"I am not quite sure if it is because of the high changing table or because of this pad, but our baby likes being strapped to this thing better than being rocked or lying free on her crib mattress. Whenever we put her on for a change, she simply quiets down and the smile comes out. Too bad I could never get myself around letting her sleep strapped in to the thing: it might have gotten me a few more hours of quiet. Kidding. A few other reviews have mentioned a chemical smell. We did smell a little VOC (volatile organic compounds) coming off the thing when the package was opened, but the smell went away after a few days of airing out. A good thing to do might be to buy things like this pad, or the other polyurethane containing products (swings, mattresses, playpens) well before the baby is born to let them air out. We did this and there is no smell emanating from this pad or anything else we've purchased. Everything else that works about this pad is in the product description. The strap material is a woven nylon fabric and would seem to be harder to clean, but we haven't had need to clean it yet. The straps are easy to do and undo, and easy to adjust. The pad is very stable when the baby is strapped in. The cover material is highly stain resistant and easily cleaned with simple wet wipes. While this might not really cut down on germs, it at least lets us feel better about not being able to see the yellow stains that have failed to wash out of everything else on the changing table (mostly the reusable lap liners to catch surprises). The pad itself is made of a firm foam that seems, at least to our baby, to be the epitome of comfort. Or perhaps it is the gently sloped sides that might provide an additional sense of security. Whatever it is, it works to help create a calming, soothing environment, at least for the few minutes the baby is on the table every change."
"I bought this changing pad after reading the positive reviews on Amazon, and I am so happy I did! I have been using it for nearly 9 months now with my baby, and it was one of the best baby-related purchases I have made. For one thing, it's waterproof. Yes, it actually is, and you don't need a cloth cover for it at all. I just lay a towel or soft cloth on it and put my baby on it to change him. He's a boy, so we've had any number of 'accidents' while changing him, and it's no biggie. Just wipe it down, and you're good to go. You can even get the bigger messes off this easily, though it's easier to hose it down than to try and get the poop out of the little perforation-designs on the pad. (Those "perforations" would be the only downside of this product.) We've always used this on the ground so I can't speak to the attaching strap. We've also only recently started using the strap to keep my baby in place since the contoured sides prevented him from rolling off for the longest time. My baby has loved his changing pad from day 1. In fact, he would calm down when we put him on it, and in many cases has even fallen asleep on it! In fact, the hubby and I joked that we should use this as his bed and get rid of the crib - smaller, lighter, cheaper, and transportable, lol :-) (Just kidding, do NOT use it as a bed!) To summarize, buy this and save yourself time and effort looking for anything else. I would buy this again in a heartbeat if needed, though I see this one lasting for quite a while longer!"
"I bought this specific changing pad because it's supposed to have a 'non-skid bottom'. It does have some raised dots on the bottom but they are in no way what I would refer to as non-skid. I got this to put on the dresser top in the nursery because I think a separate changing table is just pointless. It slid around very easily without me putting much force behind it so I can only imagine what it'd be like with a wriggling baby on it (I'm still pregnant so I can't speak from experience yet). But, I had some left over strips of the non-skid rubbery shelf liner stuff from previous misc. uses. I put some of that under it and it doesn't seem to be going anywhere now. I will say that they did cover their grounds when including a screw so you could fasten it to the back of your dresser but I didn't want to start putting holes in my furniture. I would recommend this changing pad. But, I now wonder if a regular one would have been just the same..."
"I've had this changing pad for 3 years now, It is amazing! My three year old still fits on it for diaper changes. Even if you don't have a changing table you can store it under your crib and pull it out as needed. No rips or tears 3 yrs later! Its so convenient to have a pad to change messy diapers on. It didn't have any smell when I received it and it still doesn't now. We put two covers over each other and just take the top on off if it gets dirty. All standard covers fit well. I will be ordering another one for new babys room as well UPDATE: The new one that came in is not the same model # and has slightly shorter contoured sides. The sides don't come up to a point/look triangly instead it is a squared top. Not sure if this is an update or a whoops but summer brand who I called has not heard of this pad with this model #, yes that is kind of scary how the company hasn't heard of a product that I received from their brand/their tags are on it. This ones model # is 92870z and not the 92000z as listed"
"I bought this one from Amazon exactly two years ago (2012) for my first baby. I would agree with all the good reviews it was really good and still using it after two years. A (minor) inconvenience would be the surface which is rugged (made of tiny little squares) which manages to accumate all sorts of 'dirt' over time... I recently (Jul 2014) bought another one for our newborn at a popular store (W*M) as I was pressed for time an could not wait for shipping and delivery. This one is same exact brand but it feels thinner and flimsy and also it is filled with softer material and not as sturdier as the previous one. It also feels slightly smaller than the other one I bought before so it ends up a little 'loose' in our wooden changing table. The worst is that both curved sides that go up are less tall and thinner than before. All in all it feels cheaper and less quality than the one I had bought originally. I guess they went the cheap way and saved in materials and quality, and more expensive than before... this is exactly same argument everybody is noticing with major brand manufacturers for diapers: you pay more, they give you less of them and they are thinner and less quality (less absorption and more 'gel' i.e. chemicals). A final word to say I found a much better one and very similar in finishing and quality to the original I bought in T'R'Us (their brand) for the same price... And that is the one I would suggest anybody to buy for all the reasons I explained. Also I liked much better both quality and sturdiness of this other one. As a plus the design is nicer (some sort of clouds...) Good thing is you can see both in shops before you make your decision to buy. Hope it helps!"
"Yes, some of them do have a residual smell and it does stink if you put your nose to it. I let it air out and it's fine now. It's a nice pad. I think it's the right 'plushness' as it's not too soft that you can't do anything with it but not too hard that the poor child is freaking out. I sewed my own cover for it by just tracing it on extra fabric I had. Any spills and I just wash the cover and wipe that sucker off, I appreciate how easy it is to clean. Fits well in my changing table and I like the contoured sides. Good price for it being new. Update: After using this for 4 months, here's what I've noticed -It gets much softer after being used for a while, but still keeps its shape -If you don't have a cover and use it, be careful of getting anything from the diaper on it. The texturing has a design of tiny circles that are depressed and baby messes easily get in them and will dry without you knowing. They're small enough to where you can't get it clean with a wet wash cloth unless you really scrub. It's a little irritating because I don't see it being dirty initially and then I have to spend about 10 minutes cleaning it up. But, it still is great to have, it fits nicely on the changing table and gives my baby enough comfort during changings."
"I don't know why you would spend more money for any other changing pad when this does the trick perfectly. We ended up buying two so that we would have one on each floor of the house. The curved edges work well for keeping the squirmy newborn from rolling around, but still obviously wise to make sure and not leave him unattended on there. We haven't used the strap to secure baby yet, but we did secure the end of the strap to the back of the dresser so that the pad wouldn't slip around. You'll also want to buy some nice soft covers, though I'd highly recommend also getting the waterproof pads to put on top, especially if you have a baby boy who likes to make a big mess. The bigger the waterproof pad the better so be sure to pay attention to measurements when comparing."
