Oobr or Monterey?

So the new Oobr boosters are due to arrive in Canada the end of August.

I love the Paul Frank black with the skull and cross bones one.

Spec/safety wise the Oobr and the Monterey seem the same. I like the look of the Oobr more if I was just going with vanity.

But, at $350 dollars for a booster only how could I every possibly justify that??

I though the Monterey at $180 was expensive for just a booster.

Is there any reason other than looks that I should consider the Oobr over the Monterey when the time comes?

For me, it comes down to supporting a seemingly ethical Canadian company versus a somewhat confused and flighty US company.

Clek has never steered us wrong. They've never lied to us, propagated misinformation and rumours, or changed their tune multiple times on the same topic, giving multiple answers to the same question. Sunshine Kids has. And although the Monterey is a great product, I've always had this nagging feeling that Sunshine Kids has lied to the public on numerous occasions.

Clek has been excellent about releasing their products to the Canadian public in a timely fashion, and considering the Canadian population as a whole. Although I personally cannot comment on their production costs, I would expect that they were significantly higher than the (much larger production line) Sunshine Kids Monterey production costs. Hopefully Michael will comment.

When it comes to a carseat, sure I'm paying in part for a product..but mostly I'm paying for the ethics and research involved in producing the product. I'd say 50% of my consideration is price, and 50% is my confidence that the company who produced my product won't hesitate to fix any problems associated with it when and if they arise. When your Britax seat has a flaw, Britax fixes it (even after warranty).. when your Sunshine Kids product has a flaw, they try to convince you that it's all in your head and when that fails they replace it at your shipping costs...remember the short-strapped Radian fiasco?

I put Clek even above Britax for the time being. If they ever give us a harnessed seat, I'll re-evaluate that opinion...since the booster market, especially here in Canada where requirements are minimal, isn't nearly as difficult as the harnessed seat market.

We will be getting the Skurvy Oobr when it hits the market. Yes, it's unreasonably expensive...and if Clek disappoints with it, I'll change my tune.. but if it is everything we're expecting, I'm sure it will be worth every penny.

Perhaps I'm insane.

-Nicole, proud owner of an Olli, an Oto, and numerous Clek jackets.

QuassEE said:

For me, it comes down to supporting a seemingly ethical Canadian company versus a somewhat confused and flighty US company.

Perhaps I'm insane.

Click to expand...

:nod: j/k I'm waiting to see it to compare to the Monterey myself. I need 2 soon and to fork out $700 for 2 boosters, it would indeed be insane

All politics aside, the Monterey is a really nice booster. Is the Clek Oobr more cool? Sure. But if $180 fits your budget and $350+ doesn't, I wouldn't think twice about getting a Monterey and not the oober cool Oobr.

I actually have two Montereys.. so I'm not saying that people should get the Oobr over the Monterey, especially if it doesn't fit their budget..but I am saying that it's quite possible that the cost of the Oobr is justified based on company ethics and customer service.

When I get the Oobr, I'll do a side-by-side with the Monterey and a full review. Hopefully I can get one on the early side, so other people will be armed with that information.

-Nicole.

Thanks for the insight.

I will probably get one just because they are so cool!

I wasn't really concerned budget wise it was just hypothetical would you really shell out $350 for a booster?

I guess the answer really is yes, I just didn't want to appear crazy!!

QuassEE said:

I put Clek even above Britax for the time being. If they ever give us a harnessed seat, I'll re-evaluate that opinion...since the booster market, especially here in Canada where requirements are minimal, isn't nearly as difficult as the harnessed seat market.

Click to expand...

I thought I had read a while back that they were working on an infant seat or something. That was quite a long time ago (back when we were all talking about the Oobr for the first time).

*I* have had only good C/S experiences with Sunshine Kids, even on the short-strapped harness issue. My experiences with PJM Distributors, which is the wholesale part of TJs Kids, however, were horrible. Big surprise there, ha ha ha. Anyway, I know Russ d/n get much love on this board, but he was EXTREMELY helpful to me. Above and beyond.

*I* really love DD#1's Monterey (thanks to Nicole's loaner for training purposes). Really. I have to say, it fits DD#1 very well and it looks super cute beside DD#2's Brooke MA. I'm all about the cute. j/k.

I haven't seen the Oobr, but it would have to come with a butler for me to shell out $350 for a belt-positioning booster. That is nuts. I don't care if its a fair-trade, shade grown booster. Not happening in my house.

Of course, until recently, I had 10 seats for two kids. Don't even get me started on strollers or diaper bags....

bubbaray said:

I haven't seen the Oobr, but it would have to come with a butler for me to shell out $350 for a belt-positioning booster. That is nuts. I don't care if its a fair-trade, shade grown booster. Not happening in my house.

Of course, until recently, I had 10 seats for two kids. Don't even get me started on strollers or diaper bags....

Click to expand...

:ROTFLMAO:

My DH might leave me if I bought an Oobr. They're SO nice but $350? That's more than any of my seats are worth. I don't think I could justify spending $350 on seat #14 unless it could keep them harnessed until they're driving. But really, the Skurvy is incredibly cool. When Nicole gets hers I'm going to go over there and pet it.

bubbaray said:

*I* have had only good C/S experiences with Sunshine Kids, even on the short-strapped harness issue. My experiences with PJM Distributors, which is the wholesale part of TJs Kids, however, were horrible. Big surprise there, ha ha ha. Anyway, I know Russ d/n get much love on this board, but he was EXTREMELY helpful to me. Above and beyond.

*I* really love DD#1's Monterey (thanks to Nicole's loaner for training purposes). Really. I have to say, it fits DD#1 very well and it looks super cute beside DD#2's Brooke MA. I'm all about the cute. j/k.

I haven't seen the Oobr, but it would have to come with a butler for me to shell out $350 for a belt-positioning booster. That is nuts. I don't care if its a fair-trade, shade grown booster. Not happening in my house.

Of course, until recently, I had 10 seats for two kids. Don't even get me started on strollers or diaper bags....

Click to expand...

Great that you had a good experience. I didn't

I don't personally buy Sunshine Kids products because of that little annoying experience over the short harness episode and thank goodness for more options for me to choose from However, business is business and I don't discourage people from buying Radians if that is the best for them.

Now if the Monterey or other seats from SKJP come with a maid, a butler, a chauffeur, and the whole nine yard, then I should buy a few SKJP seats and toss my personal bias out the window LOL. I sure can use some of those helping hands around here

I put in my pre-order today!!