I decided to write this guide to buying a Baby Bjorn carrier as there seems to be a lot of listings with misleading titles and/or descriptions regarding the difference between the 'original' and the 'active' carrier. As someone who has used and sold Baby Bjorns I am happy to help with information that should mean you get the right carrier for you, your baby and your budget.

My advice is to make sure you know the difference and decide which one you want to buy for you and your baby. Then make sure any seller knows the difference and are clear which one they have for sale. Read the whole listing thoroughly and if something is not clear then ask the seller any questions and if they don't come back with full and clear details then avoid them. I would also be wary of anyone who has just copied a load of text from the Baby Bjorn website without any thought as to whether it is relevant or correct for their carrier. Any good seller will want you to be happy with your purchase. Don't rush into buying the wrong thing as there will always be plenty more Baby Bjorn carriers to bid on. Like all purchases on ebay you should check the sellers feedback as this will show you whether or not they know what they are doing. Obviously everyone has to start somewhere and you may get a great bargain and excellent service from a new ebayer but remember it may be you that gets to find out they are a complete idiot.

The earlier version of the 'Original carrier' looks like this:-     with press stud fastening loops to attach the body to the harness.

The latest version of the 'Original' carrier looks like this:-    with the red and blue colour coded slide clips which fasten to the harness. They also added an extra fastening to make the leg holes smaller for smaller babies.

The original carrier has always retailed new for about £49, in the succesion of different colourways and with little updates along the way such as having the instructions imprinted onto the inside of the carrier.

The Active carrier looks like this: -  and the main difference is with the lumbar support. This additional triangular section of harness and second strap arrangement means that you can carry babies for longer and until they are heavier. The colourways for the Active carrier are called Sporty ie Sporty Black is this red and black colour showing. The active carrier retails new for about £69.

The Baby Bjorn Air carrier  is made of a special flexible and soft mesh fabric designed to keep baby cooler in Summer. It has significantly better heat and moisture dissipation and so would be really good for a Summer holiday abroad...or maybe even if the UK this year! Baby bjorn carriers are great for travelling & make getting through airports with a little one much less stressful.

The newest carrier is the Synergy, which is a further development combining advantages of the Active and the Air carriers with the unique breathable mesh fabric making it cooler to have the added lumbar support. As these are so new, there are likely to be only very few second hand on ebay and the price will be high until they are more common.

Personally I would recommend the Original carrier unless you are prone to back problems, are particularly active and likely to often go for long hikes or just have a really heavy baby. The active carrier strap is more cumbersome and I found it hotter to wear. The synergy has tried to improve on this, but obviously that comes at a cost. The active and synergy are substantially more expensive both new and 2nd hand (if you can find a 2nd hand synergy yet) so you could save money by not having the lumber support if  you don't really need it.

I do thoroughly recommend you buy a Baby Bjorn carrier - I loved mine and it was one of the best baby items I bought - its money well spent if you use it and you can always sell it on ebay again once you have finished with it.

Hopefully this guide has helped explain the different models - if it has please vote yes below - and good luck with your ebaying.