Britax Frontier 85
We review so many car seats on MyBaby.org that we’ve become pretty familiar with all of them. The moms on our Mom’s Panel have been very generous in sharing their experiences and we’ve done our own testing and evaluations as well before coming up with our Top Ten lists.
However, there are some brands that have more than one model on our list of favorites or sometimes we have two brands that seem to be tied in the eyes of our moms. In those cases, it can be hard for moms to decide between the two. So, we’ve decided to offer a few side-by-side comparisons of these popular car seats, to make it easier for you to make an informed buying decision.
Here, we’re comparing the Britax Frontier vs. Graco Nautilus 3-in-1. They’re both extremely popular car seats, both with the general public and our Mom’s Panel.
For the most part, we’ll be comparing the two models on these points:
- Safety ratings and safety features
- Ease of use
- Cost
When there are other features that really go into our decision of one car seat over the other, we’ll let you know about those, too. Sometimes it’s little extras that really make a difference between one car seat and another.
Safety Features
• Both car seats are highly rated for safety, but the Britax Frontier has several patented safety features that the Graco Nautilus does not. The first is the Versa-Tether system, which anchors the top of the seat at two points to minimize forward motion. The Britax Frontier also has the Harness Ultra-Guard System, which reduces forward head movement and the optional SecureGuard attachment to prevent your child from slipping under the lap belt when you’re using the frontier as a booster.
• That being said, the Graco Nautilus has been crash-tested very extensively and gets consistently high safety ratings.
• The Graco Nautilus is similar to the Britax Frontier in offering an excellent five point harness as well as extra protection materials in the event of a side impact.
• The Graco Nautilus is rated up to 100 pounds, but the Britax Frontier is rated up to 125 pounds, which means your child can be safely secured in a car seat for quite a bit longer than with the Graco Nautilus.
Ease of Use
• Both car seats have some excellent design features that make them very user friendly.
• The Britax Frontier has ten harness height positions and three buckle positions. The Graco Nautilus only has two buckle positions and three harness height positions. This may make a serious difference for your toddler and small child, although it won’t be an issue when used as a backless booster.
• Both seats allow you to adjust the shoulder straps without rethreading, but our Moms report that the Britax makes it a lot easier.
• The Britax Frontier is narrower than the Graco Nautilus, which may make it easier to use for those of you with limited space.
Cost
• There is quite a price difference between the Britax Frontier vs. Graco Nautilus 3-in-1. The Britax usually runs about $215-220, while the Graco can be found for around $135-145. One thought about the price difference, though, is that the Britax could last you quite a bit longer, since it’s rated up to 125 pounds.
Our Final Conclusion
Both of these car seats are excellent products for safety and value. If you’re on a very tight budget, you certainly won’t go wrong by purchasing the Graco Nautilus. However, when comparing Britax Frontier vs. Graco Nautilus 3-in-1, we have to go with the Britax Frontier because of all of the extra safety features and the 125 pound rating.
The best prices we’ve seen for the Britax Frontier are on Amazon, where you can often find it as low as $213, including free shipping. That’s a much better deal than you’ll get from the superstores or the baby department stores.
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(Graco Snugride 35)
We review so many car seats on MyBaby.org that we’ve become pretty familiar with all of them. The moms on our Mom’s Panel have been very generous in sharing their experiences and we’ve done our own testing and evaluations as well before coming up with our Top Ten lists.
However, there are some brands that have more than one model on our list of favorites or sometimes we have two brands that seem to be tied in the eyes of our moms. In those cases, it can be hard for moms to decide between the two. So, we’ve decided to offer a few side-by-side comparisons of these popular car seats, to make it easier for you to make an informed buying decision.
For the most part, we’ll be comparing the two models on these points:
- Safety ratings and safety features
- Ease of use
- Cost
When there are other features that really go into our decision of one car seat over the other, we’ll let you know about those, too. Sometimes it’s little extras that really make a difference between one car seat and another.
Here, we’re comparing two of the most popular models of infant car seats, the Graco Snugride vs. Chicco KeyFit 30. Both made it to our Top Ten List this year and both are favorites with both our Mom’s Panel and our readers. If you’re having trouble deciding between the two, this should help!
Safety Features and Safety Ratings
• Both the Graco Snugride and the Chicco KeyFit have been crash-tested for side impacts, but the Graco Snugride does have additional foam within the seat to absorb energy from a side impact before it reaches your baby.
• Both seats have integrated lock-offs so that you don’t have to mess with locking clips.
• Both car seats have very convenient level adjusters that you adjust by turning a knob, though they differ slightly in design.
• Both have five point harnesses that are easily adjusted without having to rethread the straps.
• In comparing the Graco Snugride vs. Chicco KeyFit 30, one safety feature stands out: The Snugride is rated for up to 35 pounds, which means most children can be rear-facing for a year or even more. The Chicco is only rated to 30 pounds. This should be considered carefully, as rear-facing is still the safest position for your baby.
Ease of Use
• As we’ve already said, the ease of installation and the ease of adjusting the harness are pretty much identical between the Graco Snugride vs. Chicco KeyFit 30.
• The Graco Snugride fits into any Graco stroller or baby swing, which is a serious plus when you have a newborn. The Chicco KeyFit 30 works with a few models of Chicco strollers, but does not work with any swings.
• The Graco Snugride is significantly lighter than the Chicco KeyFit. This should be factored in to your decision if you think you’ll have to carry your baby in the car seat any significant amount.
Cost
The pricing of these two car seats is one of the reasons so many Moms find themselves torn between the two. Both are usually available on Amazon for $155 and with free shipping. The one difference you may want to factor in with the pricing issue is what kind of stroller you have or want to buy. Your stroller may not work well with an infant unless you’re attaching your infant car seat to it.
Conclusions
All things considered, we ended up deciding that the fact that the Graco Snugride is rated up to 35 pounds and is also usable with any Graco baby swing or stroller really make it the best value when comparing the Graco Snugride vs. Chicco KeyFit 30. The Chicco is a wonderful car seat, but we think that between the two, the Graco is a better choice.
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At MyBaby.org, we do a lot of side-by-side comparisons between baby car seats. We understand that choosing the best car seat for your baby can be really confusing and stressful. When your choice comes down to two different brands that stress can go up; but what if you’ve narrowed it down to a specific brand and model, but the company offers more than one variation of that model? That gets really confusing and we’ve had a lot of readers write to us about just this situation with trying to choose between the Graco Snugride 32 vs. 35.
We’re huge fans of Graco; in fact, two of Graco’s car seats made it onto our Top Ten List this year and for good reason. Graco makes excellent car seats that consistently score very high on safety tests and they offer these car seats at an excellent value.
We weren’t really sure ourselves what the differences were on the Graco Snugride 32 vs. 35, so we decided to do a comparison of the two. We looked at the safety features, the design, the ease of use and the price, to see if there really was any difference between the two.
Here’s what we found out.
• The Graco Snugride 32 is rated as a rear-facing infant car seat up to 32 pounds and 32 inches tall.
• The Graco Snugride 35 is rated as a rear-facing infant car seat up to 35 pounds and 32 inches tall.
***This is the only design difference between the two seats!***
• Both models have the same safety features that Graco has been known for forever.
• Both have been extensively tested and highly rated for side impact protection.
• Both have the LATCH system for the base and the adjustable leveling knob to ensure that the base is installed properly.
• The seats have the same five point harness with front strap adjustment for the shoulder straps.
So if the only difference is the weight rating, is three pounds enough to make the Snugride 35 any better?
That depends on the size of your child.
If this is your first child, you probably have no idea when he or she is going to hit 32 inches or 32 pounds. However, if you have other children, you might have a better idea. The truth is, your child may outgrow the height restriction before they outgrow the weight restriction, or vice versa.
If you go with the Snugride 32 because your children are petite in weight, they may still become too tall to ride safely in the Snugride 32.
Get Some Extra Leeway and Still Save Money
The Graco Snugride 35 is actually about $40 cheaper than the Snugride 32(please see our warning about that a bit further on), so when comparing the Graco Snugride 32 vs. 35, it just makes sense to go with the Snugride 35. Your child may get too tall for the seat before they hit 35 pounds, but at least you have that extra leeway. Since you’ll need to move up to a convertible car seat anyway, if the Snugride 32 was significantly cheaper than the Snugride 35, we would say go with the Snugride 32, save some money and just move up to the convertible seat a little earlier if necessary.
An Important Note about the Pricing!!!
One thing we noticed when comparing the Graco Snugride 32 vs. 35 on pricing is that on Amazon, the first Snugride 35 search result is one sold without the base.
This one sells for $155, but you’ll have to pay another $50 for the base, which makes it about $205.
This is still cheaper than the Snugride 32, which we saw for $240. It costs more because it’s harder to find than the 35, since it’s an older model. Also, you can buy the Graco stroller frame that fits this car seat, plus the car seat base and the car seat itself, for about $275. Why pay $240 for the seat and base alone, when for the extra $35, you can take the baby from the car to the stroller without taking them out of the seat? You’re probably planning on buying a stroller anyway, and you can’t find one for less than $35.
Here’s a picture of the bundle deal we saw last week:
Car Seat plus base plus stroller = Good Deal!
You can check out the bundle package we saw here on Amazon. If they still have that deal available, we say grab it quick.
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At MyBaby.org, we do a lot of comparisons between different brands and models of car seats and other baby equipment, as well as compiling our Top Ten Lists each year. While we don’t sell any of these products, we do try to provide input from our Mom’s Panel and our readers to help other moms make the best buying decisions.
Choosing a car Seat Can Be Stressful
As moms, we know that a car seat is probably the most important purchase we make for our babies. No matter how much or how little we are able to spend, we need to know that we have put our child into the safest car seat we possibly could.
We know that very often this means being torn between two different brands. It can get very confusing, with all of the information available and all of the online reviews to sort through. Even though we normally compare specific models of car seats, we decided to do some comparisons between the different brand names, to help moms narrow down their choices.
In this case, we’re comparing two very popular brands, Chicco vs. Graco.
They’re Both Excellent, But Which is Better?
First of all, we have to tell you upfront that we love both of these companies. They are both longtime favorites among our Mom’s Panel members and our readers. Both companies have car seats on our Top Ten Car Seat List this year, so we can tell you that both offer a safe, high-quality car seat for your baby.
BUT, does one offer a better product than the other, when comparing Chicco vs. Graco overall?
Here’s what we found, when comparing the two brands on safety features, ease of use and value.
Safety Features of Chicco vs. Graco
• The Chicco KeyFit 30 is Chicco’s infant car seat model. It is designed with integrated lock-offs so you can install the car seat safely without locking clips. It also has bubble levels on both sides to check the installation, as well as spring assisted leveling to correct the angle.
• The Graco MyRide and Snugride models (their two most popular infant car seats) also have built in lock-offs and have one-hand dial adjustments for leveling.
• The Chicco KeyFit 30 has extra foam for protection against impact injury, but the Graco Snugride and MyRide models have more EPS foam protection on the sides than does the Chicco model. Both of the Graco seats have undergone extensive crash testing specifically for side impact collisions.
• The Chicco KeyFit is rated as a rear-facing infant car seat from 4 pounds to 30 pounds. After that, you’ll need to get a convertible car seat.
• The Graco Snugride is rated for rear-facing from 5 pounds to 35 pounds, and the Graco MyRide is rated as rear-facing from 5 pounds to 40 pounds, but will also accommodate your child up to 65 pounds in the forward facing position.
Ease of Use
• Both Chicco and Graco come with a five-point harness that can be adjusted for fit from the front without rethreading the shoulder straps.
• Both brands are known for accurate and safe installation without a lot of frustration or headaches, although some moms found the Chicco a bit more complicated.
• The Chicco fits a few models of Chicco strollers, but the Graco infant car seats are compatible with all of Graco’s strollers, plus you can get an adapter to make them compatible with some of the other brands of stroller. That’s a big plus.
• The Graco models have handlebars that are more ergonomically designed and overall have gotten better votes as far as comfort when you’re carrying them around.
Value
• The Chicco KeyFit 30 runs around $215 once you add the base (usually sold separately) while the Graco Snugride runs $205 including the base and the Graco MyRide runs only about $129.
• Considering the fact that the Graco MyRide will hold your baby up to 65 pounds, as an infant car seat it wins hands down for value. Between the Chicco KeyFit 30 and the Graco Snugride 35, you get five more pounds of use for ten dollars less with the Graco.
So What is Our Final Decision?
Because the Graco seats will work with any Graco stroller and the MyRide will work for up to 65 pounds, we think that Graco wins all the way on value.
As far as ease of use, we think the stroller compatibility and the fact that the Graco seats are easier to carry makes Graco the better choice again.
On the matter of safety, from what we can tell, the Graco seats have been tested more extensively and rated more highly for side impact safety, so between the two brands, we’d have to go with Graco.
Like we’ve said at the beginning, we really like and trust both of these brands. However, in a side to side comparison, we think Graco is the clear choice.
We hope this article has been helpful for you and we’d like to think it’ll make your buying decision easier. Just remember that safety is your first priority and you need to feel at peace with your decision, regardless of what we or anyone else suggests.
Where can you find the best price?
If you want to shop around for a Graco car seat, we highly recommend going with Amazon. We usually find the lowest prices there, and the free shipping is a definite plus. Most of the time, Amazon’s prices are lower than at Toys R Us or Babies R Us.
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At MyBaby.org, we do a lot of comparisons between different brands and models of car seats and other baby equipment, as well as compiling our Top Ten Lists each year. While we don’t sell any of these products, we do try to provide input from our Mom’s Panel and our readers to help other moms make the best buying decisions.
Choosing a car Seat Can Be Stressful
As moms, we know that a car seat is probably the most important purchase we make for our babies. No matter how much or how little we are able to spend, we need to know that we have put our child into the safest car seat we possibly could.
We know that very often this means being torn between two different brands. It can get very confusing, with all of the information available and all of the online reviews to sort through. Even though we normally compare specific models of car seats, we decided to do some comparisons between the different brand names, to help moms narrow down their choices.
Here, we compare two extremely popular brands of car seats, the Recaro vs. Britax. Britax has had an awesome reputation for years as one of the best car seat and stroller manufacturers around and Recaro has been getting a great deal of attention lately as a higher-end contender. Because their style and price range are very similar, moms often find themselves comparing the two. For the most part, we used the Recaro PRORide and the Britax Frontier 85 for the evaluation, as they are the two models most often compared between the two brands.
To evaluate them side by side, we looked primarily at
- Safety Features and Safety Ratings
- Ease of Use
- Cost and Value
Comparing Recaro vs. Britax, here is what we found:
Safety
• Recaro is a car seat designer and manufacturer for professional race cars, and we do like the thought that went into the engineering. The Recaro seats are also very extensively crash-tested.
• One of the key safety features of the Recaro seats is the wings at either side of the child’s head to add extra protection. However, we’ve had several moms say that these were difficult to adjust properly for shorter children and also that they decreased the parent’s ability to see the child when in rear-facing mode.
• Britax is known for their high safety ratings and several of their famous safety features are very well-regarded, including their patented Versa-Tether feature that anchors the top of the car seat in two places to minimize dangerous forward pitching in an impact. The company also has an optional Secure-Guard attachment to use in booster mode. This attachment prevents what’s called submarining-when the child slips underneath the lap belt in an accident or sudden stop.
• The Recaro car seat accommodates a child up to 90 pounds using the five point harness and up to 120 pounds in the booster mode, which is the highest we’ve ever seen, especially for the five point harness.
• The Britax Frontier 85 fits children up to 85 pounds in the five point harness and up to 120 pounds in the booster mode.
Ease of Use
• Like we said earlier, some moms have expressed dissatisfaction with the wings on the Recaro, saying that it not only impedes their vision, but the child’s.
• The Recaro is also a very tall and wide seat, so you may have trouble fitting it in a sedan or smaller sized car.
• On the other hand, we know of several moms who have more than one Frontier installed in the back seat without problems, and the Britax is narrower than the Recaro as shorter.
• The Recaro installs very solidly, but the installation itself can be difficult. This could be an issue for you if you need to switch the seat from one car to another fairly often.
• The Britax is well-known for being a quick install and there are several videos that will guide you through it.
• Both brands offer front shoulder strap adjustment, but the Recaro is known to tangle quite easily.
Cost and Value
• The Recaro convertible seats that we looked at ran around $220-230. The Britax models ran from $212-$225, so they’re very close in price.
• Theoretically, the Recaro could last you longer, but we don’t think five pounds makes all that much difference in the 80-90 pound range. Most kids will be too tall for the harness at that point anyway.
• For the price, the Britax fabrics wick better, are easier to clean, and seem to have a lot more cushioning than the Recaro, which seems to be built for function more than comfort.
So Where Did That Leave Our Final Decision?
We ended up deciding that the Britax is a better car seat overall, especially since it seems easier to fit into most cars. No matter how great a car seat is, if you can’t install it properly in your car, it isn’t going to do you or your child any good. We also feel that Britax matches the safety features of the Recaro on all sides, even though the Recaro company’s background as a race car seat designer is intriguing.
Britax car seats tend to be really overpriced in the brick and mortar stores. We suggest you shop Amazon first, as they have the best prices we’ve seen on Britax products. With the free shipping, it works out to a much better deal.
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At MyBaby.org, we do a lot of comparisons between different brands and models of car seats and other baby equipment, as well as compiling our Top Ten Lists each year. While we don’t sell any of these products, we do try to provide input from our Mom’s Panel and our readers to help other moms make the best buying decisions.
Choosing a car Seat Can Be Stressful
As moms, we know that a car seat is probably the most important purchase we make for our babies. No matter how much or how little we are able to spend, we need to know that we have put our child into the safest car seat we possibly could.
We know that very often this means being torn between two different brands. It can get very confusing, with all of the information available and all of the online reviews to sort through. Even though we normally compare specific models of car seats, we decided to do some comparisons between the different brand names, to help moms narrow down their choices.
Here, we compare two of the most popular brands of car seat in the world, Italy’s Peg Perego vs. Britax. Peg Perego has been one of the leading European car seat brands for years and is a hot item here in the US as well, thanks to being pictured with numerous celebrities and their babies. Britax has a longstanding fan base for its innovative design and is considered the hottest high-end car seat brand, although many of their models are quite moderate in price.
In comparing Peg Perego vs. Britax, we looked at both brands overall, but also compared the two most popular models of infant car seat, the Peg Perego Primo Viaggio and the Britax Chaperone, so we could give you a side by side comparison of their features.
The main things we considered when comparing Peg Pergo vs. Britax were:
- Safety features
- Ease of use
- Cost and overall value.
When looking at Peg Perego vs. Britax, here is what we found:
Safety
• The Perego car seats are all safety-tested and meet or exceed all safety ratings, but they don’t use any technology or design innovations that aren’t on most other car seats.
• The Britax car seats all come with several safety design features that are theirs alone: The HUGS system (Harness Ultra Guard System) provides extra protection against forward head motion. The Versa-Tether allows you to anchor the top of the car seat in two places, rather than just one. This reduces dangerous forward pitching in an impact or sudden stop. On the
Chaperone specifically, the anti-rebound bar you see in the above picture is an exclusive feature that prevents rotational movement in a front or rear collision.
• Both the Perego and the Britax offer side impact protection and built in lock-offs.
• Britax also features bottom LATCH connectors to keep the car’s seat belt from allowing more than one inch of movement in any direction during an impact.
Ease of Use
• Both Perego and Britax offer one-click, easy attachment to the car seat base, but many moms (both among our readers and in online reviews) say that the Peg Pergo base itself is very hard to install properly.
• The Perego car seats are a good deal heavier than the Britax models. If you’ll be carrying this seat quite a bit, rather than attaching it to a stroller, this could be a very big deal for you.
• Both brands have strollers that will work with their infant car seats.
• Both brands allow you to adjust the shoulder straps without rethreading.
• Both brands have seat cushions that are easy to clean, but we’ve heard reports that the Perego seat covers can get very hot, causing babies to sweat uncomfortably.
Cost and Overall Value
• Peg Perego car seats run between $225-300.
• Britax car seats run between $140-220.
• The Peg Perego infant car seats are rated for up to 30 pounds and 30 inches. They don’t offer a convertible car seat.
• The Britax infant car seats are rated up to 32 or 35 pounds for most models and they have convertible car seats that are rated from 5 pounds to 120 pounds.
• The quality of craftsmanship on these two brands seems pretty much the same to us, as far as construction and high quality materials.
So where does that leave our decision?
Overall, we decided that Britax’ safety features win out over Peg Perego, especially for the price. Perego can run you as much as $150 more than a Britax, but offers no extra safety features. Since our baby’s safety is the number one concern, we think Britax is the best car seat brand of the two. Since they offer equal quality in materials and the Britax seems to be easier to install and use, we think that makes Britax a no-brainer.
You can find Britax car seats in several brick and mortar stores, but we find that retail stores usually have quite a high mark-up because of the brand’s popularity.
The best prices can usually be found on Amazon and since shipping is free it makes sense to order online and pay less.
At MyBaby.org, we do a lot of comparisons between different brands and models of car seats and other baby equipment, as well as compiling our Top Ten Lists each year. While we don’t sell any of these products, we do try to provide input from our Mom’s Panel and our readers to help other moms make the best buying decisions.
Choosing a car Seat Can Be Stressful
As moms, we know that a car seat is probably the most important purchase we make for our babies. No matter how much or how little we are able to spend, we need to know that we have put our child into the safest car seat we possibly could.
We know that very often this means being torn between two different brands. It can get very confusing, with all of the information available and all of the online reviews to sort through. Even though we normally compare specific models of car seats, we decided to do some comparisons between the different brand names, to help moms narrow down their choices.
In this case, we’re comparing two extremely popular brands of car seats, Graco vs. Britax. While Britax is often thought of as a premium, or higher-end brand and Graco is usually considered more moderate, they have several car seat models that are priced about the same.
In comparing Graco vs. Britax overall, we looked primarily at:
- Safety features.
- Ease of use.
- Cost and value.
After these things were considered, we took into account the little extras of convenience or comfort that were especially notable in each brand. Please keep in mind that we looked at several models of each brand, including both infant car seats and convertible car seats.
As we compared Graco vs. Britax, here’s what we found out:
Safety Features
• While Graco car seats do meet and often exceed safety regulations, Britax has come up with several patented safety innovations, which we think speaks highly of the company’s commitment to safety design.
• Graco car seats do have extra energy absorbing foam within the frame to absorb the energy of an impact, but Britax has more of it and includes extra side impact protection in their seats as well.
• Both brands include integral lock-offs so that you don’t have to mess with locking clips, but the Britax also has their patented Versa-Tether, which anchors the top of the car seat in two places to reduce pitching forward.
• Most Britax seats allow you to use the five point harness and the rear-facing position longer than most Graco models do. Those are two very key features.
Ease of Use
• Both the Graco and the Britax models offer features that allow them to be installed safely and securely without a lot of frustration or time.
• Both the Graco and the Britax models allow you to easily change the shoulder strap tension and height very easily.
• Some Britax models offered more reclining options and shoulder strap positions than the equivalent Graco models.
Cost and Value
• You can spend as little as $100 for a Graco car seat and base, but those models generally have less ample cushioning and head rests and the fabric if of a lesser quality than their higher-priced models, which are quite plush.
• The Britax models seem to be pretty consistent in the quantity and quality of cushioning and fabric, from the lower-priced models to the higher-priced ones.
• You can find Britax models, such as the Frontier, that are rated for as high as 120 pounds, which exceeds Graco by quite a bit, unless you want to go with a backless booster. If your child is on the generous side, this may be a key point for you to consider, as you may end up having to get a larger seat than Graco offers.
So where did that leave our decision?
In the end, we really felt that in a side by side comparison on Graco vs. Britax, we had to go with Britax. The primary reasons were the safety design innovations of the Britax, the better quality materials overall and the longevity of the seat based on your child’s height and weight. That’s not to say that Graco is a substandard seat by any means-we’re huge fans. But if you have to choose one, we think Britax is the way to go.
You can find Britax car seats in brick and mortar stores, but they tend to be really overpriced compared to Amazon. We suggest you look there before you buy. They’re usually the lowest price and often include free shipping.
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At MyBaby.org, we do a lot of comparisons between different brands and models of car seats and other baby equipment, as well as compiling our Top Ten Lists each year. While we don’t sell any of these products, we do try to provide input from our Mom’s Panel and our readers to help other moms make the best buying decisions.
Choosing a car Seat Can Be Stressful
As moms, we know that a car seat is probably the most important purchase we make for our babies. No matter how much or how little we are able to spend, we need to know that we have put our child into the safest car seat we possibly could.
We know that very often this means being torn between two different brands. It can get very confusing, with all of the information available and all of the online reviews to sort through. Even though we normally compare specific models of car seats, we decided to do some comparisons between the different brand names, to help moms narrow down their choices.
In this case, we’re comparing Sunshine Kids vs. Britax, two very popular brands of car seats. Britax has always been extremely popular for its great design and innovative safety features. Sunshine Kids, particularly with their Radian model of convertible car seat, has been getting a lot of attention as a new up and comer.
In comparing Sunshine Kids vs. Britax, we looked first at:
- Safety features.
- Ease of Use
- Cost and overall value.
We then considered extra features and conveniences that might make a real difference in making a buying decision between one brand and the other.
As we compared Sunshine Kids vs. Britax, here’s what we found:
Safety
• Britax has several patented and very well-respected safety features. Among them is the Versa-Tether feature, which anchors the seat at two points at the top, to protect against forward motion. They also include the HUGS system or Harness Ultra Guard System, which reduces forward head movement.
• Sunshine Kids has the very neat Super Latch system, which allows you to install the seat without using the seat belt (in cars with the LATCH feature) all the way up to 80 pounds. Most car seats can only use the LATCH system up to about 40-48 pounds.
• The Sunshine Kids Radian XTSL has aluminum reinforced head support as well as adjustable head wings, which we think are excellent added safety features.
• Both brands offer extra side impact protection in their car seats.
• The Radian in particular impressed us with their voluntary crash testing by NCAP, which simulates very serious auto accidents.
Ease of Use
• This was a tough one for us, and a bit of a surprise as well. Both car seat brands are known for being easy to install and easy to adjust. However, there were a couple of things about the Radian in particular that impressed us.
• For one thing, the Radian will actually fold flat, so that you can carry it backpack style. This could be very handy indeed and we’ve never seen any other car seat that would fold this way.
• While both brands offer models that are on the narrow side, the Radian will fit as many as three car seats in the back seat of most cars. The Britax Frontier can also sit three abreast, but not in as many vehicles as the Radian.
Cost and Overall Value
• Sunshine Kids car seats that we used for this comparison ran from about $220-280, depending on the model. We didn’t include straight booster seat models in our comparison.
• The Britax models ran from $215-279.
• As you can see, the price range is very similar, however, there were more Britax models rated for smaller babies (5 lbs. and up) than there were Sunshine Kids models, which are geared more for 20 lbs. and up.
• There were also more models from Britax for larger children, as large as 120 lbs. The Radian only goes up to 65 pounds.
• Because of this, we would have to say that Britax rated better as an overall value.
So where did that leave our decision?
We think Sunshine Kids makes a great car seat. We were actually surprised at how well it fared against Britax, which is a longtime favorite. We almost feel that they tied in some ways, so we decided on the Britax based on a few factors.
For value, you’ll get longer use out of the Britax models, with very good safety and a user-friendly design. However, we feel that if you purchase a Sunshine Kids car seat, you will get a terrific and terrifically safe seat, but you’ll end up spending more in the long run, as you’ll have to buy another seat if you want your child to use one after 65 pounds.
You can find both brands at brick and mortar stores, but you’ll pay an arm and a leg for them. We suggest you go with Amazon instead. They’re prices are lower and the free shipping makes it a no brainer.
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At MyBaby.org, we do a lot of comparisons between different brands and models of car seats and other baby equipment, as well as compiling our Top Ten Lists each year. While we don’t sell any of these products, we do try to provide input from our Mom’s Panel and our readers to help other moms make the best buying decisions.
Choosing a car Seat Can Be Stressful
As moms, we know that a car seat is probably the most important purchase we make for our babies. No matter how much or how little we are able to spend, we need to know that we have put our child into the safest car seat we possibly could.
We know that very often this means being torn between two different brands. It can get very confusing, with all of the information available and all of the online reviews to sort through. Even though we normally compare specific models of car seats, we decided to do some comparisons between the different brand names, to help moms narrow down their choices.
In this case, we’re comparing two extremely popular brands of car seats, Britax vs. Evenflo. While Britax is often thought of as a premium, or higher-end brand and Evenflo is usually considered more moderate, they have several car seat models that are priced about the same.
For infant car seats, we compared the Evenflo Discovery and Embrace vs. the Britax Chaperone and B-Safe Infant car seats. For convertible car seats, we compared the Evenflo Triumph to the Britax Frontier and Roundabout car seats.
To compare Britax vs. Evenflo overall, we looked first of all at:
- Safety features and safety ratings
- Ease of use.
- Value
We then considered little extras that might make either brand stand out, not just against each other, but among car seats in general. Sometimes it’s those little extras that translate to added value when we’re making a buying decision.
So, when we compared Britax vs. Evenflo, here’s what we found out:
Safety Features and Safety Ratings
• While the Evenflo car seats meet or exceed the necessary safety regulations, they do not make use of any extra safety design features or added safety innovations.
• Britax, on the other hand, has two safety features in their design that really stand out. One is their patented SafeCell technology, which allows the car seat itself to absorb far more energy from an impact or sudden stop, before it reaches your child. The other is the extra foam surrounding your child that gives added protection from a side impact.
• Several of our moms and many online reviews state that the Evenflo car seats are more difficult to install and also more difficult to adjust as far as the shoulder straps. We feel that the difficulty in making sure the car seat is installed properly and that the shoulder straps are adjusted safely could really effect how safe your child is in the Evenflo seats.
• Britax is famous for being easy to install, with several level indicators to help you make certain the car seat is installed properly. The Britax car seats also come with integral lock-offs, so that you can secure the base without using locking clips.
Ease of Use
• Many of our Moms as well as online reviewers complain that the Evenflo car seats tend to be quite heavy. This isn’t an issue if you’re using a convertible seat that will be staying in the car, but if you’re carrying your baby in an infant car seat, it can be a very big deal.
• On the other hand, Britax infant car seats are often singled out as being very lightweight, with some weighing in at just over 9 pounds.
• Most Britax models have one-hand releases on their five-point harnesses and are regarded as being very easy to lock and unlock. A few of the Evenflo seats, especially the Embrace, can be really difficult to unlock.
• The Britax infant car seats are attachable to most Britax stroller frames, which is extremely handy. When you’re able to take your baby from the car to the stroller to the house without taking him out of the car seat, you really appreciate this convenience. The Evenflo infant seats are not attachable to any of their strollers. You may be able to find an adapter that will let you use the Evenflo car seat with another brand of stroller, but we didn’t see any.
Value
• The Evenflo infant car seats we looked at ran around $100, when you added in the base (sold separately for Evenflo). The Britax infant seats ran $140 to $180, including the base.
• With the convertible car seats, Evenflo prices ran from $65 to $145, while the Britax convertible seats ran $155 to $212.
• We think that, given the added safety features and versatility, Britax is a much better value, especially when comparing a higher-end Evenflo to a lower-end Britax.
• Some other things that affected our opinion of the value were the much better padding on the Britax models and the fact that many users have reported that the fabric used on the Evenflo car seats is scratchy and tends to get quite hot.
So What Is Our Final Decision?
We really had no trouble deciding that Britax car seats overall are a much better product than the Evenflo models. Even the lowest priced Britax has more safety features than the highest priced Evenflo, and safety is the highest priority.
The best prices that we found on Britax car seats were at Amazon. They were generally cheaper than other online retailers and significantly less than brick and mortar retailers. The free shipping really adds to that value, too.
]]>We bought this car seat when we were expecting our son, Drew, who is now three. Obviously, he outgrew it a long time ago, but we’re going to be using it for our daughter, who’s due in just a couple of weeks. We even took back a car seat we got at the baby shower and used the credit to get a new crib. We just really like the Chicco Keyfit. We know how to use it, 
we trust it and we don’t think we’d find a better one in this price range.
The Design of the Base is Terrific
One of the first things we loved when we got this car seat is the way the base is made. You adjust the latch right in the center of the base with one pull, so it’s easy to get it just right without having to pull the seat out and put it back in repeatedly. Another great thing about the base is that it has two bubble levels and they are very easy to read and make it easy to level the car seat for the maximum safety.
The base is also extremely sturdy and stable. We’ve never had an accident with it, but we did have to stop very quickly once when a car pulled out in front of us. We were going about 45mph and the car seat didn’t even budge.
I’ve seen so many car seats that flopped around in this type of situation. I’m sure that sometimes it’s due to improper installation, but it makes us feel very good knowing that this car seat base makes the car seat so secure.
Very Easy to Use with Our Stroller
When we got this car seat, we were inexperienced, first-time parents who had never even used a car seat before. It did take us a little bit of trial and error to figure out how to install it and how we were supposed to adjust it, but once we did, it was very easy to use. One of the reasons we love the Chicco Keyfit is that it fits right into our Britax stroller. We have the attachment that adapts the stroller to Chicco car seats and we love the ability to pop out the car seat and lock it into the stroller.
So Easy to Use This Car Seat
Along the same lines, this car seat is easy even for new parents to use. The harness straps don’t get so tangled up as I’ve seen other car seats do and they adjust very easily, without having to take the whole car seat apart. There’s an extra insert for newborns, to give them extra support and padding. It keeps the straps where they belong and gives them a more snug fit in the seat. We used it until Drew was almost nine months old, because it gave his head and neck extra support and seemed to keep him more comfortable.
One thing I really liked about the insert was that it was so easy to take off and clean. You just throw it in the washing machine and then hang it to dry. Our still looks almost new.
Cleans Up Very Well
The main part of the seat is also easy to remove and clean. I usually managed to wipe spills and smudges clean with some Formula 409 and a sponge, as long as I caught it quickly enough, but I have had to wash it in the washing machine several times. It removes fairly easily, but I have to admit it was frustrating trying to get it back on the first time. Since it was easy the next time and every time after that, I’d say my difficulty the first time was probably more me than the seat.
Like the infant insert, the seat cleans really well. I always washed it in cold water and Woolite, just to be safe and it looks very close to new even now.
A Very Comfortable Ride for Baby
I already mentioned that the infant insert was really comfortable for Drew, but even after we took it out, he was always very comfortable. Even though this isn’t one of the really high-priced car seats, the padding is very plush and it designed to keep kids comfortable. It’s also a lot softer to the touch than some of the other car seats I’ve touched or even Drew’s new convertible seat. I don’t know if it’s the same material that Chicco uses on all of their seats, but we really like it.
Fits in Small Cars, too
We were too inexperienced with car seats to think about the size of the car seat when we bought it, but it’s a great one for smaller cars. I had a Volkswagon Bug when Drew was born and then bought a Toyota Camry last year. This car seat fits very well in a smaller car. In the Volkswagon, my husband had plenty of room to move the seat back to give him leg room. I know several parents who had trouble with using their car seats in smaller cars, especially with a driver who was tall.
The fact that we can use this seat for our second baby really makes us feel that we got an awesome value for our money, besides having a really safe car seat that we, as parents, can trust.
Where Can I Get the Chicco Keyfit Car Seat and Base?
We got our Chicco Keyfit at Babies-R-Us for about $175 three years ago. I don’t know if they still carry it, but I know that Amazon has it for $179 and that comes with Amazon’s one year free return shipping. You won’t need it though. This is a terrific seat.
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