Infant seats-tell me what I need to know now

a_js

New member
I haven't shopped for an infant seat in 6 years and I imagine a bit has changed. What's your favorite? I'd rather not spend a ton because it won't be used that long, but something that did well in testing would be a plus. And smallish, since it won't be used all that long, it doesn't need to take up a ton of room in the car.

Thanks in advance :)
 
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Evolily

New member
Ones to look at-
Safety 1st Onboard 35
Graco Snugride 35
Chicco Keyfit 30
Combi Shuttle 33
Evenflo Serenade 35
Baby Trend 30
Britax Chaperone

I think those are the main ones. Several are very new. We really don't have safety ratings... we know how some seats performed on NHTSA testing, but I don't recall there being a whole lot of information on RFing seats in the results. And it's hard to compare the seats head to head, and we have no clue how they perform in individual vehicles anyway. Some seats (Serenade and Baby Trend?) require the handle down in the car, others (Shuttle?) require it up.

I think the cheapest of that list would be the Onboard.
 

natysr

New member
If you really don't plan to use it very long, you could consider skipping it. There are several convertibles on the market that fit newborns well.

My son is about the same age as yours. I'm due in June and have decided to skip the infant seat. My son is old enough where I don't have to chase him. I plan to wear DS2 in a sling/wrap etc. more.

We got a True Fit Premier for one car and a Combi Coccoro for the other car.

Other convertibles that are known to fit newborns well are the Radian, True Fit, and Scenera.

We never liked the infant seat anyway. My son hated it. We never really used it as a carrier.
 

SusanMae

Senior Community Member
Infant seats last longer today than they did 6 yrs ago. I think then the 22 pound limit ones were just coming out on the market. Most seats prior to that went to 20 pounds and many children were out of them by 6 months old.

My son was in the Chicco KeyFit22 and I moved him into a convertible around 4 or 5 months, but we continued to use his infant seat occassionally until he was 12 months and finally outgrew it by height. He still isn't 22 pounds yet.

Susan
 

steph_s

New member
Ditto that infant seats last much longer now days! My son was out of his infant seat at 6 months old. I now have the keyfit and onboard 35 and my friends almost 2yo still fits in these seats. I have found most kids outgrow the infant seat more towards 15-18 months with these newer seats! You won't continue to use it as a carry style seat after around 20lbs it will just get too heavy, but instead you can just leave the seat in the car and use it as a convertible.

If you want the lowest price, best bang for your buck check out the onboard 35. I have basically ditched my keyfit in favor of this seat. I :love: it!
 

amy919

New member
I don't like buckets, but having a December baby and 2 other young kids to cart around pretty much made it a necessity for me. I also didn't want to spend a lot of money since once the weather warms up, I won't use it and I'd rather save the money and spend on a good convertible. As my babies are typically on the small side, though average at birth, (the girls didn't hit 10 pounds until 15-18 months), I didn't care about a higher weight limit.

I was really torn between the OnBoard and the Baby Trend Flex Lock. After looking at both of them, I went with the Baby Trend because I was able to get a great deal on the Baby Trend travel system from Walmart ($120). It was an older pattern and the seat was already 18 months old, but as this is our last baby, I didn't care about that. I have to say I am pretty impresed with the stroller too, it's not bad at all for a travel system stroller. It's not by any means anywhere near as fabulous as my City Mini, but I only needed a stroller until he's big enough for the City Mini anyway, so buying the travel system was the best bang for my buck. It was cheaper than buying a seprate infant seat and Snap and Go or the carseat adapter for the City Mini.

I have to say I do love the seat, as much as I can love a bucket :p. It nice and padded, very comfy, I love the front adjuster and I love the harness knob adjuster on the back of the seat. It's just a very user-friendly seat. It is very narrow, so I think it would be good for someone who needs a narrow seat. Mine is installed in a captains chair, so space wasn't an issue for me, but other than having to put the handle down (which is really just a very minor inconvenience for me, not a big deal), I have no complaints about the seat at all and I :love: the discontinued pattern I was able to get.
 

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