SilverCross Strollers

The Silvercross Dazzle is the latest in a string of smart designer strollers, because, let’s face it, your kid will grow up to be a lonely troll if his stroller isn’t the baby equivalent of a BMW. Am I the only person who thinks it’s crazy to pay nearly $300 for what is essentially a glorified umbrella stroller? I’m sure I’m not, but just in case you are even considering such an outrageous proposition as buying a Silvercross Dazzle, allow me to talk some sense into you.

To be fair, the Silvercross Dazzle is easy on the eyes with its neat aluminum frame and funky handles that make it look like a giant bent paperclip. It also comes with a lot of nifty features like an attachable carrycot and a matching quilted blanket. I won’t complain about the Silvercross Dazzle’s styling. I won’t even complain about the Silvercross Dazzle’s functionality—I’m pretty sure all four wheels roll and everything, allowing one to place a child inside and push her around to various locations. What I would like to complain about is the Silvercross Dazzle’s value.

Silvercross claims that the Dazzle stroller was “researched in the world’s style capitals” (which are London, Paris, New York, and Tokyo in case you want to know). I know that to me, research is a vital part of any stroller purchase. I want to know, nay, I must know, that a prototype of my Silvercross Dazzle was pushed by an elegant woman down the Champs Elysées or 5th avenue in Manhattan. Do you really want to pay all that extra money because the Silvercross Dazzle has been used in some big cities? Ultimately, you can find a perfectly good light stroller for far less than half the price of the Silvercross Dazzle.

In what is clearly an attempt to annoy me even further, the ad campaign for the Silvercross Dazzle is completely moronic. Silvercross has set up a faux photo shoot in which a glamorous model (just like me and you) poses for photos while her uncooperative child runs around ruining the shots. In the background, the Silvercross Dazzle sits in all it hip glory just begging you to reach out and stroke its lovely flanks. If I were in charge of such a shoot, I’d have the photographer sacked for letting the Silvercross Dazzle get in the shot in the first place.

Bottom line: don’t spend your hard-earned money on the Silvercross Dazzle. Sure, it’s probably a great stroller, but you are paying for a look, not functionality. Do yourself and your child a favor by taking all the money you save by purchasing some reasonably priced model from the Silvercross Dazzle’s competition and putting it in a college savings account. Now that’s smart.