Kolcraft Cloud Plus Review

Kolcraft began in 1946 and is a third-generation family-owned and operated manufacturer of baby products based in Chicago. Founder Leo Koltun started making crib pads, and in the 1950s, his son, Sandy Koltun, joined the business and began making mattresses for baby cribs. In 1980, they launched the Carri-Cradle®, the first infant carrier/rocker with a carrying handle made entirely of plastic. In 1987, they began making high chairs and play yards, with new products and affiliations following after Sandy's son, Tom Koltun, joined the company.

Performance Comparison

The Cloud self-stands when folded making it easy to store to public spaces.

Credit: Abriah Wofford

Weight and Folded Size

The Cloud weighs 12.6 pounds. It is lighter than average for the group, but several competing strollers, like the Zoe Traveler and UPPAbaby G-Lite, weigh less. Folded, it measures 7,551 cubic inches, which is rather large, with only three products taking up more space. If lightweight and easy to stow are essential, this may not be the best option.

Ease of Use

The Cloud offers features the competition didn't, like parent and child trays, which helped set it apart from the products that only provided a parent cup holder at most.

The fold mechanism on the Cloud is located in the center of the handle making one-handed steering difficult.

Credit: Abriah Wofford

Fold and Unfold

The Cloud has a one-handed fold and unfold with a manual lock and self-standing capabilities. This stroller is easy to fold, but it can be hard to fully close and engage the lock if the wheels are going the wrong way. The fold is initiated by sliding the red lock lever and squeezing the red button to fold the stroller in half.

Brakes

The Cloud has double action brakes and requires two pedals to be pressed to set the brakes. The pedals are stiff, difficult to use, and not sandal foot-friendly. We much prefer the single-action brakes found on the BabyZen Yoyo2.

Storage

The Cloud can carry up to 10 lbs in the storage basket, and we were able to fit our medium size diaper bag inside. This bin is deep but narrow and has effortless access from the back (above left). The Cloud has additional storage with a child tray and parent console. All the cup holders on the Cloud are too small for pretty much any size cup, bottle, or toddler sippy (above right), and the child's tray needs to be removed entirely to fit a baby in the seat.

The window on the Cloud's canopy does not have a cover and leaves baby exposed to direct sunlight.

Credit: Abriah Wofford

Sunshade

The canopy on the Cloud is medium in size and has a nice peek-a-boo window that is easy to see through, but it doesn't have a window cover, which means the sun will hit baby right on the head, almost negating the reason for a canopy in the first place.

Each side strap on the Cloud harness needs to be removed on its own, but the real bummer is the straps are too long and a potential safety concern.

Credit: Abriah Wofford

Harness

The Cloud has a 5-point harness with an easy buckle that requires the removal of both sides separately. The rethread adjustment is straightforward, but adjusting the side straps is more problematic as it requires double threading through the adjustment clip.

The one-handed seat recline on the Cloud is not as smooth as we would like and the seat back barely reclines.

Credit: Abriah Wofford

Seat

The Cloud seat does not have an adjustable leg rest; in fact, it barely offers a leg rest at all. The seatback reclines with a one-handed strap, but it doesn't go flat enough for cozy napping, and its operation is less than smooth. The seatback has a thin piece of removable corrugated plastic inside that gives it shape and stability, but it doesn't feel stable, and it can buckle under pressure.

Ease of Setup

Setting up the Cloud took us 7:31 minutes with no tools and average instructions.

Despite the Kolcraft claim of all-terrain wheels, these wheels are flimsy plastic with imprinted tread that makes them wobble when strolling.

Credit: Abriah Wofford

Maneuverability

The Cloud has plastic wheels with a dual front wheel design that makes maneuverability difficult. This stroller rolls and turns on flat surfaces but takes some work, and it isn't that responsive or smooth. Going off-road makes it even harder to push, as the front wheels veer off course or get stuck in thicker grass or gravel.

The Cloud offers front wheel suspension, but given the lack of padding on the seat and the stiff plastic back, it is likely not the most comfortable strolling experience for a baby, no matter the terrain.

Quality

The Cloud has disappointing quality compared to the competition in this review. The fabric on this stroller feels slick like plastic and not breathable. The padding is minimal, and we think the padding combined with the material will quickly become misshapen. The frame is less impressive than the competition, and overall the stroller feels cheap and flimsy with gathered fabric that shouldn't be there and exposed rivets and connectors everywhere.

Should You Buy the Kolcraft Cloud Plus?

The only situation in which we would recommend the Cloud is if it is all your budget allows. It does the trick if you are out and about with your child and need a short-term solution or a backup option to leave at grandma's house. However, if you want a reliable stroller to take you through the long haul, the Kolcraft may not be the best choice, and we question how well it will hold up to daily use.

What Other Umbrella Strollers Should You Consider?

In our opinion, you would be better off with almost any other stroller, lightweight or not. If you want a full-featured option, the Baby Jogger City Mini 2 will work better. If the low price is what catches your eye, all we can say is to either lower your expectations or raise your stroller budget. The Zoe Traveler is more expensive but still offers much better value than the Cloud.

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