Tollyjoy recently launched their latest breast pump at the “Strut Your Bump” event organised by the team behind the Supermom Bazaar. The event was packed with mommies who were expecting, ready to break the record for the Largest Pre-Natal Exercise Class (which they did!), whilst the daddies stood by with their mobile phones in hand ready to catch their wife in action (I hope I wasn’t caught in some super unglam position lor, wasn’t even dressed for the workout!). And the goodie bags! Oh wow, they were packed with some serious goodies.
Goodie bag you get with your ticket
Review Goodie Bag
Tollyjoy is a 老字号 in Singapore. Hubby and I were talking about it after the event, and the things that came to mind when we think about Tollyjoy is their powder puff container (who didn’t love patting it to cause powder clouds as a kid??), their milk powder dispenser, and their signature rubber mat. Eh, all these part of our generation okay. And today’s generation too! I have friends who still use their rubber mat, and I was gifted one for QT too.
But to be honest, I have always only just associated Tollyjoy with those baby accessories, and not breastpumps. As I mentioned previously, Medela was the word when it came to asking about breastpumps, and when it was so costly, one obviously wanted to get the “right” one so you don’t waste money buying another pump just cos one didn’t work out for you.
After having reviewed so many pumps, obviously I jumped at the chance to review Tollyjoy’s latest offering. I wanted to find out how a local brand would fare against the international brands.
what you get in your double pump set
The first thing that came to mind when I took out the set were the covers for the flanges. How convenient! Pumping in peace is a luxury and goodness knows how many of us do get interrupted sometimes when we are in the midst of pumping. Having the covers will prevent any unwanted bugs from going in, or leaving the flanges exposed for too long, well for hygiene purposes, AND unwanted spillage. #liquidgold
the pump broken down
Parts
The pump comes with 2 milk bottles, 2 all in one breast flange + funnel, 2 stands, 2 flange covers, 2 valves, 2 diaphragm, 2 tubes, a t-connector for tubes to motor, a motor and a storage bag.
Seems easy enough to put together and assemble. And it is..except I keep forgetting about the diaphragm. See the little circular thing with a hole in the middle? That is the diaphragm. It serves as a backflow protector as well and unlike the ones that I am familiar with, where you just pull it out of the funnel, this one is a screwed in diaphragm. Which is fine..except I keep forgetting about it and just pull the tube off it. Which means I end up washing an extra part! Gaaah. Must.remember.to.unscrew.before.washing. *grumbles*
connecting the diaphragms to the funnels.
What I love is that I am able to attach the silicon breast shields securely over the breast flanges. It locks nicely over the edge. The silicon breast shields for the Unimom Forte was designed the same way, but for some reason always just didn’t secure itself nicely over the edge.
The translucent valves are also larger than the ones on the other pumps. Does it affect the suction? Not really. If anything, it just makes it easier to wash and it is thicker as well, so could also possibly mean you don’t have to replace them that often, or that they won’t tear that easily.
Bottle size is probably another grief of mine. It is small. =( 120mls. Most of the bottles that come with the pumps are a minimum of 150mls. 30mls is not a lot, but going by the way pump volume increases, it would mean you will need to buy the bigger sized bottles or just keep emptying bottles. I did try fitting the Medela bottles I have but it doesn’t seem to fit. Oh wells. And they don’t come with storage lids, which also means you will need to bring storage bags along if you want to store milk. Having said that, if you buy additional storage bottles from Tollyjoy, they do come with storage lids!
Usage
Like most pumps, the Double Electric Breast Pump has a 2-min let-down phase before going into expression phase. At expression phase, it has 10 levels of suction, which is more than most standard pumps. This pump also comes with a LED screen, so no more recording of time with your phone! Now you can clock-watch on the screen. Urgh. Terrible habit of mine.
What makes this breast pump a little different from the other pumps is the memory function. Well, obviously apart from the Unimom, which uses a dial, the other pumps that I have requires you to set the suction level yourself after the let-down phase. With the memory function, all you need to do when you are at the desired suction level, just hit the memory button to press and hold for 5 secs. The next time you pump, you just hit the memory button again and voila, you are at your desired setting!
No need to mentally count how many times you have pressed the damn button in your sleep deprived stupor. Haha.
AND..(this gets a little cheesy), this pump comes with music accompaniment should you wish it. It’s true! The pump actually comes with three melodies so that you can enjoy some classical music whilst you are pumping, or use it to try and mask the sound of the pump, like those sounds of water played when you use the toilet in Japan to mask the sound of you peeing. =P Similar concept. Whilst I appreciated the thought that went into the design of this music accompaniment, being a musically inclined person, it annoyed me more than anything else cos it wasn’t three full melodies but snippets of melodies. So it was jumping from one melody to another..very distracting!
But hey, that’s me. You might enjoy it! =P
The flanges. They are smaller than your usual flanges, and only come in one size. Having said that, the funnel is HUGE! So I guess you don’t have to worry about size if you have big nipples. Hrm. Okay, most of the time the flanges do the work around areola, having a bigger flange doesn’t mean it may massage the breast to express more milk. So having a smaller flange would sorta make sense. However, with a bigger funnel. HRM. How would that work for someone with smaller nipples? or a smaller areola? I consider myself to be an average sized (i.e., 24mm for Medela, Regular for Pigeon), so the flange/funnel worked fine for me at suction level 5 (highest I would go before it got uncomfortable for me). I actually liked the extra space around the nipple. Mine would chafe against the side of the 24mm Medela flange (could probably mean I got the wrong size).
Usage wise, the assembly of the parts is pretty straight forward. Attach suction tube onto diaphragm, attach breast flange with silicone cushion, attach valve onto funnel, screw bottle on and we’re good to go. 2-min let-down phase and then feel free to adjust your settings to your liking or press the memory button for previous settings . If you feel that you do not need 2 mins for let-down, you can go straight to the regular pump settings. Enjoy the music if you like!
Comfort level. The silicone cushion is gentle against the breast and there is sufficient room in the flange for the nipple as well. I used it with my hands free bra and the small flange really works well to fit in the hands free bra openings. It didn’t feel like it was falling off easily due to the size.
Noise. Compared to the other pumps, I would say the noise that the pump makes is average (Louder than Pigeon Pro & Unimom Forte, as loud as Medela & Tommee Tippee). One other grievance is the beep it makes when you turn on the pump. This would probably be a con in my books especially if you pump in your room with your baby sleeping in the same room as you. Also, the music doesn’t have a volume control, just one volume and should you accidentally press the music button (sits next to the on and off button), it will come blaring out in the quiet of the night. YIKES.
In conclusion, at S$169.90, this electric double pump is a decent economical buy if you are looking for a no frills pump.
Together with the launch of their new range of breastpumps, Tollyjoy also launched their new Day & Night Disposable Nursing Pads. In a box of 40, the nursing pads boasts of 3D side leak guards for added protection, which is totally new to me. Having tried two brands of nursing pads (one that made me ITCH soooo bad, the other a little stifling but bearable), I wondered how this could be any better. I have pretty much given in to just wearing dark tops and hoping for the best when I am nursing kiddo in public. #nursingmomwoes (yes, at 14mos pp, nursing QT still triggers letdown!)
Upon opening the box, I was pleasantly surprised to see each pad in a sweet individual packaging with perforated line for easy removal. Just split the perforated lines, and take the pad out.
just split between the perforated lines
The pad felt really smooth to the touch. It was not scratchy and the leak guards didn’t bother me either. Now you wonder, why are they called day and night nursing pads? That’s where the leak guards come in.
side leak guards and non-woven fabric surface
If you are using them during the day, your leak guards go horizontally, so they catch any leak at the bottom. If you are using the pads at night, your leak guards go vertically so they catch any leak at the sides if you sleep sideways! How is that for consideration?
A box of 40 + 8 free go for a reasonable S$7.90. Pretty good deal!
FAQs
Can I use a microwave steriliser to sterilise the parts?
Yes, the parts are microwave safe. I have used the Tommee Tippee Microwave Steriliser to sterilise the parts (on high for 4 mins) and none of them have warped.
Where can I find Tollyjoy’s latest range of breast pumps?
Tollyjoy’s latest range of breast pumps can be found in leading departmental stores, supermarkets, hypermarkets and baby speciality stores across the region.
Tollyjoy will also be participating in the SuperMom Bazaar happening in August 2015.
How much are the breast pumps and accessories?
The Double Electric Breast Pump is retailing for S$169.90. The 5oz standard neck bottle retails for S$4.20 and the 8oz standard neck bottle retails for S$4.60. The bottles comes with a storage lid and teat.
Tollyjoy does not sell the pump spare parts in retail stores. Should you require, you may contact the Tollyjoy office directly to check on availability.
Are the parts to the breast pumps replaceable and where can I find the parts?
Customers can contact or reach Tollyjoy office/warehouse at Changi South Industrial Estate, +65 6542 6988
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary set of the Tollyjoy Double Electric Breast Pump from Tollyjoy to write this review. All opinions are solely mine and are written as objectively as possible.
