Closer to Nature Baby Bottles, Pack of 2, 260ml

The teat's wide, breast-like shape and vented base are designed to mimic breastfeeding, which shows in how easily most babies take to it. The anti-colic valve sits inside the teat itself rather than needing a separate insert, so there's one fewer part to track through a sterilising cycle than some rival systems, though it's still a small piece that's easy to misplace at 2am. At 260ml, this size covers most of the newborn and early infant window before you need to size up.

Both this and MAM's Easy Start bottle aim to solve the same problem - trapped air causing colic - but take different mechanical approaches. Tommee Tippee's valve sits in the teat and does a solid job for most babies, while MAM's vented base is a more aggressive design that tends to work harder for genuinely stubborn wind, reflected in it scoring a point higher on anti-colic performance in our comparison. If colic isn't a major issue for your baby, the difference matters less than teat shape and ease of switching between breast and bottle, where the Closer to Nature range has the edge.

Good fit for parents who want an easy, forgiving switch between breastfeeding and bottle-feeding without a steep re-learning curve, and for anyone who wants a widely available, keenly priced bottle they can pick up from any supermarket rather than ordering online. Parents dealing with a baby who has pronounced colic symptoms are more likely to see a bigger difference from MAM's stronger venting system.

The one persistent gripe is the loose anti-colic valve - it needs checking that it's seated correctly on reassembly or milk can leak from the teat collar, and it's a fiddly piece to fish out of a full sink or sterilising basket. It's also worth noting this is a staged teat-flow system, so you'll need to buy replacement teats as your baby grows rather than relying on one teat throughout.