Baby Bargains: Secrets to Saving 20% to 50% on baby furniture, gear, clothes, strollers, maternity wear and much, much more!

I hesitated to buy an actual book of product reviews in this age of Consumer Reports and on-site reviews. But this book has been INVALUABLE to me as an expectant mom. I am reasonably knowledgeable about baby products and had an idea of what I wanted, but there were some areas--like nursery furniture and baby clothing--where I was really overwhelmed by choices and couldn't get a straight answer, even after combing Amazon and other stores. Consumer Reports doesn't help with cribs because they only update every few years, and some of the "recommended" models aren't even around anymore! So I reluctantly bought this book, after seeing it mentioned DOZENS of times when I was combing the internet for advice. By the first night of looking through this book, I was sold. Again, I'm relatively savvy for a first-time mom (I'm a former nanny and have a ton of nieces/nephews) but I learned so much from the informative overviews of each category. For instance, which materials are common in nursery furniture, safety concerns (toxic fumes, etc.), and mattress info. The section on baby clothing was also helpful because it cut the crap about needing all sorts of ridiculous items...the "registry checklist" on BRU is such crap! This book tells you what you really need. There's even a section on maternity clothes, which was helpful, and nursing supplies (I was happy to see the pump I had selected was highly recommended). Even aside from the actual brand reviews, this book is invaluable because of the product overviews. It's hard to find a centralized, reliable place online to learn all this stuff. Each store has a different slant and you can't really trust a lot of it. This book is obviously well-researched and they review the products I'm actually going to buy, not some random brands no one has ever heard of. Just the crib section alone helped me a ton--I was able to rule out dozens of cribs based on the scathing reviews of certain companies in this book! There's definitely a huge bias toward inexpensive products, but the book tells you when it's wise to "pay up" for certain items. It's good to know where you can save money and where you should splurge if you can. All in all, this book was a lifesaver for me...I'm going to buy it for all my friends who tell me they're expecting, since it REALLY helped me make/finalize my registry. Product reviews online are great, but you have to know which products to even look at first. Also, just knowing what to look for--like Greenguard certification on cribs and mattresses, cotton clothing for baby (holds up better in wash), etc. HIGHLY RECOMMEND! It's $15 that could save you hours and hours of stress and hundreds in dollars of buying products that turn out to be crappy, toxic, or not durable. get the book, you'll be glad you did!

Absolute MUST for new parents. My husband and I were completely clueless as to what needs to be purchased to be prepared for a baby, and this book was a complete Godsend. A friend recommended it and I will tell every new parent to get it. The book not only goes over all the most recent products, quality reviews and cost saving techniques, but it also educates one a lot about the process of getting ready for a baby. It is quite comprehensive given its ambitious scale and makes intelligent decision making infinitely easier. It does not just focus on how to buy everything cheaply, but goes over the pros, the cons, a LOT of emphasis on safety and quality. I was very grateful for their candid, unsponsored feedback about product as they didn't shy away from being critical of many products in order to be objective. We would take this book with us to baby stores and use it as reference for pretty much every major purchase we made. They understand that not everything that is reasonably priced is of good quality, so give the reader enough information to make a wise decision given their budget and requirement. Even for people who are not concerned with bargain hunting, this book is an essential guide to the world of baby products - what to get, what to skip and what is the best quality in each category.

Pros: Organized Well Compares Various Models Compares Items Based on Budget Offers "Top Picks" at the end of each section Cons: Top selections do not always have best customer reviews online This book has some great info for baby gear. It's almost like a consumer report for baby items. The book is clearly organized in sections, such as cribs, mattresses, rockers, bedding, clothes, diapers, maternity, pumps, baby food, diapers, high chairs, strollers, car seats, and more! Each section begins with useful information regarding when, where or how to purchase items. Many sections have some type of statistics or personal reviews/comments from readers. Most sections will give options for buying used vs new, online vs in store options, and provide shopper tips - specific things to pay attention to when you purchase items. Some sections give additional safety information and where to go online to find that safety information. Each section reviews several products, and rates these products from A to F. The end of each section offers the authors' best picks based on budget. They give their top selections based on a modest budget, a moderate budget, and extremely high budget (money doesn't matter). The only negative is sometimes online reviews don't match up with the book's recommendation. This is not a big problem since reviews are subjective. The book may recommend something based on overall safety standard and ease of use. The online review may agree that it is rated as one of the safest products, but it may not be comfortable or have other complaints. Another complaint I noticed is the Kindle version may not print out all the charts, or some info may get cut out. It's been a while since I've seen those reviews. If you're thinking of getting Kindle version make sure you read the Kindle reviews first. This book was recommended by a friend, and I would definitely recommend to others. Especially someone having their first child and not knowing where to start.

I was skeptical about how much a paperback book could really be helpful in this day and age however everyone on the forum kept recommending it for first time moms so I gave it a shot. I would definitely recommend this book for anyone who isn't 100% sure about what they need or should be purchasing for your baby. It gives such an honest opinion and provides background on why they feel that way which is very helpful. I've been reading it in chunks as it seemed too overwhelming to take all that information in but it's made me feel so much more at ease. It's worth the money for the book just so you can get an opinion from someone who hasn't been sponsored to talk about a product!

A great read, but it's relevant for those living in the United States as the contents relates to goods and services only in the US.

If you are an expecting parent, do yourself a favour and get this book. It contains lots and lots of great advice on what to buy and what not to buy. It can be very tough wading through all of the information out there when buying baby products, as there's so much variety, so many overpriced items, so much junk products, and so many biased opinions. This book is much better than anything else I've come across in helping you sift through the madness. The reviews of crib brands are particularly helpful. Trust me, you will be glad you own this book.

We were overwhelmed but this book was super helpful. The recommendations are accurate as well as mommy groups recommended the same as they did. We got a bunch of stuff based on this book's recommendations. Thank you for making the 1st baby preparation experience a lot less stressful!

I was a little overwhelmed by all the baby products. Being a first time mom on a budget, this book definitely helped to prioritize what was needed and what I could get by without. I felt more confident in my shopping knowing I was getting the most bang for my buck! The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was because my kindle version didn't have the clear pictures (even on my iPad) that the book version has.