car seat confusion

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mamajustus

Guest
car seat confusion

I've been checking out carseats on the internet and magazines. I have seen the top few that experts seem to recommend and the top few parents recommend. I have not seen the carseats that have the bar that comes down over the childs head and buckles between their legs, are these safe? My son is 3 1/2 months old, 29 inches long and 24 pounds, he is to big for his evenflo infant carrier carseat. But to be direct I am a single mother and I can not afford to pay $200 for a Britax carseat,which from what I can tell everyone seems to think is the safest. So now I'm eat up with guilt that I cannot get my son the safest carseat that could protect his precious life. I would really like anyones advice or experience. I have $75.00 to buy my son a seat with this weekend, the only carseats on the "best list "I've seen I could afford is the Century Accel or Evenflo conquest V, are these as safe as the more expensive ones? Help, Soon!!Thank You 1st time worried mom of Justus:)
 
ADS
C

CPStechmom

Guest
You can get a Fisher Price Safe Embrace for $60 right now...

At Walmart. This is probably the second most popular carseat, under the Britax Roundabout. It has the 5 point harness, no-twist straps, EPS foam, and built-in locking clips. Most Walmart's have gotten shipments of them in, and at $60, is a great deal(the seat originally sold for $100, FP recently stopped making carseats, and shipped Walmart a bunch of seats to help clear out their warehouses).

HTH!
 
M

murphydog77

Guest
The "safest" car seat is any car seat

Don't feel that the Britax is the safest car seat. Yes, it does have many safety features, but if you find a car seat that fits your vehicle and child well, and is under $75, you've found a good car seat for you. The Accel and Evenflo Odyssey are good seats to look at. The Fisher Price Safe Embrace is a must-grab if you find one.

All car seats save lives and reduce injuries.

Just look at the features of each seat and buy the most you can afford. Look for things like a 5-point harness, an easy-to-use harness adjuster, 2-piece chest clip, etc. (see the buying guide link at the top of the page).
Stay away from overhead shields and T-shields, since they hold the harness away from the child's body too much.

The seat fits your car well if it moves less than 1" when you tug on it at the belt path after it's installed.

Heather
 
U

UlrikeDG

Guest
I've been told that if the checker scans the code on the bot

the bottom of the FPSE box, it rings up as $20, not $60! Worth checking out at one of those price scanners at the very least.

Also, proper use is a lot more important than a fancy carseat. Yes, the Britax Roundabout has some very nice features. It's super easy to use properly, which makes it safER than a seat that is difficult to use. The Fisher Price Safe Embrace has some of those features (like built in locking clips). It also has EPS foam. If the seat you purchase fits your car and your child, and you use it correctly each and every time, it is the right seat for you, and you're doing a heck of a lot better than 95% of the other parents out there!
 
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Kristin

Guest
Regarding Carseat

I have the Cosco Alpha Omega Eddie Bauer 5-point system. This carseat goes from 5lbs.- 80lbs. and is rear and forward facing and converts to a highback booster seat as well. I purchased it at JcPenneys with a coupon, but it was more then $75.00. By spending a little extra, you can eliminate a 3rd carseat(booster). JcPenney's I believe has a coupon going on right now. The other carseat I would recommend goes to 40lbs., rear/forward facing too. It's the Evenflo Medallion V XL.
This carseat as well is over $100, and JcPenney's may carry it too. Your little guy is growing rapidly and would invest in just 1 more carseat that will last until he no longer needs to be in 1. Some carseat maximums are 30lbs.- 40lbs. Our son will be 4 in Nov. and only weighs 30lbs, but is tall. I hope this helps and check out where there are coupons available. Had the Cosco Alpha Omega been available when our son was born, we only would have ended up with and infant carrier and that. But we've had 3 carseats and 1 infant carrier. The 2 that I recommended had newborn inserts in them too. Goodluck.

Kristin
 
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UlrikeDG

Guest
There are some problems with the AO...

First, it may *seem* like a good deal, but for the price of the Alpha Omega (also sold as the "3-in-1"), you can get a nice convertible seat and a decent booster later.

Most reviews of the AO that I see agree that the saying, "A jack of all trades, but a master of none," applies. It's too big to be a good infant seat, too small to be a good booster, and too flat to be a good convertible. You may want to check this post boards2.parentsplace.com/.../13/2.html for more.

The AO is normally $130. For $60, you could get either the Century Accel or the Fisher Price Safe Embrace, both of which are very nice convertible seats that fit well in most vehicles and fit most children better & longer than the AO, and you'd still have $70 left over to purchase a nice booster when the time comes. Or, you could spend the $60 now, and save a little money each month to use for a booster when your child outgrows the convertible. A newborn won't need a booster for aproximately 4 years, so that means you'd only need to save $2.50/month to save $120 (enough to purchase a very nice Britax booster), and some boosters cost *less* than $50.
 
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Kristin

Guest
Cosco Alpha Omega 3-in-1

I did read the link posted. In terms of the straps twisting, I talked to Evenflo yesterday about our Medallion V XL and why there were no strap covers. Because strap covers cause twisting. Our Medallion straps are never twisted. But in buying the AO this eliminates another carseat. My husband doesn't even want to buy another one after our son has outgrown the Medallion(up to 40lbs.). Anyway, I have an SUV(well 2 now just bought another one on Tuesday) and where the seats split(60/40) when a carseat is installed in the middle, the bottom side falls into that crack or where the split is. The AO and Medallion sit on a flat platform or base the is wider then then the seat. If you have other suggestions are Highback booster seats that have a flat square base bottom, please let me know. That's why we have the 2 seats we do. Yesterday, I ended up unthreading one side of the AO because the part you snap into the crotch piece was installed wrong and the strap was always twisted. Now I have to go back and remove the strap covers to prevent the upper straps from twisting. Please if you know of other base-bottomed highback booster seats, please let me know what will work in our vehicles(1999 Jeep Grande Cherokee Laredo and 1996 Chevrolet Suburban).

Kristin
 
C

Caviller

Guest
Alpha Omega

The AO is a good choice for many people. It is certainly safe if used properly. I think Ulrike just points out that there are some annoyances that may bother some parents, but not others.


Certainly, the AO can be cost effective as it can replace an infant, convertible and booster seat. On the other hand, it probablly isn't as nice as some of the top models in each category if you intended to buy it for just one or two of these categories.
 
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UlrikeDG

Guest
Right. I only brought it up because it had been recommended

to someone for whom there are probably better options, not to make you second guess your purchase. If it's working well for you, that's wonderful! :)
 
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Leo245

Guest
alpha omega

We now have two alpha omega seats. We bought our first one when our daughter got too long for the infant carrier and I personnaly think they work pretty well we have had to experiment on installation but for the most part we really like. Mly problem now however is that at 17months she is almost to tall for the todler seat any recomendations on a taller toddler seat?
 
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murphydog77

Guest
How do you feel she's too tall for the Alpha Omega?

To be honest, I've never heard of a child that young outgrowing the Alpha Omega. Are her shoulders above the highest harness settings? Are the tips of her ears above the top of the seat? Is she close to or over 40 lbs.? These are the things to look for when a toddler starts to outgrow a forward-facing seat. They are different than the requirements for a rear-facing child.

One thing you can look at is the table with car seat measurements on it. It's found at (Carseat Data website closed - link broken) . Look for the "Common Car Seat Measurements" link and click on it. You can compare harness slot heights and the heights of the car seats there.

Heather
 

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