Medela Swing Flex Single Electric Breast Pump - Compact design, featuring PersonalFit Flex shields and Medela 2-Phase Expression Technology

I needed to express my milk in addition to breast feeding, I get loads of milk in the mornings but I always seem to run low in the afternoons, and my baby gets so frustrated with it, and expressing meant he didn't keep constantly trying to feed on what little bits of milk I had - giving me a chance to catch up with him.I originally bought a cheap manual pump thinking "how hard can it be" but after only a short time having sore grazed nipples and never being able to express more than 2oz with it, I decided to invest in an electric one.I looked at all available models and reviews - and with them all being about the same or not too different in price I went for the Medela Swing because it's a Which best buy and had the best reviews.Ok, so it's not cheap but is it worth it? Well for me yes - it is a godsend! I can express 4oz in about 20 mins which I think is amazing!It's not too loud despite people saying how noisy the electric pumps are, so I can express while he's sleeping and not worry about disturbing him.It's comfortable to use, you can choose the level of suction which is great!Cleaning it is easy, there are minimal parts and they're easy to assemble.The breast shield that comes with the pump seems quite big, I wouldn't consider myself to have small nipples but had to buy the smaller shield as it was sucking some of the areola in (which the manufacturer suggests could be painful with continued use) but shop around for the personal fit shields as I've seen some sellers charging a fortune for them! (Mine cost £12.99 but have seen some for sale at £75!).The Calma teat is brilliant! The baby has to suckle the teat in the same way it would a breast or no milk comes out - this really helps if your baby starts learning to be lazy with normal teats.The only con I can think of; The lead isn't very long so if you're not using it with batteries then you need to be sitting next to a plug socket.Happy well fed baby and no sore nipples!I highly recommend this pump.

I ordered this on request from my daughter who had just come out of hospital having spent 2 weeks in hospital with her new baby. After using a hospital grade Medela pump she chose this model to order when she came home. Some reviews on other brands state about them being noisy machines, she said this made noise but being a pump and motor it's going to, but not too loud on the higher setting. This was just as efficient as the one used in hospital & with the same settings & strength. The neck lanyard and battery option she found very useful to not feel confined to sitting & pumping in 1 place & useful to manoeuvre about not being restricted. So far she is finding this efficient for how many times she is pumping in a day & confident to take it with her if needed if she takes it out of then house. She is yet to use the feeding teat as pumps when baby is asleep & keeps the milk in the fridge; this may not be needed but she likes that she has the option to make it into an instant ready to use bottle. A good product & recommended for anyone who is pumping along with breast feeding. Not difficult to use, easy to clean & well worth the money.

I have tried 3 electric pumps and a manual pump and have stuck with the Medela Swing. Admittedly it's one of the most expensive, but in this case it is worth the expenditure. However it's worth noting that I managed to get the pump at the reduced cost of £88.00 from Amazon, when the RRP is £129.00, and it's available from the NCT shop for £99.00.PROS:1. Fully adjustable suction strength so the suction can be as gentle or as strong as you need.2. Has the most powerful suction of all of the electric pumps that I've tried so am able to express more milk more quickly.3. Breast guard fits well and is comfortable.4. Easy to assemble, clean and maintain (save for the suction pipe; see below).CONS:1. According to the instructions the suction pipe cannot be sterilised in the microwave however, it isn't too difficult to clean; it's just a minor irritation. However the other parts can be sterilised easily.2. My baby doesn't like the Calma teat that is provided, so I pump into the bottle provided and then transfer into baby's MAM bottle.3. As with most pumps, you have to sit upright/slightly forward when expressing milk. However given the suction power, this isn't too much of an issue as it allows me to express more milk more quickly than the other electric pumps that I've tried, so it's a bit of a trade-off.The other pumps that I tried and did not like were:1. Philips AVENT SCF332/01 Comfort Single electric breast pump - RRP £115.00 so not much cheaper than the swing. A nicely designed pump with the benefit of being able to sit back in a reclined position when expressing. However there are only 3 expression suction settings, and the max setting is nowhere near as powerful as the Medela Swing so I found that I could only express half the amount of milk than I can with the Medela Swing.2. Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature electric breast pump - RRP £67.00 so it is significanty cheaper than the Medela Swing and in this case, you get what you pay for. When the pump functions correctly it's fine and is actually more powerful than the Philips Avent pump mentioned above, but not as powerful as the Medela Swing. However I found - like many other users - that air and milk frequently got sucked into the suction pipe which then causes loss of suction which makes the pump pretty much useless. It happened so often I got annoyed and ditched it in the end.3. Philips Avent manual breast pump - RRP £15.00 if you don't need to express often then it's worth considering a manual pump. You get good suction - as good, if not better, then the Medela Swing - at a fraction of the cost. However if, like me, you are expressing everyday, then it's a bit too tiring.