I’ve been testing breast pumps for the previous few months, which implies I spend a substantial quantity of my time washing breast pump components. Every day I’m washing components that I’ve used, and components that I’ll be testing subsequent. There’s at all times both a bottle or wearable cup, varied rubber items, and generally further shields or sizers. All of which should first be boiled after which washed after my day by day pumping session.

Which is why once I noticed the Medela Freestyle had solely three components—two items to the wearable cup, and one rubber piece—I used to be embarrassingly excited. Less washing? No tiny duckbill flange that consistently tries to go down the disposal? Yes!

Portable and Wearable

The Freestyle is technically only a transportable pump, for the reason that pump itself and controls are in an exterior gadget exterior the bra. But the cups are wearable, which implies they’re going to match fully in your bra as a substitute of needing a pumping bra and hooking as much as a bottle.

That wearable cup is among the issues I like greatest about this pump. It has precisely three components: two sides to the cup, and one rubber piece that acts as each the backflow protector and the duckbill flange. That rubber piece stretches throughout the center of 1 facet of the cup, after which the second half is positioned on prime of it.

I’m most likely biased after testing half a dozen pumps, however the simplicity of meeting was so thrilling to me. It’s nonetheless a complete of six components you could wash (or pop within the dishwasher, as they’re all dishwasher secure), however it was a lot simpler to maintain observe of than the same old 10 or extra components I might wash, dry, and must construct in a sure means. Especially with wearable pumps, placing them collectively might be lower than intuitive.

After constructing your cups, tubing connects the cups to the pump itself. The pump is a cute little handheld gadget, and it has an identical really feel to a Roku remote (although slightly bigger and heavier). When you flip it on, it lights up with LED buttons and slightly show that tells you the battery life, how lengthy you have been pumping, and what mode and stage you are on.

It’s straightforward to determine the right way to join every little thing collectively and begin utilizing it. You can pair the pump to your cellphone through the Medela app (Android, iOS), however not one of the core performance is constructed into it—you do not want it to information you thru setup, and there is a minutes timer on the pump itself (although the app will present you minutes and seconds). The Bluetooth connection did not at all times keep steady, however the app would reconnect and choose up your pump session the place it left off.

Pros and Cons

The three-part cups are tremendous light-weight in comparison with true wearable cups, since there isn’t any motor and fewer components. They’re snug to stay in any present bra, and straightforward to put on and stroll round in. The pump itself comes with a brief lanyard that you could put on round your wrist or tuck right into a pocket as you progress round. But the highest has a gap, so that you should not bend over whereas sporting this pump.