Review : Lacte Duet Double Electric Breast Pump (Updated)

My first breast pump.  I do feel a little attached to it because I have been spending 3 months with it, day and night.  Here's my honest review.  Please note, I am not paid to do this.  Just want to share.  

If you want to know the specification and price, I suggest you Google.  There's lots of info.  

Lacte Duet is not a hospital grade pump.  It has 2 motors that enables to pump both breasts and can adjust the setting for each breast.  Usually, I am just lazy and just on the pump and let it run.  I don't increase or decrease.

The moment you on the pump, it will start the Stimulation process for 2 minutes.  Then it will go to Expression.  The pump will automatically off at 30 minutes.  The default setting is at level 3, which I find is just nice for me.  If you increase the setting, the cycle is longer.  I prefer short cycle as I feel long cycle means takes longer to empty breast?  I guess.

There's a timer that you can see how long you have pumped and also back light that makes pumping at night easier.

The pump is also light weight.  It's not small enough to put in a pouch unlike Spectra S9+.  But it's portable enough to bring everywhere.  There's 2 option for electricity.  Power point and power bank.  I do like the soft breast shields that came with it.  It makes it very comfortable to pump.  

The noise level is also at a minimum.  I can pump in the middle of the night without waking the whole household.  

I have tried Medela Mini Electric Breast Pump when I was with the lactation consultant.  It's super noisy and I didn't realise that my nipple can get pulled so long because Lacte Duet never does that.  It's probably why Medela can clear the breasts better because of the strong suction and the way it pulls the nipple.

What I like about this pump?

As this is my only pump, I can't compare with the other pumps.

• Light weight and portable - I have pumped in the car.  It's not heavy and can bring everywhere. 
• Quiet - It's a super quiet pump.  I pumped in a lactation room with other pumping mothers.  Some pumps are so loud like a lawn mower or vacuum cleaner.  
• Soft breast shield - The silicone soft breast shield helps to mimic baby's lips.  Because of it's softness, the nipples doesn't get bruise from all the pumping.  No need to put coconut oil to prevent pain from the harsh brushing against the shield.
• Timer - I can see how long I have pumped.
• Back light - Easy for pumping at night.
• Can adjust left and right settings - Though I don't use this, I think it's handy.

What I don't like about this pump?

• It's not rechargeable.  They came out with a newer model called Lacte Duet Elite which has a rechargeable battery.  
• It doesn't seem to empty my breast well enough.  Maybe because of the soft silicone shield.
• Too many parts to wash.  Although I don't own other pumps, but when compared with Freemie, I have to wash extra 4-5 parts.  I am lucky though.  My husband does the washing and sterilizing.

Overall, I quite like this pump and it serve it well.  Though I do secretly wish I own a Medela or Spectra just to see what difference it makes in terms of yield.  In Malaysia, we do have breast pump rental services.  Unfortunately, all the pumps are rented out.  So I can't test any.

If I do have a next baby (though I do think one is enough for now), I would invest in a better pump.  Not to say Lacte Duet is not good.  But since I know my history of being low yield mom, I will get a hospital grade one.  Spectra S1, I am looking at you.

Updated @ 4 July 2016
I have been using Lacte Duet for 5 months now, being actively using for the past 3 months.  Just to let you know, I am quite a heavy user.  I pumped at 5.30am, 9am, 1pm and 5pm and 7pm.  Each session is about 20 minutes.  If I do powerpump, then it's 1 hour.

Lacte Duet has serves me well.  Due to its double motor, I believe, it can handle heavy duty usage.  Sometimes, my hands itchy and I would like to try other brands as well.

What I really dislike about Lacte Duet is it's soft shield that comes with it.  Initially, it's very good to use.  Then it kept on detaching from the anti-backflow thingy.  And it got more hassle when I used the hands-free bra.  Like the whole bottle would fall off from the shield and drop on the floor.  I have spilled couple of ounces from these because it just kept on falling.

So, eventually, I bought the hard shield.  And I like it since.  I can't tell what's the difference between the soft and hard shield because you see, with the hard shield, there is a silicon shield inside too.  Suction wise is the same to me.  Number of parts to wash is also the same.  The downside about this hard shield is that it only comes in 1 size and the the size is not mention anywhere.  It's kinda like Free Size.

After 5 months of using, the valves finally tore.  And new valves means stronger suction.

Since I am so used to this pump now, I wouldn't want to change anything.  Not for now.