As my husband and I prepared to travel to Italy with our 16-month-old son, we were in the market for a travel stroller. But not just any travel stroller; after all, there are tons out there—ones that are lightweight, ones that fold with one hand, ones that can fit in the overhead compartment of a plane, you get the point. Specifically, we wanted one that could recline for successful on-the-go sleeping so we didn’t have to head back to our hotel for every nap. Enter the Summer Infant 3Dflip Convenience Stroller, an umbrella stroller (as in, it folds up like an umbrella) that not only reclines but also offers two seating options, making it ideal for infants and toddlers. Meaning, if you purchase this when your little one is an infant, you can keep it all the way through toddler years. That’s one less big item to replace when they become too big. Here’s what happened when we took the top-rated product for a test drive to see how easy it was to push and pack—and not to mention how well our baby napped.
Design: A solid stroller that held up during our travels
We’ve worked religiously with a sleep trainer since our son was 4 months old. When we told her about our upcoming trip, she suggested bringing a stroller that reclines so he could nap while we toured. Many travel strollers don’t offer this design feature, so we were so pleased to find the Summer Infant model and immediately switched what we were going to bring (one that didn’t recline but was smaller) for this stroller. In testing, this stroller was super convenient. The seats and headrest are made of polyester, which was easy to wipe clean after any spills. My toddler always seemed comfortable, too—and he was in this stroller a lot during our trip. Our only tip would be to adjust the straps before reclining, as they get a bit tight once baby lies back for naptime. This stroller also has a reversible seat, which allows your baby to face you when they are younger and then face out when they are older and more curious about the world around them. It was super easy to make the seat adjustment, as we didn’t even have to take anything apart (more on that later). This was a major pro for us with a travel stroller. Another feature we really liked was the canopy, which provided protection from the sun as well as a window for checking on our child. The canopy is also adjustable to accommodate different heights. Simple details made our lives as parents easier, too, including the adult cup holder and a side storage pocket, which is ideal for a cell phone. One design element we weren’t so happy with was the small storage basket under the seat. It could really only hold a small bag with the essentials we needed for the day, so it’s not ideal if you need to run a bunch of errands. It was also hard to get something in and out of the basket with a child in the seat. We found ourselves tugging at items we needed in order to get them out. Given this, we tried hanging our diaper bag on one of the handles and were at least pleased to see that it didn’t affect the balance of the stroller. Once the stroller was folded, it was a bit bulky and on the heavier side for an umbrella stroller, especially considering it’s constructed with a supposedly lightweight aluminum frame. The shoulder strap was pretty uncomfortable, too. We wish it had some padding to help with support.
Safety: JPMA-certified
We were happy to learn that the 3Dflip, along with all other Summer Infant strollers, are certified by the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA), an authority on quality and safety for baby and children’s products. We contacted the JPMA directly to confirm. Additionally, this stroller is even part of the JPMA 2.0 program. It’s worth noting that for safety reasons, an infant should never be left to sleep unaccompanied in this or any stroller. Inserts are new to the stroller world, and just like car seats, they are not the optimum and recommended way for babies to sleep. This stroller felt very sturdy during our travels, going over bumps without any issues thanks to anti-shock front wheels, and the locks on the rear wheels required only a tap of the toe.
Setup Process: A few simple steps, and you’re ready to go
We were pleased with the overall setup process and how easy the instructions were to read and follow thanks to the visuals provided. Once we unfolded the stroller, all we needed to do was attach the four wheels and cup holder, slide on the canopy, and adjust the harness and headrest to fit our child. It took us less than 15 minutes and didn’t require any tools. Pretty good in our book! Once set up, it was easy to transition between seating options: We simply squeezed the recline button on top of the seat, pushed the stroller to the preferred position, and adjusted the canopy. No need to remove the seat or do any other assembly. When we were ready to fold it up, we just had to pull up on the stroller’s handle located at the back and press the release lever, which then allowed us to collapse it.
Age Range: Made for newborns through toddler years
An amazing feature of this stroller is that the rear-facing seating option comes with infant head support, making it ideal for a newborn until he or she is 25 pounds. Once the child is big enough, he or she can transition to the forward-facing seat (with one easy motion to adjust the seat) until he or she is a toddler weighing 50 pounds. Our son is just over 25 pounds and always faces outward now, so we only used that seating position. Having this stroller when he was younger would have been great so that we would have gotten even more use out of it. At this age, we missed out on half of what this stroller offers.
Price: Affordable, but doesn’t feel cheap
At just over $100, the Summer Infant 3Dflip Convenience Stroller is one of the less expensive umbrella strollers out there. Typically, they range anywhere from $80 to $300. Given that this one has two seating options, holding a child from an infant to a toddler, we consider it worth the price. Plus, it really held up for us during testing and didn’t feel cheap, even with how inexpensive it was.
Summer Infant 3Dflip Convenience Stroller vs. Jeep Unlimited Reversible Handle Stroller
When checking out other strollers that were just as affordable and had two seating options, the Jeep Unlimited Reversible Handle Stroller caught our eye. Available for a little less than $100, the Jeep Unlimited has three recline positions, an extendable canopy with a pop-out visor, and a child snack tray. A major plus is that it’s compatible with a variety of infant car seats. However, there is no infant insert, so the child has to be able to sit upright unassisted. This model is also not a true umbrella-fold, so it’s not as ideal for traveling and is better as a day-to-day stroller. For traveling, the Summer Infant 3Dflip seems like the better option. The Summer Infant 3Dflip Convenience Stroller is an affordable, sturdy umbrella stroller. It features two seating options with an infant headrest, making it ideal for a younger baby who can grow into the other position. However, as mentioned above, inserts of this kind are not the recommended way for babies to sleep. If your child is currently a toddler and doesn’t need to face you, a basic travel stroller that doesn’t have the dual seating is sufficient.
