After being home for a 1 week or so, our baby girl started refusing to sleep in her basket, and would very often only sleep if being held. It was starting to become a real issue, with us and her getting really tired, and she would then get increasingly clingy and 'colicy'.
Almost immediately, the Robopax solved the problem. It's a simple product - just a platform which moves backwards and forwards powered by a small electric motor.
When we want to put baby down to sleep, we simply place her basket down on the platform and switch it on.
On first impression, two things strike you: One, it's quite noisy - the motor makes a rhythmic whirring noise which borders on annoying, and secondly, the motion appears quite jerky at either end of it's travel.
But we quickly realised that both of these attributes may well be by design, and seem to be exactly what a baby wants. When combined with a CD of lullabies on the stereo, she is out like a light! When once she would stay quiet in the basket for only a few minutes once left, she will now sleep for 2-3 hours, until she wakes up hungry. Her entire mood seems to be improving as a result.
When I think about it, it seems obvious that the stillness and quietness of our homes (which we adults crave so much) is unsettling to a young baby because it's so different to the womb, which is a noisy, motion-filled place. The fact that the Robopax has worked so well for us is perhaps not so surprising.
Some reviewers here have commented on a lack of build quality with the product. It seems fine to me, although I doubt it will keep running for years - it's obviously built down to a price. But to be honest, I would happily buy a new one every couple of months if it means getting some of our sanity back.
The only thing I worry slightly about is whether using it too much will mean she will never be contented when not being rocked. So if I'm not sleeping, I'll occasionally turn it off once she's fast asleep and leave her on it. She'll usually carry on sleeping for a good while. We'll try and wean her off it completely at some point...