Breast Pump Reviews: Ameda Purely Yours Ultra Breast Pump Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)This pump was my fourth attempt at finding a pump that is right for me. My baby is currently six months old, and I have been using a breast pump since she was a few weeks old. My original breast pump is the Medela Free Style. I like it a lot. I think it does a good job of expressing a lot of milk in a short period of time. I also love the fact that it is hands-free. What I did NOT like about the Medela Free Style, however, were the nipple shields. After experiencing very sore nipples and eventually a bit of nipple trauma (ouch), I bought bigger breast shields for my Medela pump. Unfortunately, Medela does not take into account that nipple size and breast size do not necessarily have a correlation, and I found that the shields, while fine for my nipples, were too large for my breasts, and thus did not fit properly [incidentally, I have a friend who has the opposite problem -- large breasts and small nipples, and she had similar fit problems with the smaller Medela breast shields]. The result was inefficient pumping, and, again, sore nipples.

I was also one of the initial testers of the new MiPump. Hated it. Hated every part of it. If the pump hadn't been free, I would have been really angry over it. The only thing I did like about the pump was that it was lightweight and quiet.

My third pump is a manual pump -- the Avent Isis. I bought this pump after experiencing the nipple trauma from my Medela Free Style. I needed to continue to pump at work, but without further injuring myself. What I loved about the Avent Isis is that you could "hold" the suction for long periods of time. This is a very efficient way to get milk. What I hated about it is that it's manual, so in order to get the same amount of milk I could from the Medela, I would have to spend twice as much time. I also was limited in my activities while using the manual pump.

So I set out to find a pump that would give me the best of what I experienced in the other three pumps I own. I wanted the efficiency and convenience of the Medela Free Style, the quietness of the MiPump, and the suction flexibility of the Avent Isis.I think the Ameda Purely Yours Ultra comes as close to anything I've read about in accomplishing this task.

Efficiency/Convenience: I've read some reviews on here for the previous version of the Ameda Purely Yours, which say that this pump is superior to the Medela in terms of efficiency. I wouldn't go quite that far. I think it is just as efficient as the Medela Free Style. But it is $100 cheaper, so that scores a win in the Ameda column. It is not a "hands-free" pump, but I've found that with a good nursing bra, I can place the shields in my bra, and after suction starts, let them go. They will stay in place, and I can continue to do work. Major plus. Even better, no nipple trauma. The pump comes with three different size nipple shields, and there is an option to order another larger size. I am using the largest size and unlike the Medela, the breast shield size is the same as the smaller sizes. I have no problems with the fit!

Sound: The Ameda is by no means silent, but outside of a manual pump, you'd be hard pressed to find a good pump that is. It is fairly quiet, and I have found that I can talk on the phone without the other person knowing that I am pumping.

Suction: This is the best function. There are separate dials for speed and suction. You start with the dials on the highest speed to encourage let-down and on the highest suction that is comfortable for you. After let-down, you set the speed lower (I often set it to the lowest at first). After a few minutes, if you need to encourage more let-down, you set the speed on high again. This is a great function. I can't hold the suction quite as long as I can with the Isis, but it's pretty close. I am able to pull a stream of milk for a few seconds, and I think this is really efficient.

Other pluses:Although not pictured, the Ameda Purely Yours Ultra comes with a very cute tote bag, a cooler bag and six bottles. The three ice packs in the cooler bag are very thin, so they don't take up a lot of space in your freezer. They are also very good. They keep my milk cold all day. I don't have to leave my office to store the bottles. Huge plus. Additionally, my Medela bottles (which my child prefers to use) weren't a huge waste, because the Medela bottles screw into the Ameda breast pump. I can pump directly into the Medela bottles.

Although this pump is by no means perfect, it is very good. Having used three other pumps, I can say it is definitely the best pump I've tried yet.

UPDATE: When I initially wrote my review, I had only tried using it with the plug. This is the pump that stays at my office, so there was really no need to use the battery operation. Since then, I've tried using it with the battery, and the operation is spotty at best. Granted, I only tried a couple of times and with some really cheap batteries; but I thought it only fair to amend my 5-star review to a 4-star in case there is anyone who needs to use the unit with batteries only. From my limited experience, they didn't work very well. However, the cord to the plug is very long, so unless you're traveling, you should be able to get by without needing to use batteries.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Ameda Purely Yours Ultra Breast Pump

Product Description:
Newly styled purely yours ultra breast pump. Dual hygienekit milk collection system. Ultra suede/fauz leather tote. Cool 'n carry tote.

Get 10% OFF