I am what some may consider a stroller connoisseur. We've been through NINE strollers (2 more since I wrote "Signs You Might Be a Stroller Addict"), and I can say from experience, no stroller is perfect, but some come pretty darn close!
We've been HUGE fans of StrollAir's MyDuo side by side double stroller (see my review here), using it as our daily workhorse since our twins were born 2.5 years ago (check out my review here). So when StrollAir announced they were releasing a new tandem stroller that goes from (shorter) single to (longer) double, I just couldn't wait to get my hands on it!!
StrollAir's Solo to Tango Stroller just hit the market a few months ago, and could just be the only stroller you'll ever need - taking you from your first baby through your second, and of course it's a great choice for twins as well. The Solo, retailing for $499.99, is a single stroller with a 50-pound maximum reversible infant-ready seat. It comes with a winter muff, rain cover, mosquito net, 5-point harness, adjustable footrest, huge under basket with storage pockets, adjustable leatherette handlebar, and leatherette bumper bar. It also has a MASSIVE canopy, dare I say the largest in the market?, with magnetic mesh peeakboo window and an extra zippered panel that allows the canopy to cover your child practically head to toe. What's more? You can zip off the fabric sides of the seat to unveil breathable mesh when the seat is reclined, perfect for keeping your little one cool in the stroller in summer (see one of my kids demonstrating the mesh, below right)!
But here's where it gets REALLY COOL. For $199.99 you can buy the Tango, which is basically the kit to turn your single into a double tandem stroller. Included in that package you'll get a second seat (identical to the Solo seat in size, weight limit, and functions) as well as all of the accessories (winter muff, rain cover, mosquito net, leatherette bumper), and your extension pieces that will both lengthen the stroller and lift up the Solo seat to make space for the Tango seat to snap in. Both seats are infant-ready (please use an infant head and body support pillow), but you can also purchase 1 or 2 bassinets or 1-2 universal car seat adapters, as well as a shopping tote that can sit in the empty Tango seat spot, giving Solo to Tango an insane amount of configuration possibilities (a few of mine pictured below)!!
Be sure to watch my demo video below for a fun unboxing, setting the stroller up in Solo and switching to Tango mode, and my demonstrations of how various features work such as different switching the seat directions, adjusting the handlebar height, reclining seats, extending the canopy, hoisting it up over curbs (heavy, but doable), and collapsing it. The stroller comes with an instruction manual, and their rep has confirmed PDF instructions and video demo will be up on their website soon. It wasn't too hard to set up, no tools needed thankfully, but you definitely need to reference the instructions here and there, for safety and sanity's sake!
The feature I find most useful of StrollAir's Solo to Tango is the ability to go from shorter single stroller to longer tandem stroller. As a mom of twins plus one, we almost always need our double. But there are times we need to take just 1 child to the doctor (in a stroller), so we keep a backup single stroller in the closet (taking up very valuable city apartment space!!!). But now, with the Solo to Tango, we just need this one stroller!!! It takes less than 5 minutes (the same amount of time to dig out our spare single) to switch from Tango to Solo: you just unzip the basket, snap out the extension frame, switch the front wheels back to the original Solo front, zip the basket back, remove the seat extensions, and snap the seat back in. Done! No tools necessary! (You can see me switching from Solo to Tango mode in my YouTube demo).
As far as accessories go, you can upgrade to air-filled tires for a smoother ride, however I gotta say, I find their standard tires great (super smooth push) and there's never a concern of getting a flat out there on the nail and glass-filled sidewalks of NYC haha! StrollAir also sells a shopping tote, hop on board, parent console, and handle sleeves. The winter foot muffs are FABULOUS and come standard with the stroller, check them out pictured below. Together with the ginormous canopies, you're ready for the harshest winter (or to hide your precious cargo from the paparazzi LOL)!!
The Tango doesn't collapse super small (see photo above center), but it is quick and easy to collapse - you just have to make sure seats and wheels are facing forward, then lock the stroller, click the red button on the left side of the handlebar, squeeze the telescoping handlebar button and push the handlebar in all the way. You'll feel the stroller frame kind of release and then you can swing the whole thing in on itself by pushing the handlebar down. What's really great is that it's self standing!! If you need to fit it into a tighter space, you can get it to fold smaller by quickly removing the belly bars, wheels, and seats.
One question I get a lot from our followers is whether side by side or tandem double strollers are better, and I gotta tell you, that's a really really hard call. The two biggest pros of a side by side, in my opinion, are not having to stop walking in order to get snacks or bottles to both of your children (since they're both within your reach) and hoisting the stroller over curbs is also easier.
I was nervous that a tandem would feel easy to tip and hard to maneuver around corners, but I gotta say the StrollAir Tango is neither of these things. The large wheels and wide back wheel base are very helpful with these issues. Also due to the large wheels, it has no trouble rolling smoothly over the biggest divots, that our double umbrella stroller was constantly getting stuck on! If pushing on slanted sidewalk, you have to use a bit more muscle to keep it straight than a side by side, but it performed light years beyond the Joovy Big Caboose we used 2 years ago in terms of stability and ease of steering and turning corners.
In some tandem configurations you could face the problem of one child kicking the other one, but recently we've had the issue in our side by side of our girls fighting, pulling hair, etc, so there's really no way to avoid this - if your kids want to fight, they will find a way, no matter what kind of stroller they're in! That said, in the StrollAir Tango you can have your children facing opposite directions - so YAY, I have found a solution!!
I've also found this tandem easier to get through the grocery store aisles. When my girls are next to each other in a wide SBS, they both stretch out their arms and legs (my twin "octopus") and grab or knock stuff of the shelf. SO frustrating. We've never found a main doorway our SBS couldn't get through, but it couldn't get through our bedroom doorway or the grocery store checkout lanes, which the tandem can. it's amazing what just a few inches in width can mean (the back wheels are the widest part of the Tango, about 25.5" wide. Our side by side is 29" wide and many are up to 32" or so!!)!
Very long story short, I don't think there's an easy answer as to side by side or tandem being better, you need to take both types for a test drive to see which will suit you better. Either way, StrollAir has got an amazing stroller for you. If leaning toward a tandem, I can't recommend their Solo to Tango highly enough! And if going for a side by side, their new TwinWay (pretty much a vamped up MyDuo) is the way to go!! Side note, their ReVu also sounds amazing - it's an umbrella stroller with a reversible seat!!
One question I get a lot from our followers is whether side by side or tandem double strollers are better, and I gotta tell you, that's a really really hard call. The two biggest pros of a side by side, in my opinion, are not having to stop walking in order to get snacks or bottles to both of your children (since they're both within your reach) and hoisting the stroller over curbs is also easier.
I was nervous that a tandem would feel easy to tip and hard to maneuver around corners, but I gotta say the StrollAir Tango is neither of these things. The large wheels and wide back wheel base are very helpful with these issues. Also due to the large wheels, it has no trouble rolling smoothly over the biggest divots, that our double umbrella stroller was constantly getting stuck on! If pushing on slanted sidewalk, you have to use a bit more muscle to keep it straight than a side by side, but it performed light years beyond the Joovy Big Caboose we used 2 years ago in terms of stability and ease of steering and turning corners.
In some tandem configurations you could face the problem of one child kicking the other one, but recently we've had the issue in our side by side of our girls fighting, pulling hair, etc, so there's really no way to avoid this - if your kids want to fight, they will find a way, no matter what kind of stroller they're in! That said, in the StrollAir Tango you can have your children facing opposite directions - so YAY, I have found a solution!!
I've also found this tandem easier to get through the grocery store aisles. When my girls are next to each other in a wide SBS, they both stretch out their arms and legs (my twin "octopus") and grab or knock stuff of the shelf. SO frustrating. We've never found a main doorway our SBS couldn't get through, but it couldn't get through our bedroom doorway or the grocery store checkout lanes, which the tandem can. it's amazing what just a few inches in width can mean (the back wheels are the widest part of the Tango, about 25.5" wide. Our side by side is 29" wide and many are up to 32" or so!!)!
Very long story short, I don't think there's an easy answer as to side by side or tandem being better, you need to take both types for a test drive to see which will suit you better. Either way, StrollAir has got an amazing stroller for you. If leaning toward a tandem, I can't recommend their Solo to Tango highly enough! And if going for a side by side, their new TwinWay (pretty much a vamped up MyDuo) is the way to go!! Side note, their ReVu also sounds amazing - it's an umbrella stroller with a reversible seat!!
Have any questions about this stroller, or any others we've owned? Have a single or double stroller you love, or features you wish one would offer? Leave a comment below!! And don't miss these other stroller reviews I've done:
Disclaimer: We were provided this stroller free of charge, but all thoughts and opinions are unbiased - we are no sell outs!!
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