Medela Pump In Style Advanced Breast Pump With On the Go ToteWeb site: Medela.com

Price: On the Go Tote: $192; Backpack: $216; Metro Bag: $215.

Type: Professional

Comments: It’s the 800-pound gorilla of the breast pump category: the Medela Pump In Style Advance (PIS).

So what’s all the fuss about? If you are serious about pumping every day, the Pump In Style allows you to carry a high quality pump with you to work. You can empty both breasts in a short amount of time with great comfort. As a nursing mom, I remember using the Original version and found it pretty comparable to a hospital-grade pump.

The Advanced comes in three flavors: Backpack ($216) and On-The-Go Tote bag ($192; pictured).

In general, the Advanced features Medela’s “2-Phase Expression” technology that mimics the way infants nurse at the breast. At first, infants apparently nurse quickly to simulate let down. Then they settle into a deeper, slower sucking action—the Pump In Style Advance simulates this pattern.

The three versions are similar: all have the same motor, just a different bag. The Metro has a removable pump motor, storage bags and two breast shield sizes.

So what’s the disadvantage of the Pump In Styles? Cost is a biggie: the PIS is up to $50 more than the Avent Double Electric Comfort, which is smaller, lighter and has several other attractive features. Medela’s higher price is no doubt attributable to their “minimum advertised price” policy, which prevents Internet discounters from selling their pumps below a certain price. Hence, you’ll see Medela priced about the same on most sites.

Fans of Medela love the availability of parts (sold in many retail stores) and Medela’s excellent customer service. So, all in all, we will recommend the Pump in Style—it is an excellent pump. Rating: A