Vent Carseat snobs

sarahlove

New member
I've noticed on many of the mommy boards I visit there is a growing number of carseat snobs.
If someone asks for a seat rec most of the people will only say foonf or one of the dionos. These are carseat techs and carseat enthusiasts doing this. It doesn't matter if the child is ff already, doesn't have the budget for a $300-$450 seat, has a smaller child that doesn't need the limits of these seats.
I know the foonf and diono convertibles are great seats but there are a lot of other great seats out there as well.
 
ADS

Patriot201

Car-Seat.org Ambassador
You are absolutely correct that there are other seats out there. :)

I LOVE my Radian, and think it is a great seat for many, many applications, but it is not perfect. I would likely only recommend a Diono convertible for a FF-only child if the adult needed a narrow seat that could be passed down to a RF'er later.

I am not a huge Foonf fan, though I do think there are situations in which it is a great option. Again, though, I would likely only recommend it for a FF-only child if there were specific needs and it could be passed down to a RF'er later.

That said...

I also think most Graco, some Evenflo, most Britax, some Harmony, most Clek, etc. (too many brands to list) seats are great options for the appropriate situations/children. Each seat has its own pros and cons. :p
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
I've noticed on many of the mommy boards I visit there is a growing number of carseat snobs.
If someone asks for a seat rec most of the people will only say foonf or one of the dionos. These are carseat techs and carseat enthusiasts doing this. It doesn't matter if the child is ff already, doesn't have the budget for a $300-$450 seat, has a smaller child that doesn't need the limits of these seats.
I know the foonf and diono convertibles are great seats but there are a lot of other great seats out there as well.

It's pretty much the same with many products, from cars to strollers. There will always be those who swear by the priciest brands. And usually for good reason, as they often have features not found in lower priced models. That said, the $39 Walmart Scenera has been a workhorse seat for years. I think most technicians and advocates recognize it as a very safe carseat and a great value. On the other hand, I rarely see people touting that they "love" it. It simply doesn't generate fans like other brands and products.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Cosco-Scenera-Convertible-Car-Seat/16932760

Of course, most advocates will tout models that allow you to keep your child rear-facing longer than what is possible in the Scenera. Radian and Foonf aren't the only choices. The Graco Size4Me is a great choice for extended rear-facing and is a good value as well-

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Graco-Size4Me-Convertible-Seat-Pierce/dp/B00H8MSEWY"]Amazon.com : Graco Size4Me 65 Convertible Car Seat, Pierce : Baby[/ame]
 

CTPDMom

Ambassador - CPS Technician
I agree!

I have never owned a Britax seat, or any other 'high end' seat. (Although I did buy Diono Montereys when we started boostering because it was one of the few that LATCHed!) I've had several Evenflos and Gracos. And I always liked that I could tell people that it's definitely NOT a requirement or even 'safest' to buy a high end seat. And definitely not necessary. We could afford them, but I didn't like any of them frankly. ALL seats have drawbacks!
 

jeminijad

New member
I would love it if there was another tall, narrow convertible that wasn't over $200.

It is just not realistic to tell people to try 8 different convertibles configured with their infant seat, and maybe they'll have to replace their booster too, in order to get 3 across for a reasonable price. If you tell someone Radian, Aton, Parkway, it is probably going to work. Too bad it costs $500.
 

Beloved

Member
Totally agree. I love coming here and people will ask about budget. Recommending higher priced seats are fine as long as some budget friendly ones are also mentioned. The only reason I even have a Graco Snugride 35 is that I was still working while pregnant with my first. Once I had him I stayed home. For the convertible it was the cheap and safe as possible, scenera. If I knew better I would have gotten the cheap infant seat and saved for a nicer convertible, but the scenera and the tribute are working quite well for being very affordable. Children with longer torsos won't work well. Hope a taller and narrow convertible that is just as inexpensive will come out. Sometimes even $100 is too much, under $50 is where we have been lately.
 

carseatcoach

Carseat Crankypants
I agree. We have people here who love carseats and collect the high-end brands. That's fine as a hobby if they can afford it, but we as advocates need to remember that most people don't feel the same way and are looking for the best fit for their children and their cars, not a status symbol.
 
I agree. We have people here who love carseats and collect the high-end brands. That's fine as a hobby if they can afford it, but we as advocates need to remember that most people don't feel the same way and are looking for the best fit for their children and their cars, not a status symbol.

Couldn't have said it better myself.
 

SavsMom

New member
I agree as well.

I've owned several seats over the years including some that you mentioned and guess what my favorite seat ever is? The Evenflo SureRide...yep, my $89 seat is the best one I've ever owned :)

(If you really want to see some interesting stuff you should check out some of the stroller groups - yikes!)
 

griffinej5

New member
Can I just say, I wish I needed a cheap seat? Kmart carries an Apt with a Minnie Mouse cover I wish I needed. There's a pretty blue one too I saw somewhere. That said, we're set for a while for not much money. One niece only stays here a few days a week. She's got a Headwise I paid $150 for. She's 3.5 and still fits it RF. She should for at least another year. The almost 11 month old living here has two My Rides. One I got on sale for $125 that was passed down from the older niece. The other I got on clearance for $80. Sure, she till we just put it in for her, a year of life on it is gone, but I paid half price. The older one still fits it RF, and it seems like she will till at least 3 if not closer to 4. If I really wanted to, I could have afforded them Radians or whatever. I'm not rich, but I would have made it happen, or if we needed it to fit. Luckily, I got the two gracos next to each other. We did have a flex loc I picked up for $25 on clearance next to it previously. The baby would still fit in there, but I switched out her seat after a poopsplosion. As far as I figure , all we probably have left to buy are boosters. I could afford to spend more, but spending more than necessary isn't how I like to do things.
I'm happy my one car seat interested friend on Facebook is a tech. Every time a graco is on sale. She's got a link to it.
 

wnkw

New member
Can I just say, I wish I needed a cheap seat? Kmart carries an Apt with a Minnie Mouse cover I wish I needed. There's a pretty blue one too I saw somewhere. That said, we're set for a while for not much money. One niece only stays here a few days a week. She's got a Headwise I paid $150 for. She's 3.5 and still fits it RF. She should for at least another year. The almost 11 month old living here has two My Rides. One I got on sale for $125 that was passed down from the older niece. The other I got on clearance for $80. Sure, she till we just put it in for her, a year of life on it is gone, but I paid half price. The older one still fits it RF, and it seems like she will till at least 3 if not closer to 4. If I really wanted to, I could have afforded them Radians or whatever. I'm not rich, but I would have made it happen, or if we needed it to fit. Luckily, I got the two gracos next to each other. We did have a flex loc I picked up for $25 on clearance next to it previously. The baby would still fit in there, but I switched out her seat after a poopsplosion. As far as I figure , all we probably have left to buy are boosters. I could afford to spend more, but spending more than necessary isn't how I like to do things.
I'm happy my one car seat interested friend on Facebook is a tech. Every time a graco is on sale. She's got a link to it.

Umm is it sad that I've been considering tossing our britax seats aside so did can use the Minnie mouse seat?!? We are in the car less than thirty minutes a week.. so unfortunately, I can't justify it :(

Sent from my DROID4 using Car-Seat.Org
 

arly1983

New member
I am falling in love with my sureride now that I have used it as our main seat for a couple of weeks. I have helped install a blvd and a signo for my niece recently and it made appreciate the simplicity and low profile of the sureride more. It seems to do all the important stuff so well. I don't need a second one but was very tempted at amazons $80 sale price.

On the unimportant side, my DS2 just wishes it had some color on it (red, green, orange, blue, etc)

I really do wish it had been around when my kids were rfing. That's coming from a recovering car seat addict, umm, collector.

Oh, and I have always loved the turbo. Just wish it went higher.
 

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