Ameda Purely Yours Ultra Breast Pump

I did a lot of research before buying and ended up with this one over the similar Medela pump. This is less expensive than Medela and seems superior. There are completely dialable settings for both speed and suction. I tend to be a bit abusive to my electronics and this has stood up now to 5+ months of abuse with no issues.

I have not needed the different sized flanges and find the carrying bag is way bigger than you need. The set comes with car adapter, AC adapter, and the pump can also use batteries. I have used all 3 and the pump works just as well on the alternative power sources. Each collection bottle has markings for 4 oz but can hold up to about 5 oz max. Over time, between collection and cleaning, the oz markings on the bottles have deteriorated and are essentially non-existant, but by now I can essentially eyeball how much I have pumped without them.

If you are full-time pumping for a child in daycare, you will probably need to consider a collection container alternative in addition to what this comes with. I pump 15-20 oz during the workday and give that to daycare for the following day, so if I used only the collection bottles given it would not be enough. I would need at a in minimum 8- 4 filled at daycare + 4 for collection at work. I just use 2 collection containers and combine what I pump that day into one big rubbermaid container (which I have 3 of) that I purchased at Target, which has worked out well.

All in all I am very happy with my purchase, which is a good thing considering I probably use it for 2+ hours cumulative per day during the week, and occasionally on the weekend.
Posted on 2/4/10

I really like that there are 3 different size flanges, this is great for those who don't fit into the standard size flange! I am able to express the same or more than the Medela Lactina that I rented from the hospital. This pump is lightweight and small and it does not hurt your nipple like some of the other pumps. I have been very happy with this pump!!!
Posted on 1/13/10

I really felt like a cow, but I enjoy breastfeeding and giving my baby the best nutrition on the planet.
I bought my Purely Yours Ultra pump when I was in the hospital after my lactation nurse told me about this new pump.
I had not read any research before buying it so I like the fact that it came with almost every accessory that you can buy from Ameda. The quality is amazing and it does not make too much noise when I pump at night. I am able to pump in the rocking chair next to my hubby and he does not wake up.
I would recomend this pump and hope that you enjoy it too.
Posted on 12/3/09

I love this pump- it works great, is powerful, and quiet enough for me to talk on the phone while pumping with no one knowing that is what I am doing. HOWEVER, it started to crack when the motor/base meets the bottle holders. I don't know quite how to describe except that the cracks outline the bottle holders in the shape of a half circle. I returned the first to Ameda and they over nighted an replacement pump and it cracked AGAIN. They are replacing yet another one, which is great, but I am worried that it will happen again.
Posted on 11/14/09

I used a hospital grade breast pump while my duaghter was in the NICU. Once we came home I used the Ameda Breast pump and found it to be better quality than the hospital grade breast pump. It is faster, quieter, and I get more milk expressed with the Ameda versus the hospital breastpump. The accessories that came with the breast pump are great. I have used the car adaptor many times-it makes it easy to pump on those long drives. The only downfall is that the markings on the bottles wear off overtime so you can not tell how much is in them. This is not that big of a deal as I use different bottles for feeding.
Posted on 11/6/09

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.
Posted on 9/7/09