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52 of 53 found the following review helpful:
 please read- there is a trick to venting these bottles... Dec 28, 2009
By Expecting mom
I was searching for a bottle that didn't leak (all of my Avent and Breast Flow leaked terribly). These bottles are fantastic - as long as you figure out the venting trick (it's so silly that they just don't tell you this). The "venting system" has a little, rubbery insert that goes under the nipple and protrudes into the bottle. this protuberance as an air venting slit that keeps the nipple from collapsing. this slit needs to be facing towards the ceiling when you are feeding baby. I'm guessing it's because the air your baby is causing isn't forceful enough to really push the bubbles out- but if you let the bubbles RISE, as they do naturally, you will see a continuous stream of bubbles popping up inside the bottle as your baby drinks. it's really no big deal. when i make a bottle, i always make sure this little slit is situated where the words on the bottle are. if you don't place the slit anywhere particular, you can always twist the bottle while baby is drinking - you will eventually see bubbles.
my little girl is a voracious eater. she will take down an entire 9 oz bottle without coming off the nipple once- as long as that slit is where it's supposed to be. these bottles DO NO LEAK (i have three i bought at separate times). It's so ridiculous that no one tells you to twist the bottle if it's not venting. fantastic product- if you don't mind the price.
25 of 26 found the following review helpful:
I love these bottles!! Feb 18, 2007
By Oklahoma Mom
I have tried just about every bottle on the market, hoping to find one that my breastfeeding baby would accept. Finally, I happened upon this one. I love it, and so does my son! The vent system keeps the baby from having to let go of the nipple every so often to keep it from collapsing. And no matter what, this bottle doesn't leak! Furthermore, I really like knowing that there are no chemicals leaching from the plastic into my baby's milk. And my son likes the nipple much better than the firmer Avent nipple. A great product!
31 of 34 found the following review helpful:
Bisphenol-A free bottles, at a price Aug 30, 2007
By M. Garrett
"since1968"
We bought these bottles for our six month old solely because they are free of bisphenol-A. As it turns out, they're great bottles in their own right.
Pros:
* They don't leak (unlike Dr. Brown's), even when resting upside down in a bag.
* Easy to hold. I was put off by the large circumference but as it turns out our son has an easier time gripping the BornFree than smaller bottles.
* Easy to clean.
* Venting system actually works.
Cons:
* Price. If concern over bisphenol-A someday turns out to be a false alarm, I'm going to feel pretty silly spending this much per bottle (nearly $10).
* Size. The large circumference is a trade off. While it does make the bottle easier to hold, it means you can store fewer bottles in a small bag.
Also, be aware that the nipple is very large. It's fine for a six month old, but for an infant who's still learning to breast feed you might need to look elsewhere.
Overall we're very happy with the BornFree bottles.
14 of 15 found the following review helpful:
Fantastic Bottles Oct 21, 2007
By D. Geiger
I bought these bottles, kind of begrudingly. I had tons of AVENT bottles left over from my son when he was a baby just 2 years ago, but with all the press over the danger of BPA bottles, I decided I should not risk it and go with new ones. We had sterilized and microwaved our AVENT bottles A LOT and even though they weren't cloudy, I would never forgive myself if my daughter ended up with problems. So, I bought a whole set of these Born Free bottles. So glad I did. The bottles have a unique air vent system and my daughter has literally had very little gas. We even find it hard to get her to burp after feeding. They seem to be a much better product and something in the unique vent system helps her remain comfortable and happy after eating. She is six weeks old now and doing great!
50 of 62 found the following review helpful:
 Safe but imperfect...and expensive. Mar 07, 2008
By Victorian house renovator
I wanted bpa (bisphenol a) free bottles for my daughter born last October, and at the time, Born Free (BF) were all I found. Fortunately, there are now more options: http://zrecs.blogspot.com/2007/07/z-report-bisphenol-in-polycarbonate.html. But back to BF.
Pros:
--Bpa free plastic, plus a glass option.
--Silicone nipples are "modern". By this I mean they have a wide base at the bottom of the long nipple (like Avent). As opposed to the Evenflo glass bottles, which still have what I call the "1950's" nipple that our parents used (i.e., short stubby nipple without a "base" of any kind to mimic the breast, by contrast).
Cons:
--The anti-gas "vent": I find this totally worthless. I tried Avent, Adiri, First Years, and Evenflo, to name a few. However by the time I was set to try Dr. Browns, I decided that bpa free trumped everything else, so I went with Born Free and bought a full contingent of these bottles. The Born Free system works no better than Avent (whose bottles don't have a "system" (meaning there are no special inserts or vents)), and less well than the First Years Breastflow bottle (I loved this bottle - very little gas. Wish they had safe plastic!). I don't mind cleaning extra parts if that's what it takes to get bpa free and anti-gas, but boy, you better not make me clean an extra part that provides no material benefit. BTW, the instructions say to make sure the vent is "open." Folks, the vent consists of a vertical slit in what I'll call the "mini-nipple" of the interior silicone vent. If anyone knows how to "open" a slit, I'd be real interested to hear it.
--Cleaning brushes: while one does not need to purchase the BF bottle brush (Munchkin's is more than adequate - better even - at $3 or so), I've found the nipple brush is very useful. Munchkin's bottle/nipple brush consists of stiff bristles. While this is fine for silicone nipples, BF's specialized vent has the aforementioned "mini-nipple" which is very delicate. I've always been afraid that even gentle brushing with the bristle brush would tear the slit (the silicone is very thin here). Thus, if one wants BF's soft foam nipple brush (which does indeed work well), one will pony up $14.99 list for not only the nipple brush, but also the bottle brush. They are not sold separately. They are made of cheap foam with plastic handles - that's IT! - and they wear out quickly. Outrageous to all intelligent parents out there. The cost of producing these has to be infinitesimal. Why gouge the consumer for brushes to clean BF's bottles? Insulting and greedy, and counterproductive to generating brand loyalty.
--Price: more on the subject of greed. While I am eternally grateful to the man who brought these to market (thus putting pressure on other mfgrs to compete), I am grossly offended by Born Free's pricing structure. Let's consider the fact that the only competitive advantage these initially had (as there are now competitive alternatives; again, see link above) was 1) bpa free plastics and 2) a glass bottle with a modern, wide-base nipple. Passing on to the consumer the cost of creating a bpa free bottle is one thing, but when one considers that the other components are no different from other manufacturers (glass is glass - cheap! - and silicone nipples are a dime a dozen), the price structure is insulting to parents' intelligence. For example, on the Born Free website (all my comments are based on list price - you can often get them cheaper on Amazon, for example, but it is the manufacturer's suggested retail that I'm analyzing here), a two pack of 9 oz plastic bottles is the same price as a two pack of glass 9 oz bottles - $19.99. Glass bottles and silicone nipples (with a worthless vent, don't forget). Contrast this with Evenflo's 8 oz glass bottle three pack for $4.99. These come with rubber nipples, so add back in 3 replacement Evenflo silicone nipples at $3.50 (highest Amazon price I saw, for four nipples) and you are at $8.49: less than half the price for one more bottle and two extra nipples. Why, I ask myself? Because of the vent? The wide neck? Neither is the company's top-marketing point, rather, the bpa-free plastic is. In fact, the BF glass bottles should cost LESS than the corresponding BF bpa-free plastic bottles. It just makes sense. And as other reviewers have noted, the replacement silicone nipples (all bottles come with stage 1 nipples; eventually, you need stage 2, 3...) are more expensive than the corresponding silicone nipples of comparable brands. Here again, there is NO COMPETITIVE DIFFERENCE in these silicone nipples. The fact that they are slightly different in diameter from, say, Avent only makes one think you need to buy BF (having now read other reviewers, I'll try Dr. Browns when we get to stage 3). List price for two BF nipples (regardless of flow) is $6.99. A four pack is $12.99. Woo hoo. OUTRAGEOUS! And the $15 bottle brushes? As per above - puh-lease.
--Lack of replacement glass bottle bases - let's face it, these break. It would be REALLY NICE to be able to purchase just the glass base, without the vent, nipple and cap, for a discounted price, as a service to their customers.
The bottom line: there are other options now from MAM (the UltiVent) and Nuby by Luv n' Care. I also see that Dr. Browns now offers glass. In the breast pumping arena, all Medela's parts and containers (which convert to bottles with, unfortunately, 1950's nipples) are also bpa free. Thus, when we need more 9 oz bottles, I won't be buying BF again on principle, which is too bad, as they pioneered the bpa offering (or at least the marketing thereof), and normally that would be enough to buy my loyalty.
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