Baby W was very excited when this big box arrived….
The Chicco 123 is basically a 3-in-1:
- A baby walker for babies aged 6 months old up
- A push-along ‘first steps’ for roughly 9 months up
- A ride-on for toddlers aged 18 months and older
As W was 14 months old when it arrived, we skipped the first step as he would be too big for it – and tried out the ‘first steps’ bit….
He went straight for the phone on the activity centre as you can see above and below… he wouldn’t let it go 😉
He quite enjoyed toddling around with the ‘baby steps’ version but because he was already walking confidently by the time we got it, he didn’t really ‘need’ it as a push-along. It would have come in really handy when he really was taking his first steps as I can imagine it’s great for their confidence… feels very sturdy and good to control, not too fast or anything!
I know he’s a little bit young for it but I wanted to try out the ‘ride on’ part so we put that together….
…and he LOVED it! It’s a little bit big for him so I had to push him along but he really enjoyed it and was bouncing up and down for more!
I think it’s great that all 3 parts have the activity centre as the main element – he loved this…
….as well as his favourite element – the phone, it also has a mirror, a panda button and ladybird switch – I think it looks really cute
Now this activity centre also has sounds, but we haven’t experienced them yet as you need a screwdriver to put the batteries in and I have no idea where our screwdriver is! I’m always puzzled why brands insist on this screwdriver thing, they should make products as easy as possible for new parents!
Overall toddler W loved this… I think as he gets older we will get lots of use out of the ride-on, and I think we can officially call the phone ‘his first mobile phone’! Here’s some pros and cons I thought of if you’re thinking of buying it….
Pros
- Great value for money – you should be able to buy it for £69.99 which I think is great considering you get 3 different uses out of it from a little baby to a big toddler!
- In our case, if I’d got this sooner – I might have been able to do without the jumperoo we bought, and the vtech baby walker – saves you having to buy lots of different things!
- Looks good, bright colours etc
- Relatively easy to put together – things just slot together easily (it took me a while but I’m just rubbish at instructions!)
- Feels safe and sturdy – not flimsy at all
- Easy to clean as it’s all plastic
- Height adjustable
- A really cute function which we haven’t done yet, but we will – you can get a customisable sticker with your child’s name on it to stick on to the front – I think this is a really cute touch!
Cons
- The biggest negative for me is the size – the baby walker might have been ok in our living room but there’s no way we could put the push-along/ride-on in the house – W would be going round in circles and banging into stuff lots! It’s perfect for us as a garden toy, but our house is just too small for using it indoors – so worth checking the measurements (if you have a big house you don’t need to worry!)
- Because of it’s size and sturdy nature, it’s quite bulky to put away too – you could take it apart easily but the main frame needs a bit of space even if it’s flat against a wall- ours lives in the shed!
- Only other slight negative is needing a screwdriver to get the sounds working!
For me, the pros outweigh the cons – it’s really good value for money when you compare it against buying things like jumperoos and walkers separately…. for more information, Chicco have a lovely webpage that describes it better than I did – like the height, security and customisation features!
If you enjoyed reading this, check out more of my reviews here – everything from breastfeeding equipment that I bought to spa treatments…
*Disclaimer: Chicco kindly sent me this 123 to review, but opinions are my own
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