Arm’s Reach Co-Sleeper Mini Review: Best Bassinet for Your Bedside?

Today, we’ll be reviewing the Arm’s Reach Co-Sleeper, which is one of the brand’s top-rated and top-selling products on the market right now. There is a wide range of bassinets and co-sleepers available to parents everywhere, but the Arm’s Reach brand is undoubtedly one of the most popular.

But just how good is this product, and how does it function?

Let’s find out.

General Ratings and Reviews

First off, these products are rated five stars by almost every Amazon customer who has made a purchase. That’s a pretty impressive feat.

Parents are praising the product’s compact, adjustable nature, and thick, well-made mattress. They’re raving about their baby’s sound sleeps in the bassinet and loving how sturdy and safe it feels.

Many of these parents leaving reviews to make note of how much research they did into bassinets, and specifically into co-sleepers, before making their selection – and the research pays off.

On the rating and review front, this product gets a gold star from us. It’s making many a baby, and many a parent, happy and well-rested.

Let’s do some deeper investigation into this product and see what all the fuss is really about.

Arm’s Reach Co-Sleeper vs. Bedsharing

What are the main differences, advantages, and drawbacks between using a co-sleeper versus bedsharing?

Simply put – the Arm’s Reach Co-Sleeper is the best of both worlds.

Placing your baby in a bassinet is safer than sleeping in a bed with your newborn. That can’t really be contested. But parents who are interested in retaining some of the perks of co-sleeping, while also having separate sleeping spaces, might find that they are impressed by this product.

This co-sleeper attaches well to any grown-size bed. Although it’s its own entity, it allows your newborn to be (as the name suggests) within “arms reach” of parents at all times.

Co-sleepers are great for mothers who choose to nurse all through the night. Feeding your child can be easier, smoother, and a lot less fussy when you’re waking up right beside your child at his or her first signs of hunger.

It’s also great for parents who, for any reason, are experiencing anxiety about leaving their child alone at night.

About the Product’s Adjustable Leg Height

One of the many things this product is praised for is having an adjustable leg height.

What does this mean, and what really are its benefits?

First off, if you want your co-sleeper to really be at “arm’s length” from your child, you probably want the bassinet to be positioned at the same height as your bed. This is easily made possible with the adjustable height feature. This product has four different height “settings” to choose from, all of which are two inches apart. If this for any reason isn’t sufficient for you, the product does have leg extenders that can be purchased.

Some models of the Co-Sleeper (the Cambria, for example) have sides that can be lowered, locked, and adjusted to suit your needs. Keep in mind that this is not the case with all models. All individual models have differing features.

Great for Moms Post-C Section

Here’s another big bonus for the product – it’s perfect for mothers who have just had C-Sections. Bassinets, in general, are a lot easier to lift babies out of than cribs and cradles, but this product adds a layer of ease to moms who are still in recovery.

It can be difficult, during the C-section recovery process, for mothers to walk all the way from their bed (or other resting place) to their child’s stationery crib to pick them up and hold or feed them. Bassinets, as opposed to cribs and cradles, are easily portable and adjustable. By placing the Co-Sleeper right next to the mother’s bed, she is able to reach her baby with ease when her body isn’t ready for bigger, heavier movements.

This will take a lot of stress and pressure of the mother in her first few days or weeks of recovery.

Don’t Forget About the Storage Features!

Many models of the co-sleeper are equipped with ultra-convenient storage pockets underneath. These pockets are easy storage for diaper changing materials, or any other items your baby might need.

What Are the Cons to the Arm’s Reach Co-Sleeper Mini?

Despite the overwhelmingly positive reception of this product, there are a few setbacks – or at least things you should look out for.

First of all, getting the right bedding fit has been a challenge for many a buyer. This is because of the small size of the Arm’s Reach Co-Sleeper. You’ll need to invest in specific “mini” Co-sleeper sheets as opposed to just “regular” ones. This is something that throws off many buyers.

Pro Tip: Several outlets have noted that, instead of using a fitted sheet, a king-sized pillowcase works just as well due to the size of the mattress.

The most negative criticism given to the product, by real-parent users, has related to the mattress itself. Some have commented on the apparent cheapness of the plastic mattress and its discomfort. Even if they love the product, the mattress itself doesn’t really live up to the rave reviews. You might want to consider buying your own or – as per the above pro tip – using a king-sized pillow. It fits perfectly and it’ll likely cost you less, depending on the make.

Despite that tidbit of criticism, it’s clear that the Arm’s Length Co-Sleeper is one of the best on the market for a reason. It’s wildly popular with parents and their babies, it’s cost-effective, it provides feasible solutions to real sleeping problems, and it’s super compact, adjustable, and portable. Besides all of that, it’s quite stylish and aesthetically pleasing. What more could you want from a co-sleeper?