Review: The new Unimom Forte

Good ol' days... 15 ounces from my 1st morning pump using the old Unimom Forte

When E was much younger, Babymama Mi'Ann Oblea sent me this Unimom Forte to road test.  With my first nursling, I had been using a Lansinoh dual pump and an Ameda Elite - both brands locally available from Babymama.  Since Mi'Ann carried several other pump brands, she asked me to try the Korean brand Unimom to see how it compares with the American brands.

just pumped! yes, my milk supply
has drastically reduced. 

So what do I like about this pump?  Top advantage would be the price.  This used to be sold at P7,500.  The pump has been updated and the new Unimom Forte sells at P7,000 only and is a lot smaller than the original design.   The Unimom Forte is very simple to use.  You just switch on the machine then turn the suction strength to your desired level.

The pump is also very quiet.  When turned on, you can hardly hear the motor.  This is perfect since I pump early morning when everyone else is sleeping.  When you move the dial to the middle or past the middle, there is an additional clicking sound but this is still a very minimal sound compared to my other pumps.

parts of the Unimom Forte

One disadvantage of the Unimom Forte is that it only comes in 1 bottle size - 5 ounces so when I was pumping during the early days and overflowing with milk, I had to use Medela's bigger capacity bottle.  Since it has no rechargeable battery, it must be plugged in all the time and is not very portable.  There is also no built-in timer so you have to consciously keep track of how long you have been pumping.

comparing sizes:  Spectra, Unimom, Medela

*Spectra and Unimom on loan from Babymama.ph

Finally, since there is only 1 dial, there is no way to control the suction speed, only the suction strength.  So what I do is to turn the pump on and off to trigger my milk ejection reflex (MER).  I usually get 2-3 MERs during my expression time.  So once I get the first one, I turn off the pump, rest for about 15-30 seconds then turn it on again.  This usually triggers the 2nd MER.

I recommend the Unimom Forte for moms who have a place to store the pump (don't need to lug the pump about), need to pump 3-4 times a day and are on a budget. You can purchase the Unimom Forte directly from Babymama.