Gladly Family Anthem4 Stroller Wagon Review

Anthem 4

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How it Compares

There are only a few serious choices for 4-seat stroller wagons on the market today:

• Gladly Family Anthem4
• Wonderfold W4 series and X4 series
• Famileasy Wagon
• Keenz 7S+ and XC+ recently introduced

We tested the Anthem4 and Wonderfold W4. We did not test the Famileasy Wagon but may do so in the future when its distribution to the USA is improved. We tested the Keenz 7S but not the 7S+.

The Anthem4 scored higher than the Wonderfold W4, and better than many of the 2-seat wagons as well.

Where it Fits Among Other Choices

The Anthem4 is slightly less expensive than other 4-passenger stroller wagons. Its low profile design and swivel wheels in the back make it look and handle similar to the 2-seat Veer Cruiser.

The Anthem4 is highly maneuverable and performed well in our terrain tests. The competing Wonderfold W4 is heavy and bulky. It is difficult to fold, maneuver and stow in a vehicle.

The Anthem4 is relatively new and although there are comparatively few customer reviews available we decided to buy and test it.

Most Common Complaints

The Anthem4 is quite new and there are very few customer reviews or expert reviews. We read and watched everything that exists and collected the critical comments in the table below. We read and collated all negative customer reviews about the Anthem4 to compare them to our own experience and assess their merit. In the end, we agree with many of the common criticisms, while others may not be a concern.

Criticism	Our Experience
Folding mechanism gets stuck and requires shaking	The folding button froze for us frequently. It improved some over time and we got better at shaking it to get it to fold.
Handle height not adjustable	The handle height is fixed at 42 inches in push mode. This is a bit high for people under 5′ 4″. In pull-mode the handle height isn’t fixed.
Broken zipper	We didn’t experience any problems with buttons or zippers. The zipper used to connect the two canopies is tight and under strain.
No response from customer service	Customer service responded to our first email in 1 hour and 16 minutes. The correspondence after that was fast and courteous.
No 5-point harness	True. The harnesses are 3-point. The minimum age published by the manufacturer is 6 months. The 3-point harness is not adequate for a 6-month-old.
Folded size not compact enough	The Anthem 4 is 11.1 cubic feet folded. This is much smaller than the Wonderfold W4 at 15.7 cubic feet. It is also smaller than several of the 2-seat wagons we tested. We were able to get the Anthem 4 into the trunk of a small sedan by taking the wheels off. The wheels remove and reattach easily.
Canopy too short for 6-year-old	We tested with a 5-year-old who barely fit under the canopy. The manufacturer states the maximum age is 5.
Brake only operates big wheels	True. However, the brake is very easy to activate and release, and immediately stops the wagon in our runaway wagon testing.
Rear wheels swivel instead of front wheels making it difficult to push straight.	True. The Anthem is designed like the Veer Cruiser with rear-wheel swivel. It does take minor adjustments to push straight, however the plus side is that it is more maneuverable and turns easier than “normal” front-wheel swivel wheels.
Awkward to load in vehicle due to weight and size	The Anthem is 40 lbs which is lighter than some 2-passenger wagons, and much lighter than the Wonderfold W4 Elite which is 53 lbs. It is a bit bulky but not bad for a 4-seater.
Not enough space in the parent console	Yes, the compartment on the handle is the size of a large packet of wipes, and there is a cupholder, but no more space than that.
No snack tray	Correct, only kid cupholders
Turn radius wide	The wagon is 2″ wider than the Wonderfold W4, but we did not find the turning radius to be wider than other wagons.

Kid Travel Video Review

Testing and Research

Over a 3-month period, we used the wagons indoors and out, on sidewalks, streets, grass, and trails. We performed 65 different tests and measurements to make a thorough comparison of the leading wagons.

Parent Comfort and Usability

The Anthem 4 scores well in areas that matter to parents including assembly, storage, cleaning, the handle, brakes, customer service, and more. The overall scores for parent comfort and usability are:

Getting Started

The Anthem4 was unboxed and assembled in just over 17 minutes. The packaging is well conceived and professional. Having spent over $600, the friendly first-impression was welcome.

The manual looked nice but we would have preferred pictures and words on the same page.

We contacted customer service to test their responsiveness. They responded in just over an hour. There were out-of-stock problems and we worked with customer service over a period of several days to get things worked out. They were very friendly and helpful at every stage of the process.

Handles

The handle locks into a fixed height of 42 inches in push-mode. Other wagons we tested had adjustable handles that could go as low as 27 inches and as high as 42.5 inches. So the Anthem4 handle is high by that standard and is uncomfortably high for some people.

In pull mode the handle doesn’t lock.

Car Seat Adapter

A car seat adapter for the ICS version of the Anthem can be purchased separately here. There is a different adapter for the Anthem 2 and Anthem 4, so be sure to buy the right one. Also note that the Classic version of the Anthem will not accept the car seat adapter.

When the car seat adapter is installed it fully covers one of the seats. You can use the area under the car seat for storage but not for sitting.

Storage Volume Ranking

The Anthem 4 has a large storage bin that is easy to attach to the front of the wagon. There is also a small bin attached at the top of the handle next to a parent cup holder.

With four kids in the wagon, there is no space left over for additional storage.

Cleaning

The fabric on the Anthem4 can be spot cleaned but is not removable from the frame. It isn’t terribly difficult to remove dirt and crumbs but they can make their way in behind seats that fold down. The crumb removal ratings:

Brake Operation

The brake is well-designed on the Anthem4. It is easy to activate and release and didn’t hurt our bare or sandaled feet as many brake pedals do.

The brakes brought the wagon to an immediate stop in our runaway stroller brake test.

Steering and Maneuverability

The Anthem4’s 12 inch wheels mounted in the front enable it to push over and through many obstacles that other stroller wagons can’t handle.

Swivel wheels in the back take some getting used to but ultimately make it easier to maneuver even when heavily loaded. Steering and maneuverability ratings:

Pushing and Turning

We measured the force required to get the wagon rolling while loaded with 80 lbs of cargo. The Anthem 4 outperformed several 2-seater wagons and easily beat the 4-seat Wonderfold.

We also tested the force required to make a sharp turn from a dead stop. The rear swivel wheels make all the difference here.

Terrain Performance

The Anthem 4 and Veer Cruiser were the clear winners in our terrain tests. We weighted down the wagons and pushed and pulled them through the grass, up and down hills, sideways on hills and over a bumpy obstacle course.

Grass: The grassy field didn’t give the Anthem 4 any problems. It was harder pushing than on a flat surface but didn’t take a great deal more effort.

Hills: It is never easy pushing weight uphill. But the Anthem 4’s design doesn’t seem to make the process any worse. We tested all the wagons on hills at the same time and some of them were a chore.

Bumps: The Anthem 4 did better than most rolling over bumps and obstacles. It doesn’t do well on trails with too many roots and branches. If you shift to pulling instead of pushing you can get over most things by lifting the front of the wagon. Bump ratings:

Although the Anthem 4 can be pushed on harder-packed sand and gravel, the wheels aren’t wide enough to do well on loose sand. To be truly all-terrain, much wider wheels are required like these sold separately for the Jeep wagon:

We don’t recommend the Jeep because it is difficult to maneuver and heavy and bulky when folded but the all-terrain wheels are nice.

Staying Straight

We performed a veer test to find out which wagons stay straight while pushing and which tend to pull to one side. The Anthem 4 veered off the centerline more quickly than most other wagons. Straight push test results:

Steering

The Anthem 4 was a top performer in our maneuverability tests. Maneuverability Ratings:

Folding and Transport

The Anthem 4 has a compact fold size but has intermittent folding problems. Folding and Transport ratings:

Folding

The Anthem 4 fold design is elegant. The sides collapse down with the push of a button, and the handle folds down and locks.

The challenge is that the fold button gets stuck frequently and requires some shaking and force to make it work. The white slider on top must be pushed to one side at the same time as you squeeze the button on the bottom.

We ordered and returned one wagon because I and another mom testing the wagon simply couldn’t get it to fold. The replacement wagon works much better but still doesn’t operate easily and consistently.

These fold time measurements for the Anthem 4 were taken when the button was working normally which isn’t always the case. Fold times:

Unfolding is fast and easy.

Folded Size in Cubic Feet

Here is how the stroller wagons compare in folded size in cubic feet:

We were able to get the Anthem 4 into the trunk of a Honda Civic but it required taking the wheels off. Fortunately, the wheels remove and reattach very quickly and easily.

The Anthem 4 is a very reasonable 40 lbs empty, weigh less than some 2-passenger wagons.

The weight and compact fold size make it fairly easy to lift and stow. It rolls well folded and also stands folded.

The Anthem is wide but there is more room left over in the minivan than it may appear especially if you remove the wheels.

Kid Comfort and Usability

This is another positive category for the Anthem4 which has a nice canopy, comfortable seats with a footwell, and kid cup holders. The scores for Kid comfort and usability:

Seats

The two bench seats have padded backs and a slight recline angle that is not adjustable. There is a 6 inch deep footwell which is better than the Veer’s 4.5 inches and the Pivot Xplore’s 3.5 inches, but less than the W4’s 10 inches.

The footwell improves the comfort of the seats compared to wagons like the Jeep, Keenz and Radio Flyer where kids must sit with their legs out in front of them.

Notice in the picture below that even with the footwell, the knees of this 5-year-old and 3-year-old are too high to fit under the cup holders.

Four children will fit in the wagon but the smaller they are the more comfortable they will be. The seat bottom is hard plastic and easy to clean.

Snack Tray and Storage

The Anthem4 does not come with a snack tray. There are four cup holders and four mesh pockets where snacks and small toys can be stashed.

The Inside

This wagon is 21 inches wide across the seatbacks compared to 19 inches for the Wonderfold W4. The extra two inches make a big difference. The overall inner dimensions are 28″ x 21″ x 15″, vs the Wonderfold’s 30″ x 19″ x “18. The Wonderfold is longer and deeper.

Getting In and Out

The Anthem4 doesn’t have a special door for kids to crawl in and out of like the Wonderfold, but it doesn’t matter much because the sides are low enough for most kids to crawl over.

Play and Nap Mat

The Anthem4 comes with a firm folding mat that can be placed across the seats to provide a flat surface for napping or playing. It stretches over the seats and attaches to the sides where the cupholders are usually attached.

It comes with a fabric case and can be kept under the wagon with access from the front.

Canopy

The canopy folds up and down and can be zipped together to form a full-coverage protective area.

The zipper connecting the two canopy halves is stretched tight but you may not be using this feature often. It can provide mosquito protection and the canopy has mesh fabric for ventilation. The Keenz 7S is the only other stroller that attempts to block mosquitos but the Keenz canopy and netting don’t form a tight seal.

The canopy provides good sun protection even when not zipped together, but it doesn’t always stay upright where you put it.

Part and Material Quality

The Anthem4 is well-made and scored well in this category. Here are the final scores for part and material quality:

The Anthem was packaged well. There were no missing parts and it was easy to assemble.

There are few moving parts on the stroller. The only issue we had with quality or operation was the folding mechanism we described earlier. The zippers and connectors on the wagon work fine and we didn’t see any potential for future problems.

Wheels

The wheels have a rubber tread and are made from EVA foam. The front and back wheels are 2″ wide. The large wheels are 12″ in diameter and the small swivel wheels are 8″.

The wheel release buttons press in easily and the wheels drop right off. Some wagons we tested would lose a wheel in the fold or stowage process but this didn’t happen with the Anthem4.

We didn’t see any problems with the bearings and axel assembly. There are no shocks or springs in the suspension

Gladly Anthem4 vs Wonderfold W4 Elite

This is a typical comparison because there are very few 4-seat stroller wagons on the market.

These are the two 4-passenger stroller wagons we chose to purchase and test. The Anthem4 had equal or higher scores in all five scoring categories.

The Anthem4 is easier to push, fold, steer, stow and transport. It is designed much like the Veer Cruiser and handles very similarly.

Although the Anthem4 is generally easier to fold than the W4, we had problems with the folding mechanism sticking sometimes.

Both stroller wagons have a footwell and nice storage options.

While the Anthem4 is two inches wider inside, the footwell is smaller and shallower. Ultimately the W4 provides more room for larger kids and its reclining seats are comfortable for longer durations.

Bigger kids may be more comfortable in the W4 with its deeper footwell and taller profile. Parents are likely to be happier with the Anthem because it is so much easier to push, fold and steer.

The W4 seats recline and are adjustable.

Both wagons are well-reviewed. They both come with nice-sized storage bins, canopies and cupholders. They differ primarily in usability.

Our full review of the Wonderfold W4 Elite stroller wagon

Advantages of the Anthem4 over the Wonderfold W4 Elite:

• Better terrain performance
• Easier to push and maneuver
• Smaller size folded
• Easier to fold (most of the time)
• 13 lbs lighter
• Canopy can provide full coverage
• Wider seats

Advantages of the Wonderfold W4 over the Anthem4:

• Reclining and adjustable seats
• A deeper footwell
• More storage compartments
• Zippered door for kids to climb in
• Mesh sides

Anthem4 vs Veer Cruiser

The Anthem4 and Veer Cruiser are both good options for top terrain performance and maneuverability. Both have low profiles and swivel wheels in the back with large wheels in the front.

The Anthem4 is a 4-seater and the Veer seats only 2 passengers.

The Anthem comes with a canopy and a nap map not included with the Veer. And the Veer includes a snack tray that the Anthem doesn’t have.

Both wagons are high quality and you may choose the Anthem4 simply because it provides more storage space both in the bin and in the wagon.

See our full review of the Veer Cruiser.

Advantages of the Anthem4 over the Veer Cruiser:

• 4-seats with more space inside the wagon
• Included storage bins, canopy, nap mat and snack tray
• A deeper footwell
• Lower price

Advantages of the Veer Cruiser over the Anthem4:

• More reliable folding mechanism
• Snack tray included
• 7.5 lbs lighter
• More compact folded size