More Cybex Aton questions...any owners out there?

We are debating between the Cybex Aton and the Chicco Keyfit 30, and I finally tracked down a store with the Aton in stock to check out in real life---hooray! But---I'm still stuck!

Basically, I much preferred the Aton's belt buckles and canopy to the Keyfit---but the Keyfit seems easier to snap into and out of the base. The Aton isn't hard, per se...but the release latch is lower on the seat, so I'm worried that once it's actually in the car, it will be trickier to get it in and out regularly.

Can anyone who owns an Aton weigh in on this? Ideally I'd love a seat where it's equally easy to latch the buckles and to get it in and out, and I'm sure we'll adjust to whatever we end up with. But I'm wondering if you find the low release lever a concern on a daily basis, or if you just got used to it right away. The Aton is otherwise leading because of the easy seatbelt install (we will need to install without the base on a somewhat regular basis) and the lighter weight/smaller front-to-back length for our compact car, but it's only slightly better than the Keyfit in both of those arenas, so it's still not a clear decision for me. Was really hoping I would either love or hate the Aton once I saw it in real life...*sigh* Thanks!!

I just got an Aton, but don't have a baby for it yet, so I have installed it, but haven't actually used it.

I love the release on it, but I also have a really huge back seat, so no issues "digging around" for it.

Frankly, based just on the fact that you'll be installing it baseless a lot, I'd go with the Aton. SOO easy to do, and the European routing is a huge benefit, IMO.

Once I figured out how to tip the seat out of the base, releasing it and putting it back in is super easy. You can do the release buttons with one hand and they aren't hard to push (I had carpel tunnel after both kids and grasping the release handle on top of the infant seat hurt!). You simply tip the seat towards the baby's head and it pops right off--it's a natural movement. Same with getting it back on the base.

They're both great seats and you can't go wrong with either of them. If I had to buy one for a normal-sized newborn, I'd probably go with the Aton but that's my preference after working with both.

Thanks! Sounds like it isn't a huge issue to worry about...so I think that's the clincher for the Aton. (If we go with that, I want to order it soon while there are still some floating around at the lower price, so I've been trying to sort it all out...augh!) The ease of the baseless install is a biggie for us, since we're a one-car city-dwelling family, and our "second car" is actually a carshare membership---which means that not only will we sometimes need to install the seat in a different car, but the model/make of the different car will vary, too. So it's definitely added a unique twist to the carseat search! Thanks again.

LISmama810 said:

I just got an Aton, but don't have a baby for it yet, so I have installed it, but haven't actually used it.

I love the release on it, but I also have a really huge back seat, so no issues "digging around" for it.

Frankly, based just on the fact that you'll be installing it baseless a lot, I'd go with the Aton. SOO easy to do, and the European routing is a huge benefit, IMO.

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murphydog77 said:

Once I figured out how to tip the seat out of the base, releasing it and putting it back in is super easy. You can do the release buttons with one hand and they aren't hard to push (I had carpel tunnel after both kids and grasping the release handle on top of the infant seat hurt!). You simply tip the seat towards the baby's head and it pops right off--it's a natural movement. Same with getting it back on the base.

They're both great seats and you can't go wrong with either of them. If I had to buy one for a normal-sized newborn, I'd probably go with the Aton but that's my preference after working with both.

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I have an aton for our due any moment baby and agree with both of these

I think it takes a small amount of getting used to but it's not HARD to release it from the base.

I agree with the PP who said if you want to use it with the seat belt install on a regular basis go with the Aton. I really like the European routing on it.

Of course I've only played with mine and installed it...hopefully I will have a baby to put in there and SOON darnit!

Oh, and I also wanted to say that installing the Aton base it like...the easiest thing I've ever done! I love the tightening mechanism so much!

As an update, I did bite the bullet and order the Aton for our little guy. In case anyone else is looking at this seat, Albee Baby has it on sale for Labor Day at $160, which is the lowest price I found anywhere by a good bit. Most retailers have already gone to the new price of $230, which was more than we really wanted to pay given that we were deciding between it and the Keyfit 30. But the sale price made the decision easy, happily! (No particular endorsement of the store intended as I don't know much about them, except that they had it in stock and shipped it promptly!)