Red Kite Push Me Savanna i Travel System review

What were your first impressions of the Red Kite Push Me Savanna i pushchair?

As we unboxed the Savanna i, my husband and I were pleasantly surprised. For an affordable buggy, the materials on the bassinet, hood and apron have a seriously luxurious quality to them. The leather-look handle and sleek silver chassis gave the feel of a well-made and thoughtfully designed product. We certainly expected it to cost up to £100 more than its recommended retail price.

How easy is it to build the Red Kite Push Me Savanna i pushchair?

The buggy was incredibly easy to build, taking about 10-15 minutes to construct thanks to its super straightforward instructions. My husband struggled to find the locking catch but there is a very clear picture on the instructions, so we put this down to extreme sleep deprivation!

How does it compare to the previous model of the Red Kite Push Me Savanna pushchair?

Though the Red Kite Push Me Savanna Travel System was reviewed well, with many praising its value for money, a few users critiqued the bulkiness of the buggy, the quality of the fabrics and the design of the car seat.

The Savanna i comes in a premium silver grey, making it look more elegant and high-end than the original Savanna (although you can opt for the zebra colour palette of its predecessor, if you wish). While the original version included an adjustable handlebar, the latest update doesn't, however it does offer a folding mechanism that can be operated one-handed by pushing the top button on the handlebar to the side and pressing the trigger underneath to engage.

Where the original Push Me Savanna basket was sturdily built into the design itself, with the fabric attached to a metal basket frame, the basket of the Savanna Plus is attached to one side of the frame with poppers and is threaded into a fiddly plastic clasp on the other.

The brake pedal has been moved from the centre of the rear axle to the right-hand side and has been made wider and more textured. I still found this tricky to use at times but can see it’s an improvement on the previous version in terms of size.

Overall, some of the improvements make sense – the use of more sophisticated fabrics and a more refined colourway in particular – but the basket and handle design changes seem to me like a step backwards.

What is the carrycot like on the Red Kite Push Me Savanna i pushchair?

The Savanna i includes a seat unite that transforms into a carrycot, which is a great space-saving idea. My 7-week-old son slept like a dream in the carrycot. Its lining is soft yet structured and the bassinet offers plenty of room for him to grow while amply shielding him from the elements. Given its generous size, we expect to use the carrycot function until my son is around 6 months old. However, if you have a longer baby, you may find them feeling the squeeze slightly earlier.

When testing the buggy during a summer heatwave, I did worry my son might get too warm inside the bassinet, but once the apron was removed, he was completely at ease.

To me, the carrycot feels heavy, but at 3.2kgs it's similar to most lightweight carrycots on the market. I think, because of its structured frame, it feels bulkier than perhaps it looks – I personally wouldn’t want to be carrying it great distances, but I have been skipping bicep day (in my weekly workouts) for the best part of a year!

Does the Red Kite Push Me Savanna i carrycot come with a mattress?

No, it does not come with a separate mattress, but the padded layer on the combined seat unit and carrycot was cushioned, fairly breathable and certainly delivered plenty of restful naps. This padded layer is soft and can easily be compressed between 2 fingers but sits against the firm structured base of the carrycot to create a firm yet cosy place to lay your baby.

How do you fold the Savanna i pushchair in carrycot mode?

Truth be told, I have mostly been removing the carrycot and folding the wheels separately for speed and ease. However, you can fold the buggy with the parent-facing carrycot attached. To do this you:

• Find and depress the black button on the frame, under the hood, which moves the carrycot up to stroller mode position.
• Depress the button at the front of the carrycot to fold this section. One side of the carrycot hangs down but don’t be concerned by this.
• Next, you need to slide the trigger on the buggy handle, while depressing the button underneath to fold it completely.

Is it easy to fold the Savanna i pushchair in carrycot mode?

Folding the buggy in this way is, to be quite honest, a bit of a faff. It’s not a quick, fluid motion and, if you’re in a rush, it’s a bit overly complicated. Don’t even get me started on trying to fold it in world-facing mode. This was nigh on impossible. Perhaps with time, it would get easier, but as a sleep-deprived parent, I wanted the easiest option immediately. Who has time and energy to plough into working out the knack of their buggy? Not me, babes.

Unfolding the Savanna i as one combined entity was easier to do outdoors than indoors when sections of the fabric got caught and a fair bit of button pressing was needed to get the seat unit back into carrycot position.

How do you fold the Savanna i pushchair without the carrycot/seat attached?

This, comparatively, is a walk in the park.

• Remove the carrycot and fold it by pressing the buttons on each end at the same time and moving each side towards the middle.
• Then, to fold the frame, make sure the wheels are facing outwards and simply slide the trigger on the handle while depressing the large black button underneath, then dropping the handle towards the floor.

You may have to push the front wheels towards the handle to get the base to fully compress and the locking catch to clip into place, but this is nothing compared to the to-ing and fro-ing you’ll have to do with the seat attached. I need a lie down just thinking about it.

My one complaint with the instructions that come with the buggy is that they say to secure the front wheels in locked mode before folding. However, I could only lock the wheels while they were turned inwards, making it impossible to fold the buggy, so something doesn’t quite add up.

How compact is the Red Kite Push Me Savanna i pushchair when folded?

I feel like it’s only fair to say that I am used to a much smaller buggy. I first invested in a big tank of a pram when my now 5-year-old son was born, but switched to a lighter, more compact, travel-friendly model when he was about 4 months old. One that folds down to fit into the overhead locker on a plane, in fact. So, to me, the Savanna i still feels fairly bulky and deep when folded as one.

Measuring L79cm x W61cm x H41cm, it takes up most of the boot of a small car and isn't free-standing when folded. As we levelled up to an estate before my second son arrived, our boot is fairly big, so we have been easily able to fit the folded Savanna i in alongside a weekend suitcase for the 4 of us, a bag with steriliser and bottles and a few other baby essentials. If I still had my little VW Polo, we might have seriously struggled.

Is it easy to store the Red Kite Push Me Savanna i pushchair?

Though it’s fairly easy to pick up the Savanna i by the handle when folded as one, it is considerably heavy. The wide wheels make it difficult to find ample space in our house to store the Savanna i, so we have taken to keeping it in the boot of the car – something that’s easier to achieve in the warmer summer months than in winter when it may get damp.

Being that it doesn’t stand up on its own means that, if you want to store the Savanna i indoors, you need to lean the folded buggy against a wall or slide it underneath a piece of furniture. If you’re short on space, where you’ll store the buggy when it’s not in use is definitely a consideration.

How easy is it to steer the Savanna i pushchair?

It was quite a shock to the system to manage a bigger, bulkier pram after the lighter, compact model that I’m used to. I eased myself in with a trip to the shops. Pounding the pavement in the Savanna i was fairly smooth sailing, but navigating narrow areas in my local high street stores was more of a pain. I ended up avoiding aisles with other people in for fear of it being too tight a squeeze.

The buggy can be clunky and difficult to steer, especially around corners when a bit of back and forth or a 17-point-turn is sometimes required. After asking the grandparents to push my son around the garden centre, my dad even commented that the Savanna i handles like a shopping trolley. Hardly a glowing review…

However, the buggy comes into its own on rougher terrain. Rocky woodland paths and cobbled streets are handled with ease, and my son’s naps were undisturbed throughout. Kerbs are equally a doddle, with the Savanna i being light enough to tilt easily to get up and down. If you’re looking for a buggy that’s a great off-road option, the Savanna i will certainly suit.

Is the Savanna i pushchair suitable for public transport?

I took the Savanna i to London on the train and found it worked a treat. I didn’t much enjoy carrying it up 2 flights of stairs at our local station but tucking myself away in the seats for cyclists on a quiet, mid-morning train worked well. I’m not sure I could say the same about taking it on a rush-hour tube or a busy bus, especially considering its size, so that’s something to think about if you’re interested in making a purchase.

Getting on and off the train was also easy enough thanks to its large springy wheels. My little one didn’t get awoken with a bump, which earned the Savanna i some major brownie points.

What's the chassis like on the Red Kite Push Me Savanna i pushchair?

Boasting a refined frosted chrome finish, the chassis of the Savanna i suits its upmarket aesthetic. It’s hardy and resilient and, though it has sustained some scratches over the few weeks of testing, these are hard to spot against the frosted chrome, making it look good as new. The chassis design is simple and effective, and when we took it along to school pick-up, it elicited coos of admiration from the other parents in the playground.

How do you rate the buggy handle?

Where the original Savanna model came with an adjustable black foam handle, the Savanna i instead offers a one-size-fits-all option. Being quite tall (5ft 10in), I found the handle to be at a comfortable level, but I wonder if shorter parents would feel the same. I will say that the handle’s tan pleather finish is smooth, soft and cushioned, earning it maximum comfort and style points.

What do you think of the hood?

Providing ample shade for a newborn, the Savanna i hood has a sturdy structure and shape. The obvious metal bar on the previous model has been concealed within the sleek grey fabric, so the overall design looks more streamlined. As an added bonus, my son loved staring up at the contrasting dark grey of the metal supports against the paler grey hood fabric while on our walks.

My one complaint is that, if you don’t remember to pull the hood up fully and hear it click into place, it contracts and buckles down while you walk. This happened to me on my first outing with the buggy and it required a bit of manhandling to get the hood fully into position, so it didn’t slip down again. Although, once you are aware of this requirement, it’s easy enough to ensure you click it into place every time the hood is used.

There is also a peephole window built into the design – this likely gets more use when baby is 6 months and older, and the buggy is in stroller mode.

What are the wheels like on the Red Kite Push Me Savanna i pushchair?

Made from a hardy rubberised plastic, the wheels of the Savanna i are large and hard-wearing. The front wheels measure 6.5in wide and the back wheels 9.5in wide. The front wheels are easily removed by depressing a small black button on the chassis. To remove the back wheels, there’s a black metal clip you need to lift and then the wheels pull off easily from the frame.

When the wheels were on the base, the stroller became too wide to fit through the hallway doors in our modern semi-detached house, so that’s obviously a consideration for those who live in similar homes.

In terms of their handling, I found the wheels coped well with a variety of different terrains, particularly with pavements and rocky and muddy paths. They did struggle to turn on the vinyl flooring of shops at times, as mentioned previously, but mostly they handled pretty well.

How good are the brakes?

The brake pedal on the Savanna i is larger and more obvious than on the previous model, making it easier to click on and off with your foot. As mentioned, the position of the pedal has also shifted to the right of the buggy’s chassis.

While using the buggy, I never found that I accidentally kicked the brake pedal, which is a huge compliment as this is something I regularly struggled with while using my eldest’s first buggy. As the Savanna i was tested in a heatwave, for the most part I found it easy enough to hook the sole of my sandal under the pedal and flick it up. The pedal is firm but moves easily with a bit of force and holds well.

The only thing I really found annoying was having to pull the buggy backwards after taking off the brakes, before it could go forwards again. Generally speaking, though, the brakes are pretty decent.

How easily can you access the basket on the Red Kite Push Me Savanna i and is it big enough to store everything you need?

The basket is a fairly good size (42cm x 37cm x 13cm) and was capable of storing everything from grandparent handbags and a shopping bag’s worth of groceries to an assortment of baby blankets and my eldest son’s book bag and water bottle.

You do have to bend down to access the basket when the buggy is in carrycot mode as it is placed beneath the centre of the carrycot. When my newborn was sleeping I did find myself pulling things out slowly so as not to disturb him – there's only 20cm between the top of the basket and the bottom of the carrycot, so not a huge gap.

My main gripe is with the design of the clasp holding the basket in place at the front of the buggy. In my opinion, a sturdier fastening should be used here. The basket fabric popped out of this clasp as I was taking the buggy down a kerb on the way to my local Evri shop, sending my Vinted parcels flying all over the floor and forcing me to get on my hands and knees at the side of the road to fix it – a task that was 100 times more stressful with a crying baby in the heat! Perhaps the removal of the original basket bar has made the buggy lighter overall but, in this reviewer’s opinion, it would make more sense to have poppers or a sturdier attachment on both sides of the basket to avoid any unwanted drama!

What's in the box?

• Chassis with basket
• 2 x Front wheels
• 2 x Rear wheels
• Rear axel/brake unit
• Combined seat unit and carrycot with hood
• Bumper bar
• Extendable hood
• Raincover
• Shopping basket

What additional accessories can you buy?

• Snuggo Universal travel pram seat liner, £28
• Junior footmuff, £22
• Universal parasol, £10
• Spiraloo twisty toy, £8.50

Can the pushchair be used with a car seat to create a travel system?

Yes, it can be used with the iSize Infant Carrier Car Seat, which comes in the bundle.

Now you've tested it, what would you have wanted to know before purchasing the Red Kite Push Me Savanna i travel system?

That it’s not possible to fold easily as one unit. Folding it once it’s separated into 2 sections is fine, but my attempts at folding it all together felt like a huge waste of energy. I'd also want to know that the clips on the basket are poorly designed, that the steering in shops is clunky – and, with the wheels attached, the buggy would not fit through my hallway!

Is the Red Kite Push Me Savanna i pushchair good value for money?

Absolutely. The Savanna i is a cheap and cheerful travel system that looks the part and performs well. It’s not perfect, but it’ll take you and your little one from pavements to parks and beyond. Just be mindful of its size and be sure you have room in your home and car to store it before you buy.

Where can you buy the Red Kite Push Me Savanna i travel system?

It is available from Red Kite, Amazon and Argos.

MadeforMums verdict

Considering its incredibly affordable price tag, the Savanna i offers a premium-looking buggy that performs well on most surfaces. If you can overlook the complex folding mechanism, minor design flaws and clunky handling, this pram will offer your baby or toddler a comfortable ride from birth onwards. The Savanna i is best suited to families on a budget who don’t want to compromise on style, and could also be useful to anyone living in rural areas who is looking for a durable off-roading buggy that won’t break the bank. At £225 for a travel system you can’t go too far wrong.