Product Description

Micralite Fastfold FTS Stroller For parents searching for the next big hit in the stroller world, look no further than the lightweight Micralite Fastfold FTS Stroller. It is one of the tightest folding models of lightweight stroller on the market. This baby stroller from Micralite has been doused with praise and attention in Europe before hitting the retails stateside. The Fastfold has a unique design which sets it apart from other strollers. The Fastfold from Micralite is highly functional and easily maneuverable with all of the features and comforts sought out by parents on the go. The Fastfold FTS Stroller from Euro-Baby is more affordable than most high end strollers and utilizes a unique style to its benefit. One of the standout features on this lightweight stroller is just that, it's lightweight. The baby stroller comes in at right around 15 lbs and is certainly the lightest of its caliber. The aluminum chassis on this stroller are engineered in such a way to provide one of the tightest folds going. The frame on the Fastfold from Micralite is unique in that it stands completely upright when folded. When combined with a one step folding process, parents will be able to set it up, take it down and put it away in seconds. The lightweight stroller feature a spring loaded frame which snaps back into action twice as fast as the fold. Parents will love the extras it comes with, like the rain cover. Parents may be interested in other stroller toys or accessories as well. One of the few knocks on the stroller from Micralite is that it doesn't accept car seats. That is a feature which is just about automatic on strollers anymore. It can't be used with infants because of this, but Micralite is looking to change that notion.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #54356 in Baby Product
• Color: Black
• Brand: Euro-Baby
• Model: 70070
• Dimensions: 10.70" h x 16.30" w x 42.10" l, 21.20 pounds

Features

• Limited Lifetime Warranty
• Patented Easy Fold System
• Superlightweight Umbrella Stroller
• Stands Upright in Folded position
• 3 months to 3 years

From the Manufacturer
The Micralite Fastfold (3 Months +) is a compactand ergonomic stroller, which can be easily maneuvered using one hand and has an ingenious single-handed fold that makes it a great all-rounder. The removable, chunky rear wheels and pneumatic tires can cope with the muddiest of paths, while its swiveling front wheels give it great maneuverability on the street. The fastfold comes complete with a ranicover, extended hood with peep=through window, attached purse to keep keys and money at hand and a net bag for underseat storage.

Customer Reviews

Not the best for every day, but a great travel stroller for overseas
I bought this stroller in black a year ago for a trip overseas. I bought it secondhand, lighly used and for what I needed it for, it was perfect, but I DID sell it as soon as I got stateside as I had another stroller that fit my needs better for around home (the stokke xplory).

Now, the strollers plus factors: it does fold fairly small, especially if you remove the quick release wheels and turn down the handle. It was able to fit in a subcompact car overseas. A Maclaren Techno would have been too long. The seat is ventilated which is nice for those hot summer months and you can buy a footmuff/seat liner for the colder months. the Steering is truly one handed and you can maneuver through crowds quite nimbly. The seat is fairly wide seated and has a tall seat back so it does hold a taller child fairly well too. (Yes it does narrow at the top, but it would be fine for kids until three or four) It locks closed and it's handles are adjustable with an onboard key. Also, it comes with a rain shield which is actually of decent quality and comes in its own convenient carry bag you can hang on the handlebar.

It's great for rougher terrain (like old worn out cobblestones) as you can pop up the front wheels and use the big air tires in back to go over the bumps. For all other times, the swivel front tires are great for getting around town. For half our trip we went from train to train and this stroller was light enough to lift up to trains easily and it's fold is small and it can stand up on it's own, which was great for cramped train quarters, busses and even in restaurants. We made a carry strap too and were able to fling it on our shoulder to climb up cathedrals too.

The downsides to the stroller for me was that it was wide in the front - 24" to be exact and I found I caught the front wheels in narrow spaces quite frequently. It's still narrower than some 3 wheeler strollers meant for indoors and out, but it's asymetric design makes it difficult to predetermine if you can fit within a space or not. Second downside is the pathetic sunshade. this is so typical for strollers these days to have a well thought out design for everything but the canopy. Though, again, you can buy an additional sunshade for this separately to solve the problem. The basket is a little difficult to get to (like a Maclaren's basket), but it will actually hold quite a bit, which was really nice for rain coats.
Also, like so many lightweight strollers, it's tippy when things are loaded on the handlebar. If you have a heavy diaper bag clipped on the back and take the child out first, BOOM it goes over backwards - again just like a Maclaren. Lastly, the steering while quite good one-handed is a little awkward as the handle is a bit strange. The entire three week trip I was trying to get it just right and never felt I did get it.

Now, a bit about the recline of the stroller. This is probably the deal killer for a lot of people, but it actually isn't that bad for kids over 6 months (better 8-9 months) old. It doesn't recline. It is a sling style seat and it can be a more upright sling, or with a release of a tab, a more relaxed sling. The child doesn't get to lay back to sleep, but it does allow their bodies to ease down a bit to sleep and NOT have a bobbing head. There's no other stroller I know that has that feature, so it's hard to describe. My son doesn't like seatbacks to suddenly fall back or even ease back, so this worked well for us and he slept fine. For children under 6 months, you would need to get the bassinet for this system or car seat adaptors.

The only other thing I wish we would have known before going overseas with this stroller was that NOWHERE we went had changing stations for babies and if they did, they were locked and you had to search for an attendant and then pay them more tip for unlocking the door for you. A stroller that had a fully reclineable seat would have been nice for that, but then it would have been too big for the other things we needed it for - like train hopping across Italy.

All in all, it's a nice little stroller and for this new deal of the day price of $199, it's worth it. Is it worth $350 or $400? I don't think so, but it is a solid stroller that gives you that cool feeling and is still functional. I'm quite picky about strollers too, but for a compact stroller, I'm beginning to think this is one of the better choices for maneuverablity and solid feel.

Great urban stroller
We live in a Northeastern city and have had a tough time finding a stroller that would work for us. We searched and searched for a model that was light enough to carry up and down apartment stairs, compact enough for crowded sidewalks and shops, and sturdy enough to hold up on bumpy sidewalks and in snow. This stroller fits the bill beautifully.

After a recent heavy snowfall, we were able to get our kiddo to a doctor's appoinment on the subway -- before the sidewalks were shoveled! It can be carried with one hand if you lock it into the folded position. The unique shape and compact, upright fold makes it easy to take into restaurants, too, as it can easily be stashed in a corner or wheeled up to a cafe table without causing a major inconvenience to other patrons.

I know there are some concerns about the recline for a younger baby. Ours is four months old, and he sleeps happily in it, despite not being much of a napper in general. The recline is about 45 degrees, but the interior headrest keeps him from slumping over. He is a pretty strong boy, though -- I might hold off a couple of months on using it if he were a little more wobbly. I think that for a good supported sitter, though, the recline is definitely adequate.

My only complaint is that it can be a little tricky to fold the stroller enough to fully lock it into place, which makes it a little hard to fold on the fly. In general, though, I'm thrilled with my purchase.

The best all-round compromise
To begin with the conclusion, we are very happy with our purchase. There are no obvious disadvantages to the Micralite Fastfold product. Over the past 12 months it has performed very well for us and is still in great condition. It is well-designed, versatile and comfortable for both parents and baby.

When our baby was born we had certain criteria for our stroller, in no particular order. (1) It must able to handle urban bumps and parks. (2) It must be light enough to carry up two flights of stairs to our apartment. (3) It must allow us to clip in a Maxi Cosi Cabrio newborn baby car seat. (4) It must allow one-handed operation and be small enough when folded to fit in the back of a compact car. (5) It must be comfortable and have some luggage-carrying capacity.

Gradually we whittled down the candidates. My sister has a Bugaboo and she found it too much to carry up stairs. When we looked at the Bugaboo, Stokke Xplory and Quinny Buzz models used by our friends we did feel they were all too big and heavy. On the other hand we didn't like the rattly little wheels and the bumpy ride of the umbrella strollers like the Maclarens and Quinny Zapp that are now ubiquitous in Tokyo. Another problem is that we saw that many strollers simply don't fold easily, especially with one hand. I didn't want to be removing seats and bits and pieces to fit it in the back of the car.

So we tried the Micralite in a shop, liked it and ordered it. It has been great. Note that this model is NOT suitable for use on its own for small babies - you will need an infant seat. Micralite sells its own infant carrier but for the first six months we used a Maxi Cosi car seat for babies that can be taken out of the car and clipped straight on to the using with two little arms (sold separately). When the baby was old enough we stopped using the Maxi Cosi - great product by the way - and switched to the standard Micralite mesh seat. (The mesh seat rolls up neatly out of the way when not needed). There is not much adjustment in angle of the seat, but our baby doesn't seem to mind and often sleeps in the stroller. The underseat shopping carrier mesh is fairly large, but you will have to squat down to put stuff in it, which can be fiddly. The brake is a long bar that is very easy to flip on and off with your toe.

The included rain cover is solidly built and nicely tailored to the stroller and packs down to a surprisingly small size. The stroller's hood, as another reviewer noted, is not large enough to protect the occupant from the sun but then integrating such a sunshade into the hood would make it very large. We bought a Protect-A-Bub shade which fits the Micralite well, is very adjustable and can be removed when not needed. When winter came we bought the footwarmer which is like a sleeping bag that fits into the seat is clearly warm and also appears to be showerproof, although the rain cover protects it when attached.

In motion the stroller is very smooth. The stroller can easily be steered with one hand. The big wheels at the back make it easy to pull backwards up steps or kerbs and it handles turf and rough ground reasonably well. It is very good in small spaces. of which there are many in this city. Because the Micralite's widest part is at the front it is easy to gauge whether it will fit through a gap and we have few problems even in crowded Tokyo.

Folding is a knack (push stroller away then pull it back to get wheels aligned and straight, put on brake, lean down, push lever with thumb and pull sharply up) but once you have it you can store the Micralite in a very small space and it will stand upright by itself. If there is stuff in the shopping carrier (such as the rain cover) it will not lock in the folding position but if there is only a small amount of luggage it will still stand reasonably upright. It is, as advertised, very light, which makes it easy to manhandle when necessary.

When folded the Micralite fits in the boot of our Toyota Vitz/Yaris, which is not a large space. If necessary the wheels can be detached very quickly (stroller, not Toyota) as they are held on by squeeze-lock fasteners and we have done this on occasion when we wanted to put in more luggage.

Finally this stroller has rarity value - we have only seen two others in a year in Japan. It looks very smart although this wasn't a purchasing criterion for me and I'm certain the baby is not bothered.