Boba Carrier 3G

Overall Thoughts: I love the Boba 3G carrier. I have worn several (Beco, Ergo, BabyBjorn), but the Boba 3G carrier has been an essential baby gear item for me as it has an extremely comfortable fit, has a higher height for toddler babywearing, has an innovate foot-strap attachment, and my son enjoys being worn in it. It has been so helpful when running errands, being hands-free, calming him during fussy illness or teething phases, but, most importantly, it has been incredible for bonding. As a working mom, I am not able to be with my son all day while I am at the office. We look forward to being close to each other after work/daycare hours and babywearing has been amazing for strengthening our bond. At 15 months, he now smiles and claps when he sees the me buckle on the carrier, and he loves looking up at my face and laughing while we're in the grocery store.

Sleeping Hood: The sleeping hood has come in handy so many times when we are out during the summer at a festival, event, or boating and my son wants to snooze. It has also helped me limit his stimulation when younger. The snaps have adjustable levels so you can leave room for your child to have their head back farther or pulled closer to your chest. My son has always had a higher percentile size head and we have had no issues with the hood; it has always fit fine and worked as intended. When not in use, the hood can be detached for washing, hang in front of the carrier, or roll up in to its front zipped pocket (though I find that a tight fit).

Shoulder Snaps: Snaps on the shoulder straps allow you to snap your purse strap or diaper bag strap to the carrier. This has been incredibly helpful when carrying several items that tend to slip around.

Shoulder Straps: The shoulder straps themselves are padded, non-bulky, and comfortable. I still front-carry my 22-lb son and the straps have never dug in to my arms or caused discomfort. The sides are easy to adjust tightness when wearing, but the shoulder straps are not, at least in the "almost-all-the-way-out" position in which I wear them, so the loose strap end is short. I imagine that it would be the same case with any SSC.
 

Waistband/Belt: Comfortable fit, sized to easily fit my petite friends and those over size 12 with some extra baby weight on them like myself.

 

Pockets: The front waistband pocket is perfect for sliding in a lip balm tube, cash, ID, and my iPhone when needed. The hood pocket can be used for items when the hood is not enclosed.

 

Footstraps: We have not reached the age where these would be needed yet, but I will update my review when we do.

Newborn Carrier: I purchased this carrier when my son was five months old, so I have not had the opportunity to use it yet on the newborn setting.

The Boba 3G and Boba Air carriers have become a staple in my daily life, and I am so thankful for the comfort and closeness it brings to me and my son. ***Due to my love of this product, I reached out to Boba and I am now a Boba Brand Ambassador because of my love and gratitude for the the bonding benefits of babywearing.***
 

I have worn a bunch of carriers (Ergo, Onya, Tula, Moby, Sakura Bloom, etc.) and the 3G by Boba is my favorite, hands-down.  **Note, I am an Ambassador for Boba, but was wearing one long before I was an Ambassador.  And this is what I tell my family and friends! :)**

Here’s what I love:
1. The ease of use – it can be adjusted quickly between wearers.
2. I can wear it around my waist all day.  When P isn’t in it, I simply clip the chest strap around my waist also and it is out of my way.  This is how I often do errands to make it easy to pop him in and out.  It can also easily hang in front of me and not get in my way.

3. The slim pockets!  one in the waist strap (perfect size for my cell phone and a pacifier) and one in the top of the carrier (where the hood is stored.)

4.  Detachable hood (that covers Baby’s whole head!)  I usually keep it with me, but it just snaps on and off.
5.  The sliders that move the chest (or back when Baby is in front) strap up and down.  Super easy to do on my own and they remain in place.
6. A purse holder on the strap that keeps your purse (or bag) from falling off your shoulder (which is SUPER annoying for me!)
7. The carrier is slim and compacts easily (no padding and smaller than an Ergo, for all those that are wondering!)
8.  The height of the carrier makes it much easier to carry toddlers than other carriers I have used (they can’t lean back quite as easily!)
9. The new colors and designs (mine is called “Kangaroo”) which include basic black and patterns.

What I wasn’t super crazy about:
1.  When the carrier is adjusted to the newborn setting (up to 15 pounds,) the waist strap pocket is against your body and unusable.
2.  I personally think straps that can cross behind your back are more comfortable for heavier weights.  That being said, I also like that these straps are attached and don’t get in my way when I am not wearing them.
3. When I wear the carrier adjusted for a newborn, the snaps always come undone.  However, this doesn’t effect the way P sits.

I was naive with my first child thinking I didn't need a carrier and was not going be buying into all the must have products.  Ha ha, that did not last too long especially after joining some mommy groups and seeing their cool "baby gadgets."  A friend of mine had a beautiful( purplish in color)  Boba carrier that she let a few of us try out.  She had been to a carrier store which taught her how to use it and after reading the reviews I think this is so important in order to get the most out of your carrier. Well, in any case I quickly  purchased one and  I've been using mine since my LO was three months and comfortably carried him through my second pregnancy till I was about eight months pregnant and just too tired to carry him for long periods of time.  For reference he was nine months when I became pregnant the second time and weighed 25 pounds.  Anyway, my carrier has been my go to product anytime I need both hands or need to soothe my LO.  I only breastfed my son once in it while stuck waiting for a for a ferry in NYC.  I had practiced before and felt comfortable adjusting positions and using  the cover for discretion and while it may not be the best breastfeeding position it can be done for those times your baby will not wait.  I could not list this as a con because it can be done and my baby seemed happy while nursing, I just prefer to take my baby out and nurse while holding my baby.  The cover served many purposes to shield from the wind, hold the babies head up, and those sudden rains, I now live in Oregon.  I have yet to use the foot straps, I keep forgetting to put them on.  However, I now mainly use the carrier for my infant.  This is where I believe my Boba had doubled its value.  All you do is flip the waistband towards your body and voila your baby is able to nestle against your chest, so essential when you have a toddler to run after.  I have had to review the handy "how to"  videos on the Boba websites to refresh my memory on how to adjust straps which again is so helpful to overall comfort. 

My only comparisons I can offer are a Bjorn carrier (a gift from baby shower), a Moby, and a sling.   The Moby and the sling are ok but take to long to put on and adjust and I could never wear the Bjorn for long periods as my back would instantly ache.  Well, I hope my comments are helpful, as Boba is the only product I ever take time to write a review on, it truly has been my MUST HAVE baby product.

Now I must think of a way to justify to my husband why we need another one in a girly pattern .    

I was provided the Boba 3G to review by the Mothering Mavens program. My partner and I used this with our 18 pound 9 month old and our 28 pound 15 month old.

When the Boba arrived, it was packaged simply and attractively. The fabric is soft, sturdy and the print cute. I found the strap adjustments very logical and comfortable. The sliding mechanism where the chest strap connects to the shoulder straps is easy to use with the baby on front or back. The curve of the shoulder straps helps the carrier feel secure; in the front carry I never felt like it would slip off my shoulders. The wide pocket and lower attachment of the shoulder strap give structure to the carries. The babies feel well seated and have back support. I like that the strap adjustments are easily accessible front and back. The waist strap is long enough that it fits my size 8 hips left, center or right and my sized 18 partner fits easily within it's range. If my partner and I didn't share the carrier, the elastic ends on the straps would keep the straps neatly out of the way. The hood is detachable. Neither of my babies needed the hood. We liked the foot stirrups for the toddler. They kept his feet from flopping and he seemed comfortable with them. I couldn't access the lower pockets with a baby in the carrier, but I used the hood pocket occasionally to store small things. The purse strap came in handy a few times. We both found it easy to nurse in the front carry. The instructions for the back carry were clear and simple. Because my boys are mobile, I appreciated the recommendation in the instructions for how to wear the Boba when the baby is out of it. Overall we like the carrier a lot and it is worn daily.

I started using the Boba about a month ago when my son was 14 months old. It has been a wonderful carrier for us! I had been using a Beco Gemini, which I loved, with him since he was a newborn, but I have to admit that I haven't touched it since the Boba arrived. The Boba 3G just has such a great fit for a toddler. He is well supported, and I can tell that there is room to grow.

 

I really like the carrier's simple straps. I can easily adjust it while wearing it. I find it quite easy to balance my toddlers weight between my hips and shoulders by adjusting the straps. Also, the carrier is beautiful!

 

The pockets are a nice touch. They are very small, however, but I can shove my keys and phone in. The pockets are fairly useless when doing a back carry. 

 

My main issues are with the sleeping hood and the black fabric. Even on the smallest setting, the sleeping hood doesn't offer head support. That may be the design, though. It covers my son's head, but he still flops around on my back. The black fabric picks up lint very easily, which is a bit annoying. But neither of these things really take away from the comfort and usability of the carrier!

 

Overall, this is the best carrier I have used, and I have used a lot of carriers. It is versatile, durable, easy to use, and beautifully designed.