My buggy review - Chicco Trio Living Smart system

Towards the end of last year you may have seen my giving an initial review on the Trio Living Smart system after seeing it at the Chicco launch. Well over the last couple of weeks I've been trying out the buggy in the real world with little Arthur and here are my thoughts:

When the travel system arrived in early December I couldn't have been more excited. As I said I'd already seen the buggy at the Chicco launch and what I really liked about it was the fact that the buggy was so compact and easy to store and it's sleek design.

The number one complaint I've heard from mums over the years is how heavy travel systems are particularly for London mums. So many friends have spent an absolute fortune on a top of the range pram for their newborn and then changed it for a light and easy to use Maclaren and this is what was so great about the Trio. The mainframe not only opens up simply like a stroller but it also allows you to add the newborn pram top and car seat.

Pram top option

Whilst you can use the buggy with the seat in place from newborn because it fully reclines I still like the idea of having your baby in the pram top for at least the first six months. Not only does it look cute but it also keeps them nice and snug which was definitely needed over the last month with all the snow.

The first time I took little A out I have to say I was glad I had my mum with me as the positioning of my flat makes buggy access really difficult. We have a basement flat with just one outside staircase giving access from the street so we needed two people to lift the buggy out, also not easy when you're recovering from a c-section and five days post op (I hadn't been shopping in awhile ;-)).

We packed the system into the car and made our way to the local shopping centre. When we arrived I was slightly nervous as I hadn't put the whole thing together since it had first arrived but it really couldn't have been easier. You literally just pop the top into the two side arms until you hear a click, there's no need for adapters as everything is just incorporated into the main frame.

The whole system was then really easy to manoeuvre as we worked our way round the last of the sales. The quality of the design was also apparent in it's strength as it really had to prop me up as I shuffled around and used it to prop myself up for short breaks.

Since this initial outing I've used the buggy and pram top almost daily for the last five weeks and it's still working really well. Not only am I impressed but so are my friends and family particularly with the simplicity of putting it together.

My only slight criticism would be is that it is quite heavy when you've got the two together. Now that I'm mainly on my own I actually leave the system in the car and put little A in his car seat whilst I put it together.

Car seat

My love for this system doesn't just stop at the buggy the car seat is also really great and carries through the theme of simplicity.

When I was planning and listing what equipment I was going to be purchasing for little A I'd always just assumed I'd get a maxi cosi car seat because I trusted the brand and knew the benefits of their isofix system. So I was slightly apprehensive about using a different brand particularly without an isofix base (I would like to point out that this car seat can be used with isofix I just hadn't purchased it) mainly because I knew how complicated seats could be to fix. However this car seat genuinely couldn't be simpler. My mum and I had it fitted in in about 5 mins.

The Chicco seat also seems a lot roomier with the added bonus of the head cut out to prevent too much rubbing - little A still doesn't have a bald patch six weeks later, I'm crossing my fingers it stays like that.

The only improvement I would suggest is in the base unit which is a little plasticy and shiny, it does let down the overall look and feel slightly.

In summary

So far I'm really impressed with Chicco Trio Living Smart it's been great in these first few weeks, particularly in helping me get out and about whilst recovering from the c-section. Now as Arthur is growing bigger and his neck strength is increasing I'll be moving him into the buggy seat so I'll do another review on that version in a couple of weeks.

Pros

• Buggy style opening system
• Compact when folded
• Easy to manoever 
• Stylish
• Practical 
• Comfy for baby

Cons

• Set up instructions not clear (it took us awhile to put together)
• Not easy to put things in the shopping basket
• Plasticky car seat base