Ever since Valco Baby announced the release of its new Snap Ultra Tailormade stroller, I've been looking forward to testing it out. Finally, I got my hands on the grey beauty, and I'm here to share with you my experience with this stroller.
First Impression
Valco Baby is an Australian company, better known for their all terrain double and triple strollers.
The Snap Ultra Tailormade is the newest addition to the Valco family - a very attractive, sleek-looking stroller (as described by my husband). It is slim and relatively lightweight at 19lb. Despite its weight, the Snap Ultra is a full-featured stroller with a reversible seat unit, flat recline, a ginormous canopy and many more awesome features.
Snap Ultra can be used with a bassinet, a seat unit, or as a travel system with a car seat (adapters required).
A rain cover is included with the stroller and various other accessories can be purchased separately.
Dimensions & Weight
Stroller width - 21.5"
Stroller length - 30"
Handlebar height - 41"
Stroller weight with seat- 19lb
Seat width - 11.5"
Seat depth - 8.5"
Seat height - 18.5"
Edge of seat to footwell - 9"
Suitable for: birth to 45 lb
Steering
The Snap Ultra is very easy to push and steer, even with one hand. The stroller is responsive and turns effortlessly. Because of its relatively narrow width, this stroller is pretty easy to maneuver in tight spaces.
Unfortunately, Snap Ultra is not equipped with suspension. I found that the ride can be a little shaky on less than smooth pavement. My assumption is that Valco Baby wanted to keep the stroller as light as possible and adding suspension would have added to the weight. Since this is not exactly an umbrella stroller anyway, personally, I would have taken the extra 2-3 lbs if it meant having suspension.
The wheels are tubeless foam tires, which makes them lightweight and low maintenance. The front wheels are 8" inches and rotate 360° with a locking option. The rear wheels are 10". Though this stroller does not stumble over cracks in the pavement and even handles grass pretty well, the wheels are not really made for very rough terrain.
Luckily for people like me, who prefer pneumatic tires, Valco Baby sells optional all-terrain, air filled tires for this stroller. Although I did not have the pneumatic wheels to try out, I very much appreciate that Valco Baby offers this alternative to foam tires. I'm sure that the pneumatic wheels will compensate for the lack of suspension on the Snap Ultra, as well as give parents the ability to take the stroller off-road. The option to swap wheels really gives the stroller a lot of flexibility. The all-terrain '
Sports Pack' wheels can be purchase for $120.
Seat Unit
The Snap Ultra has a reversible seat unit, so that your baby can either face you or the world. The seat is very easy to snap in and out of the stroller via two levers on either side, and can be reversed in literally seconds.
The seat has a strap recline and can be reclined with one hand. I found it to be very easy and effortless. You do need two hands to bring the seat back up.
The backrest reclines to a completely flat position, independently of the seat (glory be!). Too many strollers are made with a 'bucket seat', where the legs move up as the backrest is tilted down. Luckily, this is not one of them. Your child can stretch out completely flat in the Snap Ultra, as nature intended. The backrest wobbles slightly when fully reclined, but I'm not very concerned by this.
When fully upright, the backrest is almost at 90°. Little Missy really appreciated that, because it allowed her to sit in her natural way, legs extended, balancing slightly forward from the waist. She hates being strapped to a seat in a semi-reclined position and always tries to pull herself up.
A swing-away, padded bumper bar with gate openings on both sides is included with the stroller. I love a user friendly bumper bar, and Little Missy appreciates having a place to prop up her feet. The bar is covered in fabric, so you don't need to worry about your kids biting off pieces of foam.
There are three storage pockets on the back of the seat. Those are convenient for holding small toys that I want to keep close at hand as well as my sunglasses and phone. Yay for extra storage!
One thing about the seat that I feel could be improved upon is the amount of padding. While the seat is not hard by any means, I think that a little more padding would have made it even more comfortable.
I tested out the seat with my 9 months old daughter and my 2.5 year old son. Little Missy sat in the stroller like a queen. Ben had room to spare in the width, but height-wise, he will probably outgrow the stroller soon. The canopy was only a few inches over his head, and the footwell was too small for his feet. For reference, my son is 29lb and 36" tall.
Harness
The harness on the Snap Ultra can only be used as a 5 point harness. There is no option to leave out the shoulder straps for an older kid. On the plus side, if you have a very nimble toddler, you'd be happy to know that the harness buckle on the Snap Ultra is childproof. Opening the buckle requires pushing on the release button while pushing down on the buckle simultaneously. I actually laughed when my toddler started meddling with it. No way you're getting out of that one, kid!
The shoulder strap covers are rather large and slip down constantly. I might just take them off altogether and replace them with something like
THIS.
Canopy
If I had to pick just one favorite feature of the Snap Ultra, it would be the canopy. When I first saw it, I drooled. I'm still drooling. This is probably the LARGEST canopy I've ever seen on a stroller - EVER (hence I'm inspired to use caps). When fully extended, the canopy will cover your baby from head to toe, even when the leg-rest is in the upright position. The canopy is also lined, which is optimal for superior sun protection.
There are two zip-out sections on the canopy. One of the sections is made of white mesh for better air flow on in hot weather. I would have preferred black mesh, but I'm knit-picking here. There is no peek-a-boo window, but I'm not really missing it. When your baby is small, you will probably have the seat in a parent facing mode anyway, and when your toddler is facing the world, you can peek at him through the mesh panel.
For full protection from the elements, a rain cover is included in a set with the Snap Ultra.
Handlebar
The handlebar on the Snap Ultra is a bit of a disappointment. It is very basic and not adjustable. The height of the handlebar is 41" inches from the ground. It's probably a good height for average parents, but since I'm only 5'2", my hands were practically on level with my armpits. As you can imagine, pushing the stroller this way was not very comfortable. Again, this was my personal experience, and the handle might be just perfect if you're an average height or on the taller side.
The stroller comes with a run-away strap attached to the handlebar, as a safety precaution when heading down a steep hill.
Textiles
If you read my review of the Valco Baby Snap Duo 2, you know how particular I am about stroller fabrics. The textiles on the Snap Ultra Tailormade do not disappoint
. In fact the seat and canopy fabric is quite luxurious and has a distinct
twill texture.
The downside to this lovely fabric is that it's not machine washable. I've contacted Valco Baby and was told that they do not recommend removing the fabric from the seat and so it should be spot cleaned.
Snap Ultra is available in 4 colors: Black, Grey, Denim and Mulberry. The aluminum frame is gunmetal color.
Leg-rest
I'm a huge believer in kids sleeping with their legs outstretched, not hanging down. That's why, I love strollers that have an adjustable leg rest like the one on the Snap Ultra. The leg-rest can be adjusted to 3 positionss; down, extended and slightly upright.
It is adjusted up via two buttons on either side, which have to be pressed simultaneously.
The footwell is covered in rubberized, easy to clean fabric. As you can see in the picture, it's a little too shallow and narrow for an older toddler to rest his feet on comfortably.
Under-seat Storage
The basket is very large and deep. It can easily fit a huge diaper bag + lots of other stuff. If you do grocery shopping with a stroller, you will not be disappointed.
The basket can be accessed from the front as well as the back when the leg-rest is pushed up. The carrying strap gets slightly in the way of shoving very large objects in, but obviously it's not a big deal to hold it up or remove it all together.
The Fold
There are 3 folding options with this stroller. All require two hands to achieve.
Option 1: The seat unit can be taken off the frame, in which case the frame folds very compact, stands on it's wheels and is very easy to carry.
Option 2: When folding with the seat facing the world, you need to press a small release button on the side of the frame, then press and hold the button on the handlebar to collapse the stroller. In this mode, the folded stroller is very long, as you can see in the picture.
Option 3: When folding the stroller with the seat in the parent facing mode, the final result is more compact but the fold takes more steps to execute. The canopy must be folded away. Then you need to fold under the leg-rest. After that you need to collapse the seat unit by first pressing two large buttons on either side, then pressing two smaller buttons simultaneously. After the seat is collapsed forward, you can press the button on the handlebar to fold the frame. I counted 5 steps. Yup, let that sink in. The good news is that the stroller can stand while being folded in this mode. Personally, I think the 1st option is the fastest and most convenient.
The Break
I have mixed feelings about the break. On one hand, it is flip flop friendly, since you don't have to lift it up. Push on one side and the rear wheels lock. Push on the other side to unlock. Sounds simple enough, but because the locking/unlocking pedals are relatively small, I always have to look down to see where my foot is landing. Perhaps with more practice it will become more intuitive, but I do wish the pedals were slightly larger.
Recap & Ratings
Valco Baby Snap Ultra, with its reversible, flat reclining seat unit as well as a bassinet option, is an excellent stroller to use from birth . It is a very attractive stroller with a distinct 'urban' vibe. The Snap Ultra is a hybrid of sorts. While being slim and lightweight, it is also full featured and very versatile, especially if you invest into the optional all-terrain tires.
While comfortable for a baby and smaller toddler, this may not be the only stroller you'll ever need. Your child might outgrow the stroller in height before reaching the limit in weight.
The Snap Ultra may not be an ideal choice for petite parents, as the handlebar is not adjustable and is rather high.
Pros:
- Lightweight
- Slim
- Reversible seat
- Huge canopy
- Adjustable leg-rest
- Swing-away bumper bar
- Attractive textiles
- Large basket
- Toddler-proof harness buckle
- Option of adding all-terrain wheels
Cons:
- No suspension
- No peek-a-boo window on canopy
- Handlebar is not adjustable
- Seat fabric is not removable or machine washable
- Fold with seat requires too many steps
- Shallow and narrow footwell
After careful consideration, I've decided to give the Snap Ultra four and a half out of five stars rating. While the stroller is not perfect, it comes pretty close. I do hope that Valco Baby will update it sometime in the future with an adjustable handlebar, removable, machine-washable seat fabric and suspension. In the meantime, I think the Snap Ultra is still a great choice.
I'd like to thank The Baby's Den, for providing a stroller for this review. As always, all the over-opinionated opinions are entirely my own.
