Medela Harmony Manual Breast Pump Review

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Looking for a Medela breast pump for occasional use? Then you may want to consider the Medela Harmony.

Not all new moms need a full time breast pump that will last for years. Those who breastfeed the majority of the time and do not have a heavy need to express milk away from home can often get away with a more affordable single pump designed for lighter use.

This Medela breast pump is a manual pump that won’t keep up with a marathon pumping session in the bathroom at work, but which can be tossed in the closet or the back of the car for those times when you need a pump on the fly.

What to Look for in a Manual Breast Pump:

Manual pumps are quite different from electric pumps. You don’t have to worry about plugging them into the wall or changing out batteries, but there are some things to keep in mind as you compare the Medela Harmony to your other manual options:

Efficient Expression
Convertible
Lightweight
BPA Free

Small manual breast pumps may seem unneeded to the mother who intends to breastfeed all the time, but it is always good to have something lightweight and compact on hand. Most mothers will run into situations where they need to express milk for their own comfort, but the baby isn’t quite up to the task. The Harmony pump is a great option for that type of situation.

Advanced Suction Technology

Medela pumps are all designed to closely mimic the natural sucking patterns of newborn babies. This means the pump first stimulates the breast so the milk will drop easily. It then switches gears and starts a sucking pattern designed to draw the milk out as quickly and efficiently as possible. You won’t find this technology on any other manual breast pump, so keep that in mind as you compare this product with other manual breast pump reviews.

It Can Covert to Electric!

You may start out as an occasional breast pumper, but what happens if there are problems and you need to rely on your pump to a greater degree? The Harmony manual pump is not suitable for hardcore pumping, but you can purchase a conversion kit that turns it into a more durable electric breast pump. This is another feature that you will not find on many other manual pumps, so you have to keep this in mind if there is any chance you might need to get more use out of your pump sometime in the future.

It Weighs Just a Pound

The Medela Harmony weighs just one pound, so you won’t have trouble hauling it around. This is a very lightweight pump that doesn’t take up much room in a bag or purse. You can put it somewhere in your car for emergencies or keep one in various locations of the home just in case you need to express and the baby isn’t quite ready to get the job done.

No Fear of Contact with BPA

BPA is a type of plastic that used to be used in baby bottles, water bottles, and a variety of other products designed for home and business use. Research has shown that it can cause serious health issues for humans, which of course includes fragile babies. Keeping up with the times, Medela ensures that all parts of their breast pumps that come in contact with the baby’s milk are completely BPA free. This includes all bottles made by Medela for use with their breast pumps.

How Much Should You Expect to Pay?

The Medela Harmony retails for around $35, but you can often find it online at lower prices. Look for free shipping deals, such the one offered through Amazon.com That will substantially lower the total expense of purchasing a pump online.

What’s Included?

2 bottles (5 oz)
2 bottle lids
1 bottle travel cap
1 bottle stand
Instruction manual
Guide to breastfeeding

Does It Include a Warranty?

The Medela Harmony breast pump only comes with a thirty day limited warranty. This is to be expected with a single manual pump only designed for occasional use. More extensive warranties are offered on Medela breast pumps designed for more intensive pumping sessions.

What Others are Saying about the Medela Harmony Manual Breast Pump:

This pump has over 200 consumer reviews on Amazon.com and scores an average of four stars out of five. This is a great track record for a single pump designed only for occasional use. To give you an idea of what others think of the pump, consider a small selection of consumer remarks on the product:

“This is an absolute must have for all breastfeeding mothers.”
“Great pump – wonderful for traveling or at home.”
“Not a single complaint. Great for traveling!”

Any Complaints?

There aren’t a lot of complaints against the Medela Harmony manual breast pump, but when they do come up they tend to be on one of these issues:

Low suction power
Low part quality
Exhausting to use

This last complaint is in regards to manual breast pumps in general. They do require more physical effort than electric pumps, since you are doing the work to power the suction yourself rather than sitting back and letting a motor do the work for you. This is something that you have to keep in mind before you buy a manual pump. You have to keep in mind what you are purchasing and what it was designed to do.
The low suction power is another thing that just goes along with a manual breast pump. You won’t get as much suction out of this pump as you would an electric pump, simply because you don’t have the power of the motor. This goes back to what the pump was designed to do.

There are not very many complaints about the quality of parts on this Medela breast pump, but when they do arise you have the warranty to fall back on. Medela is very good about responding to complaints within the warranty period, as is noted on many consumer reviews. The warranty is not very extensive for this product. Once again, remember what it was designed to do. It is only designed for occasional use, so will naturally not be as durable as other pumps.

Where Can You Buy The Medela Harmony Breast Pump?

While we have found this pump at quite a few retailers and local stores, Amazon.com tends to have the lowest prices and free shipping on this model. Click here to check their current prices.

Where can you read more reviews?

There are currently over 200 user reviews on Amazon from people who have experience with this breast pump. Click here to read their reviews for yourself.