Ellaroo Mei Hip Baby Carrier-Osaka

I've been using this carrier for about three months with my son who is now 6 months old and weighs about 16 pounds.

The best features of this carrier are:
- the hip is the perfect position for a baby 4-6 months old, because it lets him see what you're doing and be involved, but places his increasing weight on your hip. Much more comfortable than a sling for long periods of time, and okay for a child who can't yet sit up on his own.
- it's very trim and can be easily stuffed into a diaper bag.
- very easy to put on (no adjusting, just click and go).

Room for improvement:
- the straps are almost IMPOSSIBLE to thread through the buckles. Take the time to get it just right when you receive it, and then never do it again!!! Because of this, it would be really hard for this carrier to be shared between two parents of different size.
- The body is very wide for a smaller baby. It would be great if there were elastic or a...Read more

I wanted a hip carrier for my 1 yr. old daughter who had outgrown her baby bjorn. She is petite for her age - 18lbs, 28 inches. I read all the reviews and decided to try the Mei Hip. Although the carrier is very well made, and the buckles are very secure, I did not like the fabric. I found it very stiff and unforgiving. It was like a cotton canvas material. I thought the Osaka pattern would be more muted or embroidered but it was a screened on print that was very bright and garish against the black. My daughter was very comfortable in it but I found the carrier very difficult to adjust. I would have to put her down, take it off and rethread the straps through the buckles and start the process of putting it on and her in it again. Once it was on, the waist strap cut into my hips no matter how I adjusted it and I found it difficult to spread the shoulder strap so it cupped my shoulder one handed. Once it was cupped around my shoulder, my right arm felt pinned to my side. After a short...Read more

We started out with a Baby Bjorn after my son was born that a relative gave us. It was fine for the first few months but, once he hit 17 lbs the shoulder pain was just out of control. We did a bunch of research online and found lots of positive reviews for the Ellaroo Mei Hip. I ordered it and have truly never looked back. It is so incredibly comfortable, even now when he is far heavier. (He is nearly a year old now.) All of the weight is down on my hip and I regularly walk the 3 mile path around the lake by my house with him on my hip with very little effort and no pain. It also packs so small & light that it is really easy to keep in the diaper bag and pull out whenever we get somewhere in the car. A great product!