Hear me now, believe me later."
My wife had had good success with the Pump in Style for kid #1, but was interested in trying some newer technology (smaller, less conspicuous) when she went back to work after kid #2. And I naively thought I had done my research. My error was discounting all the naysayers who had given the Freestyle a bad rap on the Internet. Those people were not cranks, they were just correct. Here are some of the problems we've identified with the Medela Freestyle in about four months of daily use:
- Less suction, as compared to Pump in Style, at least--and its congener the PiS Advanced. The Freestyle is cordless, i.e., powered by rechargeable batteries. If you've ever used a cordless drill, you know that they are chronically underpowered. The same goes for just about all cordless devices. With the batteries there is just a design tradeoff that the engineers working with line power do not have to face, and the result is less power.
- Don't let the company fool you into thinking that the two-phase milk letdown system will compensate for the lower suction. YOU WILL GET LESS MILK. So unless you are oversupplied, and I mean oversupplied by 50% or more, you will endanger your ability to feed your child if you use this pump.
- Gone from the Freestyle, and from Pump in Style Advanced for that matter, is the ability (present in Pump in Style) to separately control speed and vacuum. This is a major issue. When you are squatting on the bathroom floor trying to pump in the five available minutes, you really need all the degrees of freedom you can get.
- The hands-free system is absurd. It was obviously designed by a man. Flimsy straps clipped here and there, a complex system of clip adapters that you will almost immediately lose, and... a belt clip?!? For the times you go jogging while using this thing? Every time we have tried to use this in our house, it has been either too loose or too tight, or both. The hands-free rigging reminds me of the flying contraptions my friends and I tried to build in high school. Correct concept, but just hopelessly impractical.
- A lot of parts to clean. In the office this has been a major pain in the neck for my wife. The shields and valves have many parts (four on each side) and each has many, many grooves, nooks and crannies. Difficult to clean and slow to dry.
- Astronomically expensive. I mean, I understand this is cheaper than formula, and is a medical device made with medical-grade silicone and other space-age ingredients. But in an era when I can buy a laptop computer for $350, a vacuum pump and some bits of plastic should not also cost $350.
So this is where I get to the idea that the Freestyle is not worth the risk. It isn't worth taking the risk that it will not be the best pump for your family, when you really do not want to have to buy more than one. Medela compounds the risk by making it totally impossible to try before you buy or to return the pump if it doesn't work for your family.
We are actually going back to the Pump in Style, because with the Freestyle, as of pretty much now, the milk deficit is becoming untenable. I wanted to like the Freestyle--all the more after I dropped mucho bucks on it. But I just can't give it more than one star. Please take my advice. I sure didn't. I thought the people grousing on the Internet were just cranks. I don't know what pump you should buy, although the Pump in Style we bought on eBay for kid #1 was in retrospect pretty awesome--speaking as an impartial dad who frankly would rather be done with the whole milk phase of life. What I do know is that Medela does not deserve to be the leader in the breastpump market, or whatever they claim to be, if this is their flagship product. It's actually an insult to the hardworking moms of the world, struggling to keep their babies full and happy, that this is the best this company can do.
81 of 83 found the following review helpful:
I Love the Freestyle Apr 07, 2008
By L. Carlson I previously used the Avent IS IQ duo and while the hospital grade pump was helpful in maintaining my supply I had a number of other complaints about it that left me very frustrated (you can see my review on this site for more details).
I purchased the Freestyle immediately after it came out and have really enjoyed using it. There are very few negatives.
Positives: * Small size- can even put it in my purse! * Battery power works great. I only charge it once a week, and pump off battery at work for the entire week. It is also handy for travel- no need for a manual pump when this one is so small. * Ready supply of accessories- we don't have a sink in our lactation room at work. It is quite easy to purchase additional parts (kits and horns) for this pump (compared to the Avent). I have 3 sets and wash them at night. * The Medela Quick Clean Wipes are great- I keep some in my bag and have come in handy a couple of times when I have forgetten pump parts at home. Likewise the Medela Pump & Save Storage Bags are nice as well. I have used them in a pinch when I didn't have enough bottles. Medela says that they are not recommended for the Freestyle, I haven't tried them with the pump- just pour the milk in there. * The hands free kit really works!!! I can't pump without it now. It really allows me to work on other things while I am pumping- reading, computer, surfing the net, etc. * The pump is so small, portable and lightweight and the bag is really discreet. No one ever knows that I am carrying a breast pump. * The envy of all the moms in the lactation room. Not that anyone looks at what any of us are doing, but everyone who has seen my pump (I often show it off before I pump) wants one. * All the parts that come into contact with the milk as well as the bottles are BPA free. This is NOT the case with the Avent Isis IQ Duo
Cons: * The lining in the bag is a little flimsy- kind of like a lightweight silk. This make it hard to put the pump in the pump pocket- takes two hands. I usually just dump mine in any old place because of this. * The bag is a little small. It is a tight fit with 3 sets of parts, and other accessories. Even if I only put one set of parts, I cannot fit the cooler, which becomes one more thing that I have to carry. Would be nice if I could at least clip the cooler to the handles of the bag. * The pump isn't quite as strong as the Isis IQ Duo. My milk supply tends to drop off a little over the week, but it may partly be my fault due to getting lazy from time to time and only pumping twice. Don't get me wrong though, this is no wuss of a pump. On the highest setting you really feel the pull. * I wish that the automatic setting would let you save just the suctions for the let down and the regular phase rather than also the time for the let down phase. I am not consistent in how long it takes for let down. * I wish that I could control the length of the "suck" like I can with the ISIS- I like a slightly longer time than the Avent allows me.
However, all of the cons are really minor, and I wouldn't trade this pump for any other. Thanks Medela for making a product that really takes into account the needs of us working moms.
76 of 78 found the following review helpful:
Not a good choice for working moms Dec 09, 2008
By Tina I have had the motor replaced after 3 months of using it 3X per day. The pump just stopped working (output gradually got lower until it was barely pumping anything). The new motor worked well for about another month (so it wasn't my supply but the pump) but I am again loosing suction. So I have replaced the motor, the spare parts kit twice, and the hose. When I received the new motor, my output immediately went back up, but its now going down again. I am running out of stuff to replace on this pump. Even though I love the size and convenience of hands free, bottom line is that since the suction starts to get weak after a few months, then its not worth it. I will be contacting company AGAIN (ugh) to try and get the pump in style advanced. My recommendation, hold off on getting this. Hands free looks nice, but the overall quality of the pump is lacking. And not to mention, cleaning all the spare parts every night on this kit is so very exhausting. Yet another issue I have with this pump. Bottom line: Pump did not hold up for full time use. (I've been using it for 7 months now - 3 months at 3X per day).
UPDATE: Since I've written this review, I did get the pump up and running well again. I did however have to contact Medela who decided the second time around to send me a new motor and a new battery. When both of these were replaced my pump started working like a charm again. Of course I cannot say how long the newly replaced parts would last for since I stopped pumping for my little guy only 3 months later. However, all in all, I was able to successfully pump for a total of 15 months with the freestyle (more thanks to my determination and diligence than the performance of the pump). I was able to pump everywhere from my car, plane, in my room while on lunch break, in a bathroom (I know yuck) while at a conference. I wouldn't have been able to do that as easily with a bigger/bulkier pump. However, I don't think that moms should use this reason alone as a deciding factor in getting this pump. It way a huge pain to keep up my supply when the suction got weak, and this caused a lot of unnecessary anxiety, and hassle. I'm therefore stearing all new moms away from this model. At the very least, make sure you have a backup because if this pump fails, and you are still having to go to work, and wait for another pump to get shipped out to you, you'll find yourself in a bind. I had to call in sick several times when this happened to me as I did not anticipate problems, and was stuck w/out a pump and no way to feed my child.
44 of 45 found the following review helpful:
Working Mom Jan 12, 2009
By New Mom At first I loved this product, but it's now my nemisis.
Why I loved it: Small and light, dual-phase pumping, the thought of hands-free was alluring.
Why I hate it: 1. Suction is horrible. I've switched shields, replaced parts, replaced tubing. The next step I guess is the motor, but it never comes anywhere close to emptying my breast. Today, after pumping for 20 minues (and not pumping anything for the last 5 minutes), I was able to hand express another ounce myself when it was done and could have done more had I had the time. I've been pumping less and less and was wondering what was going on - I'm doing everything they recommend to keep my supply up and nothing was working. I happened to forget my pump at home last week and luckily a friend at work had extra parts/tubing for her Pump in Style Advanced. Yes, I know you shouldn't share pumps, but I was desperate since I work an hour from home. With her pump, I pumped twice as much as I usually do in half the time. Actually stopping at the hospital tonight to rent the Symphony just so I can get my supply back up quickly.
2. Hands-free is a pain. First it takes way too much time to get the handsfree set up - frequently re-adjusting the elastic straps that hook to the side to make sure the shield is on straight, not to high, too low, not leaking out of the bottom, etc. Second, if you don't like the SoftShield provided (sticks so your skin and causes pain over time), you have to use a the Personalfit. Unfortunately, the Personalfit have longer tubes at the back of the shield and since the elastic handsfree strap only stretches so far, it essentially flattens your breast against your chest which is very uncomfortable when you're full and ready to pump. Third, similar to the PersonalFit Shield issue, if you're anything over a C-cup, your breast ends up a flat to get hands-free strap to properly fit.
3. Loud, Loud, Loud. My mother-in-law laughs that she can hear my cow mooing everytime I call her to check on my baby while I'm pumping.
based on 198 reviews
Simply the best for working moms Mar 24, 2008
By Amy R.
Not worth the risk Sep 02, 2011
By Ombret
