Motif Medical, Twist, Double/Single Electric Breast Pump for Breastfeeding

Motif Medical: Motif TwistThe twist is a small, lightweight very portable breast pump. It comes with a 24mm one piece breast flange with a comfort cushion. It can be battery operated with four AA batteries. It is rather cute in appearance to me and it comes with a one year warranty. Replacement parts can be hard to get if one is attempting to order direct however aeroflowbreastpumps.com carries Motif Medical replacement parts. The pump comes with no accessories. If you need a tote and cooler you’ll have to purchase your own. Warranty on the pump is one year from date of purchase or received through insurance.What’s included…♦ 4 Valves and membranes,♦ 2 Wide neck bottles (ML volume only) with nipples and hard plastic sealing disc♦ 2 One piece flanges with comfort cushions & caps (Flanges included is the standard 24mm only)♦ 1 AC Power Adapter♦ 2 Sets of tubingPROS…♦ Twist is a closed pump, meaning there is a barrier usually a diaphragm that prevents milk and condensation from entering the tubing♦ Small and lightweight which makes for high portability. It’s far lighter than my Avent double electric comfort pump and that too is far lighter than other double electric pumps.♦ Parts is interchangeable with the Motif Curve♦ Flanges is rather light in comparison to other full one piece bodies♦ Comfort cushion makes for one of the most comfortable pumping experiences♦ Twist has two phase expression. When the pump is turned on it starts in the let-down phase where it replicates the faster suckling a baby would do to get milk flowing. Turning the dial up enters the expression phase. When expressing I noted that higher suction has a longer pull on the nipple.♦ With some hacks flanges/flange bodies can be used from other closed pumps♦ Other bottles than can be pumped into is Avent classic/natural and Dr. Browns wide neck bottle (This is only if using motif flanges)♦ Twist is a double electric pump allowing mom to express from both breast at the same timeCONS…♦ Pump is loud. It’s comparable to Avent Double Electric Comfort Pump in terms of loudness.♦ Motif only carries a 24mm flange and a 28mm flange.♦ Parts is hard to get. At this time what I noted is only Aeroflowbreastpumps.com carrying all of Motif replacement parts.♦ One must use Motif brand valves and membranes or duckbill valves. The flange opening where the valve would go is far smaller than Medela so trying to use Medela valve/membranes or third party ones from Nene Supply/Mayomom will not work with the Motif Twist flanges.♦ Tubing is double ended which forces a lactating mom to use Motif parts. ( I did a hack and cut one of the ends off allowing for me to use flange/flange bodies from other companies. I also noted that the tubing is rather soft and has some stretch to it, allowing for me to remove the excess plastic from the end for use with Spectra tubing. Thus far I was able to use my Avent comfort flanges and my Medela personal fit connectors with Pumpin’Pals flanges with the Motif Twist. < Most commercial, single user breast pumps use vacuum technology so flanges can be used interchangeably between brands.>)♦ ( This is a personal con which may not be across the board for all moms.) Vaccum sucks the nipple and areola in well and creates good suction. I noted this phenomenon between three different company flanges where removing the flange from the breast is a bit of a task and has sort of a pop like noise from the release. I don’t have this feeling when using electric breast pumps from other companies.♦ Motif Medical only has Monday through Friday customer service from 8am-5pm EST.Update 1/7/2018I called Motif’s customer service asking about replacement parts and a larger flange size. Please understand that cutting the tubing to use different company flanges can and will void out your warranty. Parts is covered for 3m and motor is one year according to the warranty. I was informed that a 32mm flange is in the works and should be available soon this year. I was sent two 28mm flanges and extra valve/membranes. Although I have been using size 30mm flanges for most of my pumping career, I recently changed out to size 28mm to note that I am able to express well with the size. 30mm may be more comfortable for me to use with no chances of my nipple hitting the back of the flanges.Motif has an interesting flange for size 28mm. The body and flange is separate from each other. The diaphragms, I noted is bigger than what is included with the 24mm flange. It’s a small pot and is far deeper than the 24mm ones. 24mm Flange has a shallow pot diaphragm. The flange is also shaped like a pot. It covers all of my areola and is quite comfortable. It’s far more comfortable than Medela in my opinion. I also decided to change valves from the two piece valve/membrane thing most companies put out. I switched to a third party duckbill valve from NeneSupply also sold on Amazon and noted that it fits onto the flanges and work well. The valve/membrane combination doesn’t offer good suction thus I need a higher vacuum to express with. Maymom another third party after market retailer also sold on Amazon carries a thread changer which also works well with Motif flanges. With the thread changer I was able to express into Medela and Ameda narrow neck bottles just fine. The thread changer only works properly with duckbill valves that aren’t Avent. ( Avent style valves one cannot express with using the thread. ) Thread also works well with the two piece valve/membrane combination.Overall, I would recommend the Twist. It’s a high quality pump and I personally respond to it well. Flanges are quite comfortable to use and the pump is extremely light weight. The pump is rather loud but it’s no louder than other pumps close to its size. Replacement parts may be hard to obtain but Aeroflow carries them as well as a call to customer service one can get them. Third party duckbill valves work with motif flanges and the 28mm flanges is easy to clean.Update 3/7/2018I recently went looking for replacement parts only to note that 1. Motif updated their website to include a parts store 2. The 28mm flange was updated. 32 is still not available, neither is a full flange size 21mm or 19mm. Currently the insert for the 24mm flange reduces the flange down to a 21mm. There is an insert for the 28mm flange however I was informed via customer service that it's only for added comfort and it doesn't change the flange size.The 28mm flange is now a single, one piece body, with a shallow pot diaphragm. It was changed as I was told the old version was more expensive to produce than the current model. The new 28mm flange has a very similar appearance to the 24mm flange included with the pump. I have yet to receive and use the new model but I shall soon and update this review again.Update 3/27/2018I recently called Motif customer service. As my pump is still under warranty for parts I inquired about the 28mm flanges. I was sent another set of flanges though with shipping one of my flanges arrived broken. It's no big deal as the original set I was sent is still functioning just fine. Motif has not changed their 28mm flanges. It's still a two piece item with a larger pot diaphragm. The parts store shows a replacement diaphragm being the same size as it is for the 24mm flange. From what I am seeing via photos and what originally came with my pump the 24mm flange body has a shallower pot for the diaphragm. Parts store claims the flanges both 24mm and 28mm use the same size diaphragm but such is not the case as one is far bigger than the other. There is still no other flange size out side of 24mm and 28mm. 28mm Flange now has an insert I have not used nor ordered as the flange is very comfortable to use.Still I would recommend the pump for mamas who use the available flange sizes. It's still a high quality pump and I believe it performs far better than my Spectra s2 and my Medela pisa ( pump in style advance.) Customer service is good and Motif makes quality breast pumps.Update 09/12/2018I recently noted that Motif Medical has taken to offering their replacement parts and flanges on Amazon. We can not order breast flange kits with valves/membranes and tubing included. Breast flange inserts, replacement valves/membranes, diaphragms, extra flanges and so on is now sold on here making it convenient to get parts.My pump now being 8m old is currently in the process of being replaced. After doing routine maintenance of replacing tubing, duckbills ( I don't respond well to the valve/membrane combo so I don't use them ) and diaphragms monthly, I noted that my pump is no longer able to provide me with adequate suction even when increasing the suction on the pump. With daily use of three plus times a day it is past it's prime. As with other pumps I've replaced in the past, the old motor will be sent back in exchange for the new motor. I never used the pump as a double as for me I noted that it doesn't perform well as such. I always used my pump as a single and on AC power, never battery. Using any pump as a double kills the vacuum strength thus motor is worked harder and mom would need to use higher suction overall. I would still recommend this pump for moms on the go now that parts is easier to get and the fact the pump is reasonably priced even when it's on sale.

The suction is weak and sometimes it stops pumping on one side

Recieved this pump through insurance!______________Ok. So not gonna lie - it is VERY cumbersome to initially set up. Lots and lots of pieces to put together and figure out. As a first time mom it was very overwhelming. . . Also as a FTM I used this pump 3 times without knowing/realising the included flanges (24mm) were too small. This resulted in 2 things : 1) it was very painful because each suction felt like nipples were being hardcore pinched . . .2) the little massaging ridges really do get the job done!!! So much milk just flew out.(((Really important to note if you are experiencing a lack of / weak suction make sure you have the little inner inserts plugged in tightly. And if you're pumping from 1 side, that you have it plugged into the hole that does NOT have the little black latch.)))So anyway once I sized up the flanges (which sadly did not include the massagy bits) and got into a routine this pump is a dream. . .Although it is lightweight and has travel capabilities, I use this as my home pump. I barely use it past the "min" mark and I am able to pump a hefty 4oz in as little as 10 minutes if I'm really full. (For reference, 3 mo PP)When done, its just a matter of washing the bottle, flange, & insert and set to dry for the next pumping session. . . I have (so far) had no use for any of the extra parts that originally made me feel overwhelmed. . .All in all this is a solid pump and I'll happily use it again for baby number 2!

This pump is horrible. It’s impossible to use as a double pump the suction is not strong enough. Even as a single pump it takes me 1-2 hours per session to completely empty my breasts. That’s almost half my day spent hooked up to a pump and with a toddler and infant that’s less than ideal. The only thing I like about this pump is how light weight and portable it is, but with how long it takes me to pump it’s portability doesn’t really matter.

There are EIGHT parts you have to clean when using the single feature! That’s 16 for the double. Medela has five. There is also no way to pick your own pump time on the timer - 30 or less (if you want to manually shut it off). The suction also stinks- I don’t feel emptied or close to it. I assume this was the free one through insurance because of these undesirable features. I will most likely throw it away because I find it comparable to evenflo which ruined my supply after labor causing me to relactate and I’m not going through that again.

LightweightPortablePower adapter or battery operatedSoft breast shields (able to purchase separate shields for your size/needs)Fairly quietSimple to assembleClosed system (more hygienic)Easy twist to operateStrong suction30 min auto shutoffGreat Price

I got this pump through insurance. It’s quiet. But it’s weak. It worked perfectly, once, and then every other time, I got next to no suction even with the dial turned all the way up.Definitely don’t recommend.

I’m giving this pump a 3 mostly because way too many small parts to clean. The silicon inserts can be very painful when using on sensitive nipples. Even after months of breastfeeding. The silicon insert is also hard to clean off completely. It ends up looking dingey after a few uses even though I know I’m sterilizing it. I like that it’s small and portable. It did come with a few extra replacement parts.