This review has been a long time coming due to all the problems I’ve had working out how to feed Heidi. But now we’re firmly in the combination-feed camp I’ve finally been having a good old play with my Yoomi feeding system. Here’s how we’ve got on.

First thing’s first - What is it?

We’ve all been there. Stumbling around bleary-eyed in the kitchen at 3am, sterilising, boiling water, making up a bottle… be it expressed milk or formula you’re serving baby, the process is exactly the same. Then there’s the added frustration of out-and-about feeding - trying to flag down a waiter in a busy restaurant for a bowl of hot water. It’s a simple enough request but the waiters don’t share the same sense of urgency as they don’t have a squealing baby in their ear.

It was these struggles that inspired husband and wife team Farah and Jim to look for a solution. Enigineer Jim then designed Yoomi - the bottle that warms your baby’s feed in just 60 seconds.

It’s a serious bit of kit. In each feeding system you’ll receive a BPA-free bottle with anti-colic teat and a genius looking warmer that sits between the teat and the bottle in a snug rubber lined collar. There’s also a Yoomi pod for charging your warmer.

Sounds complicated? It’s not. It’s actually really easy.

Using the system:

The Bottle

The bottle can be used on it’s own without the warmer. So what (if anything) sets it apart from countless others?

It’s best features are:

• Well it’s a whopper and can hold up to 240ml - I’m not a fan of tiny stage 1 bottles as your baby will grow out of them quickly. Far better to buy larger bottles from day 1.
• The measure markings are well-printed with large black font. It’s a pet hate of mine when you see bottles markings that are difficult to read (cough, cough… Dr Browns!) as you don’t want to be switching on all your kitchen lights in the dead of the night.
• There are no leaks whatsoever as the oversized teat creates a rubber seal when screwed into the bottle. As this is a major limitation with so many bottles, it’s definitely worth highlighting this.
• The bottle purports to be anti-colic - but then every brand does nowadays. It would be unfair of me to offer too much comment here as Heidi appears to get colic whatever preventative measure you use - we believe this to be a result of the formula she is using and the problem was not relieved or exacerbated as a result of using Yoomi, or any other bottle.
• Finally, I really like the cap as this fits squarely on the bottle and creates a seal over the teat - so no spillages.

Any bad points?

• The bottle is wide and very round making it cumbersome to hold. If you’re sat there for an hour per feed, your hand does begin to ache a little.
• The sheer size of the bottle means in won’t fit in some electric bottle warmers and sterilisers.
• The (slow flow easi-latch) teat is very soft as it’s supposed to mimic the breast, Heidi coped amazingly well with this but I have found been advised that some other babies have struggled with this if they have been introduced to firmer teats beforehand. You can of course purchase firmer teats from the online shop if needed)

The Warmer

So here’s the genius bit. The Yoomi warmer resembles a beehive made of clay. It fits snugly into the oversized teat then screws directly into the bottle. You turn it on by pressing an orange button through the teat. After 30 seconds, you turn the bottle upside down so your feed runs over the warmer and through the teat. Wait just 30 more seconds then feed baby.

So, what do I make of it?

The feeding system is brilliant for feeding on-the-go. Before Yoomi, I tended to either pack sterilised bottles in a sandwich bag then seek boiled water whilst on the move, wait for it to cool, then feed Heidi… or pop pre-boiled water into the bottle, warm it by popping it into a bowl of boiling water, then tip out pre-measured formula straight into the bottle. Both methods have their disadvantages and we’ve had dozens of leakages and hysterics where the children have had to wait for us to prepare their feeds.

Yoomi takes the stress out of it as the pre-boiled water is safely held within the bottle and can be warmed to breastmilk temperature in a matter of seconds. It’s cut our feeding-on-the-go time down by some 30 minutes (perhaps more) so I’m obviously really chuffed with this and would definitely recommend it.

As for home feeds, I tend to use my Tommee Tippee for these. I just find the bottles that much easier to prepare and use. As per the new guidelines for bottle feeding parents we prepare every bottle from fresh (Craig tends to do this whilst I breastfeed Heidi for 30 minutes to placate her). As the feed is still warm when we offer it to her the Yoomi warmer is largely redundant for us.

Having said this, I can definitely see the merit of using the Yoomi feeding system at home. If you’re bulk-making bottles and your feed is room temperature by the time you get around to offering it to baby, then the Yoomi becomes invaluable. I have used the Yoomi system for this on a handful of occasions and Heidi does respond well to it. She’s much calmer after a feed than she is when the feed is cooler.

Any bad points?

• Charging the warmer for the first time is a bit of a faff. You have to pop the pre-sterilised warmer into the microwavable pod, then put it in the microwave for 60 seconds. Following the instructions then becomes a little tricky as you’re asked to shake the pod to listen for a rattle - if you hear it, great. If not, you have to put it on for a further 10 seconds repeat if necessary). If you’re not sure what exactly you’re listening out for, this can be a little tricky.
• Unfortunately, this process becomes no less of a faff for additional feeds as even the ‘heat shake, heat shake’ method involves putting the warmer back in the pod, and back in the microwave. Again, you’re instructed to listen out for the rattle. I’m sure there must be an easy way of improving the design so microwaving every time isn’t necessary.

Once charged however, the pod will stay charged until you use it. You can also store the charged pod in the fridge and it will maintain its charge.

• You can’t use the warmer straight away after warming and will have to wait 75 minutes for it to cool (or 20 minutes in cool water). This means you have to stay on top of your feeds and ensure you’re charging well in advance of the next one. It sounds obvious, but I’d recommend getting into the habit of charging immediately after the last feed.
• Each warmer is good for 150 charges then you’ll need to buy a replacement (normally £19, currently £16). If you consider a newborn baby is feeding some 4x per day, then this means you’ll be purchasing a new warmer every 37 days.

This all sounds like I’m being really critical of the warmer, but I’m not. I love the concept, I just feel it could be better executed. When a traditional bottle warmer can do the same job in a matter of minutes for home feeds, I do prefer this method. For out-and-about however, the Yoomi is an excellent option and one we’ve really embraced as a family.

You can buy your own, or get more information over on Yoomi.com, or find out what others are saying on Twitter (@YoomiBottle) or Facebook (YoomiBottle).

Disclaimer: We received the Yoomi Feeding System for free in exchange for our thoughts.