britax laptop in back seat with lap belt only or front seat in a booster seat?

kimk2230 · Feb 26, 2007

My dh has a 79 camaro that has lap belts in the back seat. Do you think it would be safer for my ds to ride in the back seat if I can find a britax laptop or have him in the front seat in his turbo booster?
How does the laptop work? It looks like the child sits in the seat and then the laptop goes on him, then you buckle the lap belt. How safe is it? It seems that the upper body is not very well protected. Anyone that has owned one please let me know what you think.

Gypsy · Feb 26, 2007

back seat with laptop definitely!

You have it exactly right about how it's used, it offers great protection, similar to a 5 point harness because the upper body is protected, on smaller kids it goes all the way up to their armpits, and on older kids it's more then halfway up their torso.

scatterbunny · Feb 26, 2007

The upper body is very well protected in a Laptop. It fits right up against the body, and restrains almost the same way a harness would.

How low are the rear seatbacks? The vehicle must provide head support at least to the tips of the child's ears for the Laptop to be safe.

They will expire soon, as they were discontinued in 2002 (if I remember correctly, it was 2002).

What about a Sunshine Kids Radian?

An EZOn harness might be another option; EZOn can assist in locating a suitable spot to mount their heavy duty tether anchor.

Victorious4 · Feb 26, 2007

Hey Kim

As long as the vehicle seatback is over the top of the kids' ears then the LapTop would be a great choice (assuming it isn't expired yet) -- the front seat is much less safe than the backseat + the LapTop crash tests more similar to the a harness: less head excursion compared to a booster....

How's the Radian doing in the van? I don't remember if you said you tried it in the Camaro

I'm going to PM you!

skaterbabs · Feb 26, 2007

My boys were in Laptops when I rolled my van, neitrher got a scratch. I love the seats and wish Britax still sold them.

Victorious4 · Feb 27, 2007

skaterbabscpst said:
wish Britax still sold them.

DITTO! such great niche seats -- for situations like this as well as vehicles with buckles forward of the seat bight.... Leila really liked resting her arms & head on it during long rides (although she couldn't cross her legs like she wanted)

Simplysomething · Feb 27, 2007

What exactly were the laptops made of?

From what I've gathered, it wasn't plastic, but foam? I'm confused.

Would be great if they still made them. Someone mentioned that they stopped making them because carseats are required to be Latch compatible... If that's true, I mean it's great that all carseats come with latch connectors nowadays, but how many cars have a latch connecter where there is just a lap only belt? Not many, I'd wager.

Is the only other option to get a travel vest? (Because I've also been told [here] that while you can sometimes get a shoulder belt retrofit thingy, it's still only for outboard seating positions, so people still have that completely USELESS [except for installing carseats] lap only belt in the center of their cars).

skaterbabs · Feb 27, 2007

Yep, it couldn't be retrofitted with LATCH, so they had to discontinue it.

twokidstwodogs · Feb 27, 2007

Okay, this is a dumb question, but I know that one of you super-techs must have an answer because you all like the Laptop! Why is it safe when an ordinary shield booster is not? (It *looks* like a shield booster to me, which is why I ask.)

lynsgirl · Feb 27, 2007

I hope someone comes with a better answer than me, but here goes

.

With a shield booster, a child is sitting in a booster, thus, boosted up. The shield is in front of them, but by no means snugly against them as the sole restraint. The belt goes over the shield. The problems with this include being up higher - different center of gravity, and not having anything snugly against the bony parts of the body like you would with a regular seat belt, booster or harnessed seat. If there are no head rests, you've boosted a child up with nothing behind their head. Also, the chances of ejection, either out the top or down out the bottom, depending on the size of the child and the type of crash, are high.

With the LapTop, the child is sitting right on the vehicle seat and the LapTop sits over their legs and against their chest. It is snug against the bony chest and the child is lower down in the vehicle. With a shield booster, the shield is the restraint - the shield is there to be impacted by a body. The same applies to an overhead-shield convertible seat - made to be impacted by a child's face or chest

. Since the LapTop is already snug, like a harness, there's not the same kind of impact. Does any of this make sense? lol I really, really don't think I'm doing a very good job of explaining this

.

We did have a LapTop, which I foolishly borrowed to somebody who moved across the country w/out giving it back (sob!). I love the LapTop and I think it's a huge shame it isn't made anymore.

twokidstwodogs · Feb 27, 2007

Yes, that *does* make a lot of sense! Thanks, Amy. I've never seen a Laptop in person. It does sound like a great idea--too bad they can't be made anymore.

scatterbunny · Feb 27, 2007

Pics of the Laptop in use:
http://www.angelfire.com/wa3/isakswings/lt.html

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/0603/scatterbunny/Britax Laptop/

Momto2whosews · Feb 27, 2007

It was mentioned in another thread that the laptop is still being made in Europe, under the name Vario, by Romer (Britax Europe). Obviously it's illegal to use in the US, but it might be something to consider if you can't find a used one from a reliable source. However it might be difficult to get one shipped to the US if you don't know someone over there.

Also, does anyone know how wide the laptop is? I have only a lap belt in the center of my back seat and thought this might be an option for 3 across. I have a friend in Germany who could buy one and ship it to me. Nothing will fit next to the Regent, but maybe with a booster next to it?

kimk2230 · Feb 27, 2007

Thanks for the pictures. It helped me see how the laptop works. I wish I could find one, even if it had only about a year left on it.

tech_raechel · Feb 27, 2007

They can usually still be found on eBay, NIB. I bought a couple last year from the seller that often has them. Service wasn't great, but I did receive the seats and they were NIB, as promised. I think mine were from Aug. 2002; you might double check with the seller and see if you could get the date of manufacture before you buy.

skaterbabs · Feb 27, 2007

Just be careful with that Ebay seller. She's telling people the Laptop doesn't expire.

jennsmile · Feb 27, 2007

I am confused. They stopped selling laptops because they couldn't be made LATCH compatable. Well most boosters are not LATCH compatable. So what is the difference? Boosters require shoulder straps and not everybody has those.

Jenn

AdventureMom · Feb 27, 2007

jennsmile said:
I am confused. They stopped selling laptops because they couldn't be made LATCH compatable. Well most boosters are not LATCH compatable. So what is the difference? Boosters require shoulder straps and not everybody has those.

Jenn

^^^^ Yeah, that! ^^^^

mamato2 · Feb 27, 2007

Good question Jenn! I too wonder about that. Is it a technicality due to it being a 'car seat'? If so, what a shame. So many people still drive cars with lap only belts in the back.
C.

scatterbunny · Feb 27, 2007

I'm just speculating, but maybe it's because the definition of a booster is something that boosts a child up; maybe a Laptop needs to be considered a child restraint, not a booster, because it restrains the child, it doesn't boost a child up so the belt fits properly. And maybe the law said all child restraints had to be made LATCH-compatible? Just rambling from someone who really needs to go cook dinner...

britax laptop in back seat with lap belt only or front seat in a booster seat?

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