Question Convertible Confusion

Firstly hi to everyone and thank you in advance for all the information I have already found here. Unfortunately I am more confused than ever about my next car seat purchase so I'm looking for some advice.
I live in New Zealand and I'm looking to buy a new seat for my almost 10month old daughter. She is currently 7.2kg and about 68cm tall, RF in a Safe and Sound Royale. My choices of seat here are pretty limited but I'm currently considering the Evenflo Triumph Advance, the Evenflo Symphony65 (which isn't in the country yet but I've been told is coming in July) or importing a Britax Multi-Tech from Sweden. I have also seen the Safety First All in One convertible advertised in NZ but I haven't read much that was positive about that one so I've pretty much crossed that one off my list and I'm not interested in the Brio Zento. I want to keep her RF as long as possible but want the option of FF with a harness at least to 20kg, since if I go by weight alone on something like the 25kg RF Multitech she'll be 7 years old by the time she outgrows it by weight and I suspect I'll be pushing my luck to keep her RF that long I have also considered the Britax Two-Way but the FF option doesn't kick in until 15kg which is a little later than I would like. I drive a Mitsubishi Airtrek and the carseat will be staying put in that car.
Any advice from people who have maybe used these seats would be greatly appreciated. Sorry for the long winded post, but the more reviews and comments I read the more confused I get

P.S booster feature is not important, if the best seat I can get happens to have that option then it's just a lucky bonus

This is a growth chart recommended for the AU/NZ population:
http://www.apeg.org.au/Portals/0/1841 girls 24-42 weeks.pdf
It shows that your DD is likely to be well over 3yo when she reaches 15kg? She is quite low on the curves if I am reading that correctly. I was going to ask why 15kg is higher than you would like but if that's correct, then I get it... Assuming I am thinking this out correctly - I had a late night.

For a petite girl like yours the EFTA would make a great seat. The Symphony would too, I think. Both seem to have 35lb (16kg) RF limits, with the FF limit of the EFTA at 50lbs (22.7kg) and the Symphony at 40 lbs (18kg). Are those correct? The EFTA has top slots that area little taller than the Symphony I think, but your DD is small so either is likely to work fine. I hear the MultiTech is great but maybe you don't need the extra limits.

Hope someone will correct me if I am way off due to a fuzzy head.

Thanks so much for that advice, yes you were thinking it out correctly The 15kg FF start point wouldn't be much use to us for a while and I've just started to get my head around the fact that kids will often reach the height limit before the weight limit - even though she isn't going to be super tall either. I think the EFTA looks better for the harness FF option but then I have the Symphony65 thrown into the mix which has an even longer FF harness option plus the booster potential. Confusing! And then last night I moved on to thinking I've spent all this time focusing on the weight limits that I haven't actually considered the overall best option in terms of the safety of the seats!
I think the Symphony is off the list since the EFTA has the same RF but longer FF harness option. Does anyone have an opinion about the Symphony 65 for use with a smaller framed child? I don't want her swimming in a seat just because it will last her longer.....
Again, thank you for the advice!

I may be totally off my rocker, but -- I swear I read the Radian was becoming available down there soon (or maybe it just did?) Or was that just Australia?

That may be an option for you, too.

Thanks for that, I will see if I can find anything about the Radian, it's not one I've come across at all so it could be Australia that are getting it, but worth checking anyway

You were right!! A quick search for the Radian and I discovered it would be available here in July - but I don't know much about it other than the weight/height info. Can anyone tell me how the Radian rates overall as a carseat?? I've started reading the old threads in the forum about the Radian but any first hand opinions would be appreciated

You are right that the Symphony would not last as long FF. Not only is the weight limit 40lbs, the top slots I think are a little bit shorter than the EFTA, though I am not positive about that. Then you can follow it up with a good dedicated booster. This might help, from CarseatBlog.com (ETA remember that some of the info might be US specific):
Evenflo Symphony 65 vs. Triumph Advance: Comparative Review of Features (with lots of pics!)

The Radian is a great seat, although it can at times be difficult to install (depends on the vehicle). If you had access to a store that would let you try out an install before you buy, that would be ideal. The top slots on this seat are even taller by an inch or two - 18" high (~46cm). The one you are getting there it seems is the Radian XTSL - it RF to 20kg (~45lbs) and FF to 36kg (~80lbs). Don't know if you would get any other models but if so, they may have slightly different weight limits but are essentially the same basic seat design, so the fit would be the same. It is one of the longest-lasting options available right now. Along with that, it has an 8yr expiry (at least here, it does) while the EFTA which is 6yrs (it seems the Symphony is 8yrs as well). It is a very narrow seat so if you ever transport other kids or adults in the back seat 3 across, it is a nice option. What vehicle do you drive? DO you have ISOFix? Some installs, usually with the seatbelt, can be difficult, but for most cases, we have figured out a number of tricks and tips for getting the seat to go in well. It does take up a lot of room front to back and can be difficult to install more upright, but again in many (most?) cases we can tell you what to try to get it to install at a better angle for an older child. I've only ever used mine FF but really like the seat.

Hi, it is the definitely the XTSL model and I've been able to find somewhere to check it out this weekend. I drive a Mitsubishi Airtrek (which is a smaller model than the Outlander, but not one people often know about in terms of car seat suitability). It does have ISOfix which I am pleased about. I am a little worried about it not fitting RF very well, our current seat is behind the passenger seat and that is where I will have the new seat, but being our family car there is often someone in the passenger seat so I don't want to end up with the seat so far forward that they can't sit relatively comfortably. Are these seats allowed to rest against the passenger seat? I've read mixed reports about whether that is allowed or not. I'm not too concerned about the amount of room it takes up width ways as we don't often have anyone else in the back and won't be looking to add another carseat anytime soon!

Before I forget to mention it, if the passenger seat is not comfortable for a passenger and there is nobody sitting in the back, the 2nd adult could sit in the back seat where they can interact with DD and where it is technically a little safer. I do know people prefer to sit in the front though.

The Radian is allowed to brace against the front seat BUT you need to check the vehicle manual as well. Many newer vehicles prohibit anything from touching the front seatback (or storing anything under the seat or even having the mudmats touching the front seat) because of the advanced airbags in the front - the pressure of something on the seatback can confuse the sensors, making the airbags over- or under-deploy.

When you do get a chance to try out the seat, write down these tips to take with you:
- move the front seat all the way forward and recline it out of the way
- put the Radian in the car RF and feed the latch strap through the RF belt path and attach it to the anchors, but don't tighten yet
- if you are able, get in the car and stand behind the RF Radian, facing the back of the car
- place the toes of the RF boot an inch or two away from the seat crease and try to keep them there throughout the installation; if your vehicle seat has a groove/contour there, it will help a bit with keeping the boot properly positioned
- lean over the seat (if you are short it may be a bit of a stretch and you might need to stand on the door frame and the center bump in the floor to reach, at first) and push one hand straight down at the toe area of the seat, by the harness adjuster; at the same time, lean your hips/belly against the Radian's shell and push straight back and a little upwards (not down!) as you haul on the latch strap to tighten it. The aim is to keep the seat more upright while jamming it tight against the vehicle seat back and down into the seat cushion.
- you may need to feed the latch strap through the RF belt path and tighten more that way (gives a better angle to get the last bit of slack out). It can be a big help if you can have another person pull on the strap from the outside of the car while you push the seat in the proper direction to keep it upright as it tightens in

Oh, look at this! Defrost has been so kind as to make a picture tutorial to help with this, right here:
http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=32350

Wow! Great, thanks so much for all that information! I'll have a look at the link as well. It does seem much more complicated than my current seat, but that has tethers for RF that go over the top of the seat into the back of the car and they are a bit of a nuisance to be honest, at least now that my daughter is old enough to pull herself up on them while I'm trying to strap her in!
I am going to see some people here who import the Radian and use it themselves, so hopefully they will now some good tricks for getting a good install. Then next up I'm trying out the EFTA so hopefully after that I'll be able to make a decision! Which will please my husband no end!

Thanks so much!!!