Baby Bargains, 8th Edition: Secrets to Saving 20% to 50% on Baby Furniture, Gear, Clothes, Toys, Maternity Wear and Much, Much More!

Not great for Kindle - but great information
Baby Bargains Kindle edition is not the ideal format for flipping to different sections or reviews. The information is great (I give it 5 stars) and I just bought a hard copy because I have plenty of baby shopping ahead of me.

Great resource, practical advice
As a first-time mom-to-be who wants to do what is best for her baby without breaking the bank, this book is a valuable resource. It makes sense of all of the products and options and gives great advice on where to spend and where to save. It is organized so it is easy to use as a reference and the information is accurate - meaning I can find the products online and in stores. It also gives helpful tips so you know what features to look for and which ones are show-stoppers. I also find the real-world reports sprinkled throughout useful as well. Not only has it become my favorite coffee table book, but baby shower gift as well. Combine it with the author's Baby 411 book and you have the perfect set for yourself or a gift.

Outstanding
Very helpful tips and comsumer reports. Made buying for a first time mom less stressful. Thanks!

A Definite Must Have!
I bought this book before I had my 2nd child and can I just say a-ma-zing. It was practically my bible . I didn't buy one thing without referring to it first. So informative with great reviews on every baby item you could imagine!

Obsolete & Out of Touch
I probably regret this purchase more than any other pregnancy-motivated purchase I've made to date. It really represents the greatest of all pregnancy missteps-- the substitution of silly advice for your own common sense.

A book cannot possibly keep pace with new products the way the reviews at a website can. On average, the sample size of user/reviewers at a website like amazon will surpass what this book can offer. There are many great bloggers out their reviewing products and plenty of product rating sites to boot that will be more current and helpful.

Moreover, whatever your income bracket, website reviews will do a better job of linking you to people whose income situation and perspective are similar to yours. Though my husband and I are both professionals, we just weren't the target audience for this book. With a straight face, they recommended an 0.00 budget for maternity clothes (over 0 for your maternity undergarments alone! Did you know Agent Provocateur had a maternity line?) and spending 0.00 as a middle-of-the-road amount for a convertible crib. Nice convertible cribs are now available for much closer to half that amount. In short, when I contemplate a 5 dollar stroller, I don't want to hear the perspective of someone who would spend that money on a pair of shoes without thinking twice. I want to hear from people who thought long and hard about it and who viewed the stroller as a major purchase in the same way that I would--did THAT person feel it was worth the cash?

I also found their rationale for ratings dubious: "This huge crib company had a single model two years ago that had to be recalled after several babies were injured, some fatally, so we give them an F. Avoid." Well, okay. That's an understandable emotional response, but not a rational one. I think it likely that the experience was educational for the crib company in question and that the resulting lawsuits taught them to do more thorough checks-- they're probably now more cautious than ever when it comes to product design & safety testing. Another reality check for me was criticism of the maternity clothes at a couple major chains-- while I don't dispute that their quality is often dubious, the authors failed to recognize that for many of us in America, those chains and box stores are ALL THAT ARE AVAILABLE. Moreover, most of us really don't see clothes that will only be worn for 6 months (at the outside) as an investment opportunity, so quality isn't of paramount importance. Besides, how do you review clothing lines in a useful way in a book? They change constantly. Far better to look up reviews online for the exact shirt you are thinking about.

I don't find that the authors have any special insight into what parents will need and use. They do not test products in any meaningful way a la consumer reports. They do not share the perspective of most Americans when it comes to "bargains." If you can get to the internet, you can do better for free. If you can't (which means you're not reading this), and you don't crave a patronizing authority figure to tell you what to do, save the money for a cute onesie or a copy of Happiest Baby on the Block.