September 4, 2015 Chelsea Abbott

The Nuna Mixx vs. the UPPAbaby Cruz: City vs. Suburbs

Move over Cruz – there’s a new mid-size, easy in-and-out of the car stroller. It’s the Nuna Mixx.

Nuna has been in the US for just a few years now (read Sheri’s introduction to the company back in 2013 here), but they’ve already made a huge impression. Their infant car seat, the Nuna Pipa, has tons of buzz and has been spotted with celebs like Gwen Stefani. I’m also pretty partial to the Nuna Leaf Floating Baby Lounger. But what about their strollers?

So far, there are three Nuna strollers on the market: the Pepp, IVVI, and the Nuna Mixx. All have graced our floors, but the Mixx won the day with a relatively light weight (25 pounds), great suspension, giant back wheels, OEKO-TEX certified fabrics, spacious storage, and a seat that not only turns around to face you, but fully reclines too (meaning you don’t need a bassinet – your infant can go directly into the stroller). You can even fold the stroller with the seat facing you, unlike any of Uppababy’s strollers.

So how does this compare to the Uppababy Cruz? The Cruz boasts similar features: large storage, reversible seat, etc. However, you have to buy an accessory to use the seat immediately with your newborn. Plus, it’s lacking in suspension and the tires are small and not super sturdy – we’ve seen people literally walk through their Cruz wheels, to the point of shredding. Yikes.

The thing is, the Cruz is still an excellent stroller and one of our favorites: the problem is, it’s a stroller for the suburbs, meant to trim off weight so it pops in and out of your car with ease. The bigger, tougher UPPAbaby Vista is much better suited for heavy-duty strolling and winter sidewalks, but because the Cruz looks so similar, people make the mistake of assuming that it can handle the same conditions.

Eli writes: “This is a classic illustration of the difference between an urban stroller and a suburban stroller. We love the Cruz at Magic Beans, you just have to use it the proper way. This is one of the reasons why you have to really think through how you’re going to use a stroller before you buy it. And it’s a great reason to book a free consultation with us, so we can help you think it through.”

But back to the issue of suspension: we often mention suspension on this blog as a way to explain the quality of a stroller. But what does suspension really mean? In layman’s terms, it means how smooth the ride is going to be, for both you and the child. Better suspension means your child will sleep through all the city bumps and curbs you’ll encounter, and your wrists will thank you as well. You know how your hands feel after mowing the lawn? The vibrations from the mower always made my hands and wrists (and sometimes up to my elbows) tingly. Pushing around a stroller on the sidewalk with little to no suspension will give the same effect. It’s undesirable.

Suspension will also show you how long a stroller will last. Our top two longest-lasting strollers have by far the best suspension: the Bugaboo Cameleon and the BOB Revolution. Two totally different strollers, but we have all seen ten year old Cameleons (or, the earlier version, the Frog) and BOBs come in working just fine. More suspension = a smoother ride and far less likely to break down over time. If you have nothing else to judge a stroller on, judge it by its suspension.

Pro tip: put the brake on and lean on the stroller with all your weight; it should have significant give to it. Another way to test suspension, to the great horror of anyone watching: pick the stroller up about a foot off the ground and drop it. If it bounces, you’re good to go – if it sounds like it is about to shatter into a million little pieces, walk away. The Mixx passed both of these tests!

With that great suspension and bigger wheels, the Mixx can handle extensive, all-weather strolling – the Cruz just can’t. It folds with the seat facing either direction, fully reclines, and yet still has a giant basket underneath. And BONUS! It’s the same price as the Cruz! EXTRA BONUS: It comes with the adapters for the Nuna Pipa infant car seat, the Pipa (but subtract one point because it currently only has adapters for its own car seat and no other brand can be attached to the stroller). We’re pretty big fans of this stroller. And we may also be a little nerdy too.