Probably the king of all breastpumps, the Medela Symphony is the dream breastpump most mothers would love to have.
Hospital-grade, it is designed to be safely and hygienically used by multiple users. Which is great, because the Symphony does not come cheap.
To justify its price, just know one thing - it is a life-saver for mothers who have trouble initiating milk supply.
Main Functions in Detail
Do you know that there are two types of pumps – initiation and supply-building pumps vs. maintenance pumps?
In simple terms, the former helps build up milk supply whereas the latter expresses established milk supply. The Symphony is precisely a combination of both.
A hospital grade breast pump designed with innovative 2-Phase Expression technology that is engineered to closely mimic a baby’s nursing patterns and rhythms, it helps moms effectively initiate and maintain their breast milk supply.
Be it you have a premature baby or you have a low supply of milk for whatever reason, the Symphony is your solution to establish more milk supply.
It promotes the initiation and maintenance of your breast milk supply, even in situations where direct breastfeeding is not possible or during absences away from your baby.
As a result, it is the most recommended and most used breast pump in hospitals.
The biggest attraction of the Symphony, regardless, has to be the fact that it is able to express as much as 18% more breast milk (in double-pumping mode) compared to other brands or models.
This is the first breast pump that is able to do so, and probably the only one in the market.
Its technology allows it to achieve faster milk ejection and faster milk flow when pumping at Maximum Comfort Vacuum mode while an easy one-touch letdown button allows moms to quickly return to the stimulation phase while pumping.
With the ability to successfully accommodate multiple users, Symphony is a uniquely designed double breast pump featuring two separate membrane units for convenient, ultra-easy switching between single and double pumping, based on mom’s preference.
This is unlike the rest in the Medela breast pump range whereby you are stuck to either the Single or Double pumping mode that your model is designed for.
One thing to note about the Symphony is that you'll need to buy its Double Pumping Kit separately to get started.
Yes, despite its very steep price, things like breast shields, connectors, tubes, valves and the like are not included.
Nevertheless, if you think about it, this may actually be the most economical option as $40 (approximately) is all you need to fork out (for the kit), given the Symphony is mostly rental-based.
If you're concerned about hygienic reasons, what’s with sharing breast pumps with other mothers, the fact that having your own pumping kit should eliminate such worry altogether.
If that is not enough, you can be further assured by Symphony's unique Overflow Protection system.
This is where a specially-designed membrane is implemented to keep the pump kit fully independent from its pumping mechanism as it creates a closed system. It also protects from milk overflow, thus eliminating the risk of contamination.
 What Comes in the Package | What Comes in the Pump Kit |
|---|---|
Symphony breast pump | 1 set of PersonalFit™ Breast Shields – 24mm size |
Symphony 2.0 Program Card (a computer chip that stores all information about the pumping program) | 2 (5-oz.) 150 mL breast milk bottles with lids |
Container stand | 2 PersonalFit™ Breast Shield connectors |
Quick start card | 2 tubes and 2 valves |
Protector for card/cord | 4 membranes, 2 membrane caps; and 2 protective membranes |
Instructions | Instructions for Use |
Pros & Cons
Pros
Cons
Conclusion
Overall, the Medela Symphony Breast Pump is highly recommended for mothers who have trouble establishing milk supply, or when great pain or discomfort is experienced during breastfeeding.
If you have otherwise consistent and sufficient milk supply, you are better off looking at other Medela models because this one here has a price you cannot neglect.
Fortunately for most, it is available for rental from most hospitals which, really, is a great solution for all because this way, you get to enjoy the benefits of the Symphony when and only when you need it.
