REASONS TO BUY
Inexpensive
Smaller fold
REASONS TO AVOID
Flimsy frame
Cheap materials
Poor storage
Small sunshade
Challenging brakes
Disappointing cup holder
Summer Infant 3D lite Review
Poor-performing option that costs more than a better-performing choice with no real pros
Credit: Matt Lighthart
Price: $100 List
By Wendy Schmitz ⋅ Senior Research Analyst ⋅ Jun 9, 2024
RELATED: Best Travel Strollers of 2024
Our Verdict
The Summer Infant 3D Lite is an inexpensive, lightweight umbrella stroller in our best travel stroller review. This stroller is lightweight, has an umbrella fold, includes a shoulder carry strap, and a nap-worthy recline. However, that is where the good times end, in our opinion. The 3D Lite is a hard-to-use option with double-action brakes, rough harness webbing, and a hard-to-access storage bin. It is harder to push and turn, and the canopy is so small and floppy it isn't protecting anyone from anything. Despite the reasonable price tag and brand name recognition, we don't think it is a good choice for any purpose, even if your budget is tight.
Compare to Similar Products
 This Product
Summer Infant 3D lite | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Awards |  Best Budget Travel Stroller | ||||
| Price | $100 List $79.99 at Amazon | $249 List | $260 List $259.95 at Amazon | $200 List $199.99 at Amazon | $80 List $79.99 at Amazon |
Overall Score  |
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| Star Rating | |||||
| Bottom Line | Disappointing budget option that did not perform well in our comparison tests | Better performance and a durable design make this budget option an impressive contender | A nicer travel choice that hits the mark and is sure to please, but pops open easily when folded | A longer fold makes it less packable, but otherwise, above-average features make it easy to use | Tight budget choice with below-average performance in most metrics but is very lightweight |
| Rating Categories | Summer Infant 3D lite | Zoe Traveler | Baby Jogger City To... | UPPAbaby G-Luxe | Kolcraft Cloud Plus |
| Transport/Storing (30%) | |||||
| Ease of Use (30%) | |||||
| Maneuverability (20%) | |||||
| Quality (10%) | |||||
| Kid Comfort (10%) | |||||
| Specs | Summer Infant 3D lite | Zoe Traveler | Baby Jogger City To... | UPPAbaby G-Luxe | Kolcraft Cloud Plus |
| Capacity Limits | Minimum: 6 months Maximum: 24 months/50 lbs & 43" |
Minimum: 3 months Maximum: 45 lbs |
Minimum: Birth Maximum: 45 lbs |
Minimum: 3 months Maximum: 55 lbs |
Minimum: Not specified Maximum: 50 lbs |
| Measured Weight | 13.0 lbs | 13.2 lbs | 14.1 lbs | 16.1 lbs | 10.1 lbs |
| Measured Folded Dimensions | 12"W x 10.3"H x 42.3"L | 18.6"W x 10.3"H x 23"L | 19.4"W x 8.1"H x 23.1"L | 11.7"W x 10.3"H x 41"L | 19"W x 10.3"H x 33.3"L |
| Folded Volume | 4,822 cu in | 5,134 cu in | 3,630 cu in | 9,834 cu in | 6,327 cu in |
| Handlebar Height Min/Max | 43 in | 40 in | 40 in | 43 in | 38 in |
| Mfr. Max Allowable Total Storage Weight | 10 lbs | Not specified | 15 lbs | 10 lbs | Not specified |
| Car Seat Compatibility | N/A | N/A | Baby Jogger | N/A | N/A |
| Wheel Type | Foam | Foam | Foam | Foam | Foam |
| Brake Type | Double | Double | Single | Single | Double |
Show full specification details ▼Hide full specification details ▲
Our Analysis and Test Results
Summer Infant was created in 1985 by William Lockett III. Looking for a safe location to place his baby (Summer), this new father created the original bouncy seat. Since the creation of the baby bouncer, Summer Infant has continued to make a wide range of economical baby products, including monitors, strollers, infant bathtubs, and more.
Performance Comparison
The Summer Infant is longer when folded and takes up more space in our test vehicle than strollers that fold in thirds.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
Transporting and Storing
The Summer Infant did not perform well in our tests for transporting or storing. While it manages to be lightweight and has a reasonable cubic inch measurement, the shape is long and awkward, depending on where you hope to store it.
The Summer Infant weighed 13 lbs in our tests.
Credit: Sentry Kelly
The Summer Infant is 13 lbs in our tests. This is below the average of 14 for the group and significantly lower than the highest of 22 lbs. The shoulder carry strap combined with the lighter weight is appealing.
The size measurements in our tests, when folded, were 12"W x 10.3"H x 42.3"L, or 4,822 in^3.
We measure the products at their longest, widest, and deepest points. The Summer Infant is 12"W x 10.3"H x 42.3"L or 4,822 in^3.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
The smaller options are in the 3,000 cubic inch range and fold in thirds, making them easier to stow out of the way, but it isn't the biggest in the group by far. Perhaps your stowing location will make the shape either acceptable or frustrating.
The Summer Infant harness shoulder strap adjustment is a rethreading system that requires time and effort to complete.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
Ease of Use
The Summer Infant earned one of the lowest scores for ease of use, with a more challenging performance than the competition. While it has similar features to the competition, it's design seems to be unbothered with the user's experience.
The 3D lite has a release latch and folds forward. While it locks in place and has a carry strap, it is a loose fold and a long overall package.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
Fold and Unfold
The Summer Infant folds in a traditional umbrella stroller way by collapsing in on itself and creating an elongated package. It requires two hands to fold and unfold. It does not self-stand, and the lock is manual.
You can open the Summer Infant with one hand, but it isn't as easy with your hands full as some competitors.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
To fold, you need to unlock a crossbar, which proves to be tricky and requires sticking your hand into a potential pinch point.
It isn't challenging, so much as it doesn't need to be this convoluted. Unfolding requires releasing the lock and shaking it open to deploy.
The storage bin is virtually inaccessible once the Summer Infant seat is reclined.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
Storage
The Summer Infant storage bin has some design flaws. It is medium-sized, but the access is remarkably bad and becomes zero with the seat reclined. We were only able to fit our medium bag in the bin. It has a 10 lb maximum allowance, which is about average for the stroller that lists the limit.
The canopy has a pocket on the back large enough for snacks or a smartphone.
The harness on the Summer Infant has padding, but none of the materials are truly skin-friendly.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
Harness
The harness on the Summer Infant is cheap, with rougher webbing and a frustrating adjustment system that takes more time than it should. The shoulder straps have wrap-around padding, and a pad is behind the buckle to help prevent pinching. The fabric isn't particularly comfortable and feels more like checking a box than really caring about the rider's experience. The buckle is straightforward but takes more force than easier options.
The Summer Infant has double-action brakes that require pressing each pedal to engage the brakes.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
Brakes
The Summer Infant is one of the few options with double-action brakes. The pedals are harder to set and lift than other options, but they are somewhat longer than the other double brakes in the review, so they are marginally easier. We prefer foot-friendly single-action brakes that do not require lifting from underneath.
The Summer Infant is not hard to assemble, but it does have more parts to put on than most competitors.
Credit: Sentry Kelly
Ease of Setup
The Summer Infant is easy to assemble even if you don't open the manual. The setup includes adding the wheels and connecting the canopy.
Car Seat Compatiblity
The Summer Infant has no car seat compatibility.
The double wheel on each leg design struggles when it heads off the sidewalk in our maneuverability tests.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
Maneuverability
The Summer Infant earned one of the lowest scores for performance in our maneuverability tests. This stroller has dual plastic wheels on all four legs. This design of eight wheels has always translated to poor maneuverability in our tests.
The two-handle design on the Summer Infant seems to make the frame even more unstable when pushing.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
The wheels are soft, and the frame is flexible, making pushing or turning on anything other than flat, debris-free surfaces a struggle. The extra wheels seem to get caught on every single tiny crumb, and they spin for no real reason at all. The lateral instability creates a situation where the stroller feels like it will collapse when you try to turn on uneven terrain like grass. Overall, it is frustrating and not an experience we think is worth the lower price.
The Summer Infant has some suspension, but it is largely negated by the flexy frame, resulting in more shaking and shifting.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
Quality
The Summer Infant earned one of the lowest scores for quality with materials and design choices that are nothing to brag about.
The wheels on the Summer Infant are soft plastic with fake tread.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
The fabric is a cheap material that isn't soft and feels uncomfortable to testers. It fits the frame okay, but it doesn't feel very durable. The footrest is a plastic strip that is likely to break under normal use, and the canopy was floppy and had trouble staying in position.
The frame has a lot of side-to-side wiggles, and it didn't feel sturdy. It has a lot of visual fasteners and hinge points. The wheels are about 6 inches in diameter and are flimsy foam-filled plastic. They are some of the softest in the group, and the dual wheel design on each leg is now a hallmark of a cheap stroller in our minds.
The Summer Infant has a deeper recline, but the abrupt ending of the leg rest and smaller canopy aren't as comfortable for the passenger and other strollers we tested.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
Kid's Comfort
The Summer Infant did not perform well in our tests for kid's comfort, with one of the lowest scores in the group.
The foot rest on the Summer infant is a plastic strip that is flimsy and out of reach for smaller riders.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
Seat
The seat back does recline and is lightly padded. It requires two hands to lift and one hand to lower. While it is probably a deep enough recline for napping, the recline blocks the storage access, and you won't be able to access supplies once children fall asleep.
The red latches on the Summer Infant adjust the recline to a single position.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
It has a fixed leg rest that is also floppy and doesn't provide much support. The footrest is just a plastic strip and is unlikely to survive as long as the stroller does.
The Summer Infant canopy is locked open with a plastic tensioner.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
Sunshade
The canopy in the Summer Infant looks sharp but is sort of useless. It is small and floppy in the wind and has no peek-a-boo window. It protects from virtually nothing but direct overhead sun.
The cup holder on the Summer Infant is somewhat flimsy, and we couldn't get our water bottle all the way in to the bottom.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
Should You Buy the Summer Infant 3Dlite?
No. Despite being a reasonable price and a brand name parents might recognize, the Summer Infant is largely disappointing. With the lowest score in the review and some of the lowest scores in each metric, it is clear it isn't a top performer and is one we think will create more issues than it solves. While we understand having a tight budget, we recommend doing without or finding other solutions if your budget can't be stretched.
What Other Travel Strollers Should You Consider?
While not an award winner and also not a top performer, if your budget is super tight, we prefer the Kolcraft Cloud Plus over the Summer infant, and it is cheaper, too. The Kolcraft earned a slightly higher score, but more importantly, we don't think you should have to pay more for lower performance, and the Kolcraft will save you money. If your budget can stretch and you want a better quality, easier-to-use product, the Zoe Traveler is our pick. This option folds small, is lightweight, easy to use, and by far easier to push on and off the beaten path.
Manufacturer Video
—
Wendy Schmitz
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