REASONS TO BUY
Straightforward
Easy to use
Warms quickly
Easy to add more time
REASONS TO AVOID
Can overheat on keep warm feature
Philips AVENT Fast Review
A simple yet well-designed warmer that is easy to use and warms milk quickly
Credit: Abriah Wofford
RELATED: The Best Bottle Warmers
Our Verdict
The Philips AVENT Fast is a favorite bottle warmer for those who want to heat their bottle fast. The Fast is a straightforward bottle warmer that is easy to use, warms quickly, and has an average price. While there is much to love about this warmer if your goal is to get it done fast, it is harder to clean, can get too hot if you aren't careful, and isn't as consistent as some, making monitor for overheating more challenging. Overall, it isn't the right option for everyone, but if your main goal is to heat bottles quickly and you plan to monitor the warmer as it works, then the Fast could be the right option for you. If you need something to heat while you do other things and could be distracted, it is probably not the right choice.
Compare to Similar Products
 This Product
Philips AVENT Fast | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Awards |  Best Budget Bottle Warmer |  Best Overall Bottle Warmer | |||
| Price | $50 List $40.49 at Amazon | $28 List | $60 List $59.99 at Amazon | $22 List | $22 List $19.75 at Amazon |
Overall Score  |
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| Star Rating | |||||
| Bottom Line | A straightforward warmer that warms quickly and is super easy to use | The lower price, features, and multiple settings are appealing | A higher-price warmer that is easy to use and can heat consecutive bottles but it isn't very fast | Simple and effective warming but requires prep work and could possibly be done with things you already own | Cheaper warmer that is easy to use but doesn't heat consistently or enough |
| Rating Categories | Philips AVENT Fast | First Years Gentle... | Chicco Digital & St... | Kiinde Kozii Voyage... | The First Years 2-i... |
| Health and Safety (35%) | |||||
| Warming Quality (25%) | |||||
| Warming Time (20%) | |||||
| Ease of Use (15%) | |||||
| Ease of Cleaning (5%) | |||||
| Specs | Philips AVENT Fast | First Years Gentle... | Chicco Digital & St... | Kiinde Kozii Voyage... | The First Years 2-i... |
| Heat Technology | Water Bath | Water Bath | Water Bath + Steam | Water Bath | Water Bath + Steam |
| Max Temp | 116.5 °F | 88.4 °F | 92.2 °F | 117.2 °F | 108.7 °F |
| Frozen Capability | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Baby Food Heating | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Audible Beep | No | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Measured Dimensions | 5.2 in x 6.0 in x 6.3 in | 5.2 in x 4.9 in x 10.3 in | 5.2 in x 5.1 in x 12.4 in | 3.8 in x 3.8 in x 8.6 in | 4.6 in x 6.2 in x 7.2 in |
| Contents Below 113ºF/45ºC | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Time to Reach 80F | 4.5 min | 10.0 min | 8.5 min | 5.0 min | 5.0 min |
| Time to Reach 98F | 6.5 min | N/A | N/A | 10.0 min | 7.5 min |
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Our Analysis and Test Results
Philips got its start in 1891 when Gerard and Frederik Philips, a father and son team, established Philips & Co. in the Netherlands. Their original goal was to “manufacture incandescent lamps and other electrical products.” In 1895, little brother Anton Philips joined the team, helping them become one of the leading producers of light bulbs. Royal Philips is now a health technology company working toward products for healthy living, prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and home care.
Performance Comparison
The AVENT Fast can quickly overheat contents which can cause the degradation of nutrients once over 104F degrees.
Credit: Abriah Wofford
Health and Safety
The FAST did not do well in our tests for health and safety. Maintaining the nutritional quality of bottle contents largely depends on not overheating the milk. Avoiding burns and scalding mouths is also critical. Temperatures over 104F degrees can cause degradation of the milk nutrients. We ran tests using the hottest settings, assuming some parents will resort to this for faster, warmer times. We aim to identify units that could result in milk that is too hot and result in a diminished nutrient profile.
The AVENT Fast is a water bath warmer with no bottle basket, and the water temps can get high enough to cause pain if touched. We prefer a basket to help prevent burns. Using the instructions, we had a max observed temperature of 121.6 degrees. This temperature is over the temperature you want for safety and comfort. This warmer surpassed 104F degrees near the 7-minute mark in our tests.
The Fast has a straightforward user interface with adjustments based on the amount of liquid in the bottle being warmed.
Credit: Abriah Wofford
Warming Efficiency and Consistency
The AVENT Fast is not the most consistent warmer in the group, but it is not the worst either. These tests use the manufacturer's directions for the settings, and we monitor and track internal content temperature over multiple tests.
At the auto-shutoff point (near 5.5 minutes), the unit has a temperature average of 89F degrees. The range is 76-98 degrees. That is a range of 22 degrees. There is a huge variation between warnings for the same settings and the same starting milk temperature for the same amount of time. This range decreases as it reaches body temperature, and around 6.5 minutes, the range is 93-106F, which is 13 degrees difference. None of the warmers were really consistent, but the key is finding a setting that works for you and creates warm milk that isn't too hot most of the time.
The Fast is a straightforward warmer with few steps.
Credit: Abriah Wofford
Quickness of Warming
The quickness of warming is where the AVENT Fast shines. At 5 minutes (auto-shutoff time), we got our first reading of body temperature, but the average temperature was still only 88 degrees F. At 6.5 minutes, the average content temperature was 98F, which is the goal temperature for most as it mimics the internal body temperature of breast milk, and the range was 93-106F. So, to be safe, pulling the bottle at 6 minutes should get you a warm enough bottle that is not too hot. No other option was this fast, using the manufacturer guidelines for setup.
The Fast has a cord storage feature on the bottom of the unit.
Credit: Abriah Wofford
Ease of Use
The AVENT Fast is easy to use and earned a higher score in this metric than the average.
It has almost too many instructions, however, and some of the written instructions seem to conflict with the pictograms they also include. This warmer is easy to fill with water and easy to set with a single dial. It has an auto-shutoff and can be completed using only one hand if you need to perform the steps while holding a baby.
While unlikely under ordinary use, if you spill milk or formula into the AVENT, it can reach on the heating element, and you cannot reach it to clean it.
Credit: Abriah Wofford
Ease of Cleaning
The AVENT Fast earned a lower score for ease of cleaning than most competitors. The manual does not offer text on how to clean and instead relies on somewhat ambiguous icons and pictograms.
The images show dumping the water and wiping it clean. There is no information on using a detergent of any kind or doing more in-depth cleaning. It does offer information on descaling, and the written instructions walk you through the ratio amounts and how to run the unit for descaling. Descaling isn't a long process. If you spill milk inside the unit, you cannot reach the heating element to clean it, so you'll want to rinse it as quickly as possible.
If your goal is fast warming and not much else matters, the AVENT Fast could be the right choice for you.
Credit: Abriah Wofford
Should You Buy the Philips AVENT Fast?
Maybe. If your goal is to get a bottle warm as quickly as possible, then the AVENT could be your best choice. However, it requires monitoring, and if you are the type to get distracted, it could potentially overheat your bottle faster than you realize. This results in milk being too hot to drink and potential degradation to the nutrition in the milk. It also could result in the potential to cause burns or scald baby mouths. If you only plan to use your warmer for overnight feedings, plan to stand right there (set a timer) and avoid the bottle sitting in the warmer for a prolonged period of time, then this quick warmer could be the right one for your needs.
What Other Bottle Warmer Should You Consider?
The First Years Gentle Warmth Digital is one of our favorite warmers that offers consistent warming and is easy to use and clean. It is slower and requires some patience to warm your bottle to body temperature. Still, with some preparation, this warmer can keep things cool enough to drink and avoid nutritional degradation. It also has a lower price and can save you some money if you don't need the fastest unit possible. If you want a fat warmer with less risk for overheating than the FAST, then the Baby Brezza Safe and Smart is a potential contender. It is more expensive than the competition, but depending on your goals, it could meet your needs.
—Juliet Spurrier, MD and Wendy Schmitz
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