Is the Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep Machine Perfect? – Review

So, we’ve had the Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep machine for a few weeks now and I felt it’s time to write a review now. In fact, I’ve got two of them, one for upstairs and one for downstairs.

I guess the fact that I have bought two of them gives the game away really. Yes, I’ll be giving this five dads out of five, but let me explain why.

Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep – The Basics

The Perfect Prep machine
The Perfect Prep machine

This is a machine designed to make preparing formula for your baby as easy as possible. For me the faff of having to traipse up and down stairs to boil and then cool water while N was crying in the middle of the night was not a pleasant thought. Thankfully there is an alternative, and it’s the Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep machine.

In essence you put your bottle under the dispenser and hit the big button (after making sure the dial is at the right oz size). It dispenses some hot water. Put your formula in the bottle now (the machine doesn’t do that for you) and shake it about. This sterilised the formula. Now put it back under the water dispenser and press the button again and it will dispense filtered cool water. Give it a final shake and you’re done. Just test it on your wrist or somewhere to make sure it’s not too hot (though to be clear it has never been an incorrect temperature).

I’ve just timed myself doing a 7oz bottle from scratch and it took 147 seconds. That’s it, and you have a bottle ready.

Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep – Convenience 5/5

Wow, for what this is doing (preparing water for a bottle) I can’t imagine it being any better. It takes under three minutes to prepare a large bottle of formula. How much more convenient could it get?

It’s 23.4cm x 33.5cm x 31cm. As such, it’s not a huge unit and so is quite flexible on where you can put it. Plus, it only needs access to power, it doesn’t need plumbing in or anything like that. As such, we have one in our kitchen for downstairs use and in his bedroom for nighttime feeds. I will say though that it does beep twice during the process. If you’ve got two kids and one is awake to feed and the machine is in the room with them, then the other child may wake due to the beep. It depends how much of a heavy sleeper they are. See further down though for details of their second version of this machine (in the summary) which is expected to change this.

Useful warning lights
Useful warning lights

There are also warning lights to show if there are issues like low water, or the filter needs changing etc.

Overall, I struggle to think how this could be more convenient. I have genuinely been thinking about that. Could they make the water tank bigger so you have to fill it fewer times – but that would make the whole unit bigger so probably not. Could they make it dispense the formula for you? Each formula brand will want different amounts I expect so probably not (or it would be a lot more complex as you’d have to program it). Since I can’t think of anything, 5/5 for convenience!

Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep – Usability 5/5

Change the dial for the right amount
Change the dial for the right amount

This machine really is so easy to use. On a day by day basis all you’re doing is filling it with water and pushing a single button. Longer term the only actions you do with the machine are:

  • Push a button twice for the right water amount and right temperature
  • Make sure the dial is at the right oz size
  • Make sure there is water in the tank (it tells you if not)
  • Clean it once a month (takes about 10 minutes)
  • Replace the filter every 3 months

That’s it. For what it does it is simple to use and simple to maintain.

Again, I’ve been trying to think of anything that would make it easier to use, and I’ve come up with diddly squat. 5/5. Simple.

Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep – Quality 5/5

Here's the water tank to fill up
Here’s the water tank to fill up

The third measure getting 5/5. This really sounds like I’m somehow promoting this for Tommee Tippee, as though they have given me these for free. They haven’t, I’ve bought these myself as they are needed!

Quality wise I can’t fault it. It’s essentially a single unit with a separate movable shelf for different bottle heights. All of it feels like it’s made of good quality materials and is well put together.

We’ve had ours for a few weeks now and have had no issues whatsoever with either of them. Excellent quality.

Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep – Value 5/5

At £69.99 on Amazon it’s not cheap. However think of it this way; if you are doing say eight bottles per day for six months then that’s 1,460 feeds. You’ll probably do it for longer but perhaps at about that time you’ll start introducing some solids. Now, at £69.99 that works out at about 0.5 pence per feed. If you continue to use it post six months then then price per feed will go down.

For the time you will have saved over that time period this is an absolute bargain.An absolute bargain. At 147 seconds for a 7oz bottle I don’t think anyone can complain.

5/5 for value without a doubt.

Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep – Summary

So overall I have to say that this is a fantastic product, it really is. That convenience of having the right temperature water on tap (so to speak) is of such high value and importance to me. I don’t want to be waking at 3am and having to spend ages making a bottle downstairs whilst my wife is sitting upstairs with a screaming baby (and he does scream as I’ve written about here in Baby Jekyll and Baby Hyde).

This is a great product and I would completely recommend this to any parent. 5/5 all day long.

Now, having just looked on Amazon there is a new version coming out on 18th March 2018 which is the Day & Night version. It seems, based on the pictures, to be largely the same but with a few additional features, including a quieter machine (this one does beep when finished), a digital display (it will be interesting to know what’s on that) and a soft glow feature to it, all for the middle of the night. Looks interesting but also appears to be £130, so it’ll be good to understand the differences better when it’s launched.

But as I said, the existing machine at £69.99 is fantastic and in my opinion a must for all formula fed babies.

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