Key Features:
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- Made from 100% polyester, soft velvet-esque material.
- Weight tested from 3.2 kg (7 lb) to 15 kg (28 lb)
- Advertises from birth to 36 months, however, this is wildly unrealistic. From birth relies on legs in position for newborns which is not something I advocate. Panel adjusts although from the centre, which means with a lot of fiddling and understanding you could potentially get this carrier to fit from 2 months or so, but without as much fiddling and hacking from 4 months. Then for the upper limit, based on the width of this carrier, 18 months or so is realistic.
- Width of carrier can only be adjusted through the middle panel and not at the base of the panel. This means that the "seat" baby sits in works best from 4 or 5 months through to 18 months or so. However, by tucking material under baby's bottom to create a hammock and using the mid panel adjusters it can be possible to fit a smaller baby from 2 months or so.
- For a newborn, Najell suggests carrying with legs inside the carrier but this can be difficult to achieve without putting pressure on developing ankles and feet, and without putting baby at greater risk of slumping so I would recommend a more adjustable carrier or newborn specialist option for this point.
- Offers 3 carrying positions (front parent facing, front outwards facing and back carry).
- Mid panel width adjuster allows the carrier to be narrowed for outwards facing and does give a great outwards facing position.
- Internal harness, you simply slip the carrier on and fit yourself first and then baby slots in after. All the fastenings are at the front which makes it very simple and intuitive to do up. And in fact the clips are magnetic which means they almost do themselves up!
- Minimal adjustments and relatively easy to use, however, the straps are quite difficult to pull ... not as easy as other carriers and the magnetic buckles are very clunky - easy to do up but quite hard to get to release!
- Fit wise it is quite bulky and its not possible to adjust the internal harness which leaves floppy bits on many frames and this can translate to this carrier feeling unduly heavy if it doesn't fit you well. Fit wise, it will work for most average sized parents but often doesn't work at all well for smaller frames. I am a size 14 and it bags on me.
- The internal harness design means this carrier is most similar to Baby Bjorn carriers - the Baby Bjorn Harmony in particular. This carrier has a better outwards position compared to the Harmony, but in terms of longevity of use, fit for parent and child and adjust-ability the Harmony far outshines this carrier.
- The internal harness design does mean this carrier is hard to get a really close fit with and as a result does end up being slightly top heavy and often not quite as comfortable as carriers that don't have an internal harness (such as the Ergobaby Omni Dream, Tula Explore, Izmi Baby, and Carifit carriers).
All in all, the Najell Rise will never be one of my top pick carriers. It is one I have added to the library due to popular request but in terms of functionality compared to its price and other carriers at the same range, it would never be my pick. Definitely a style over substance choice in my book. But if you are curious about it... Hire it and see how it fits you! If you are unsure at any point during your hire you are welcome to email me any questions or worries and are always welcome to send a photo or two for a quick fit check.