I’m an exclusive pumper and I bought the Perifit pump around 2 months into my breastfeeding journey. On the positive side, the pump itself is powerful and compared to my plug-in pump, it has the same suction power so that was a pleasant surprise.
As other reviewers have said, it’s not silent. However, I’ve pumped in a busy restaurant, on a plane and when I’ve been out shopping, and no one had a clue. It’s only in quiet places you can hear it and I’ve had funny stares in the silent car of a train and in an airport lounge as people can’t work out what the noise is :). When you have the pump on, do wear a baggy top as the girls look HUGE. People stare.
Unfortunately there have been some negatives for me. First it’s really difficult to get your breast in the right position. You can’t see if there is milk coming out, so a few times I’ve finished pumping only to find that only one side has actually expressed. It’s super frustrating and stressful (like now I need to spend another 15 mins pumping again!). For this reason, I would never rely on this pump only and while on holiday, I had to carry both pumps with me as I just didn’t trust this pump to be reliable. Once I spent 30 minutes in a pub toilet trying to get the pump in the right position - and I didn’t manage.
The app is awful. If you lose signal on your phone, the timer stops and you have no idea how long you’ve pumped for. If you are just checking out the other options on the app, the timer starts again so again have no idea how long you’ve pumped for. I hated it so much, I just used the timer on my phone.
Shipping is dreadful. It clearly states that it takes 5-10 business days - and it really does take that long. Just ordering some silicone parts took 2.5 weeks to arrive in the Netherlands from France. If you exclusively pump that’s too long. It’s not clear why it’s so slow and when I anxiously emailed customer service, she gleefully told me yes it was on it’s way, just be patient. Tracking is awful as well with the shipper they use, so all you know is that it’s on its way somewhere. I recommend ordered spare parts just in case, before you need them.
Lastly, a small point, but the pump doesn’t come with a bag so you have to get that separately. For the price, it would have been nice. It also says on the instructions that the parts are not suitable for a microwave steriliser - seriously??!
Overall the pump has good power but there are so many negatives, I couldn’t really recommend it. Pumping is so personal though - good luck on your journey!