Graco Infant Safeseat Step 1: Get the most bang for your buck!
Written: Jan 20 '07 (Updated Apr 09 '09)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
| Durability: |
 |
|
| Ease of Use: |
 |
|
|
Pros: Longevity of use (especially for big babies), convenience
Cons: Heavier and larger than other infant seats, fabric doesn't breathe well, straps can twist.
The Bottom Line: This seat's great features really distinguish it from the rest of the pack and Consumer Reports has retracted the test results that raised some doubt about its safety.
|
|
|
| smiles33's Full Review: Graco Safeseat Step 1 Fusion Model |
You may have seen the hype already. This is the only infant carseat that accommodates babies up to 30 pounds and 32" long. But why is that important, relevant, or special? Let me count the ways (before I delve into the drawbacks of this model).
The biggest reason why parents would consider purchasing this model?
Big babies need a seat like this so they can take advantage of the special features of infant seats. But even smaller babies benefit greatly from using it until they reach the length and weight limits.
My 8 month old daughter has consistently been longer and heavier than 75 - 97% of babies her age since her 3 month well-baby visit. I had no idea we would have such a large baby, but fortunately had registered for this seat after much research because I liked how it could accommodate babies for a longer period than other seats. In addition, I felt it seemed like a "good deal" in terms of the price versus value. There are certainly other infant seats with similar features, but they do not have the same longevity and some are much more expensive.
For example, Graco's Snugride model, one of the most popular infant seats on the market before the recent introduction of the SafeSeat, is highly rated and recommended in its own right. It's also cheaper than the Safeseat and can often be found for under $80. However, that seat can only accommodate babies up to 22 pounds and 29 inches.
We had friends with large babies that had to be moved from the infant seat to a full-sized carseat at just 4 months or so. Now that we have a large baby, I’m even more thankful we have the Safeseat because we have been able to benefit from the special features of infant carseats for 8 months now, instead of prematurely moving up to the full-sized seats.
Why does this matter?
1. Infant seats allow sleeping babies to remain undisturbed as you go about your errands.
At 4 months, many babies are still sleeping a lot during the daytime and many of them fall asleep in cars. If you’re the kind of parent who has to run errands (or just wants to get out of the house!), you’ll be grateful for the convenience of infant seats. Most new parents hate waking up babies, so we appreciate the option of carefully lifting the sleeping baby in her infant carseat and bringing them into the house/grocery store/mall.
Unlike an infant seat with its snap-in base, a full-sized carseat can't be easily removed from the car with the baby still sleeping. This means one must sit in the car until the baby wakes up unless you don't mind waking the baby up as you unharness her and lift her out of her big carseat.
The one drawback here is that with the Safeseat model, you'll find that it may be slightly more awkward removing your sleeping baby because it's a larger seat and heavier than other infant seats. I haven't had experience with other infant seats so I don't have a problem with it. However, knowing that the Safeseat (not including the base, which you'd never lift) is 2.5 pounds heavier than the Snugride, almost 1.5" wider, and almost 8" higher, it certainly would be more challenging for moms accustomed to the Snugride.
2. Infant seats provide a safe place for your baby even when you leave your car.
The other advantage of infant seats is that you have somewhere to keep your baby outside of the car as you run errands, especially for those that are large enough for a full-sized seat but cannot yet sit up on her own. Otherwise, you’re holding your baby as you eat at a restaurant or pulling the stroller in and out of your car as you run your errands.
Again, because the Graco Safeseat is very large, it doesn’t fit well into small grocery carts. Also, while you are not supposed to place infant seats balanced on the seating area of grocery carts, many parents do with other infant seats. The Safeseat is too large to safely place it there so you must place it in the main section of the cart, leaving little room for groceries. I often found myself saving the big grocery trips for when I could leave my baby at home with my husband or while she was at daycare.
3. The sunshade on infant seats are invaluable in sunny locales.
Another reason to appreciate the longevity of the Safeseat for babies is that it comes with a sunshade, whose value can’t be underestimated in sunny locales. Babies under 6 months are not supposed to have sunblock applied, which means the sunshade on infant seats is really critical. Full-sized seats don't have sunshades, so parents need to rely on those flimsy window shades, sunglasses/hats, or expensive professional window tinting.
My commute is westbound in the morning and then eastbound in the evening, which means my daughter always has sun in her face. We may have to invest in professional window tinting once she outgrows the Safeseat.
4. Extra bases means your infant seat can be used in multiple cars.
Another major convenience of using infant seats is the fact that you can buy an extra base for your second car and use the infant seat there. Once the base is properly installed, you merely “click” your infant seat in, which takes just seconds. After your child moves into a full-sized seat, you will need a full-sized seat in EVERY car that she rides unless you’re willing to uninstall and install each time you move her to a different car. That can be a safety risk if you don’t take the time to properly install it each time. As you may have heard, carseats are notoriously difficult to install and certified safety inspectors often find mistakes even after diligent parents have read and re-read directions.
Thus, for $50 per base for the Safeseat (FYI, you can't use the cheaper Snugride bases because the Safeseat won't fit), you get to use your infant seat in other cars with minimal inconvenience. A friend of mine bought 2 extra bases: one for her mother (who watches her grandson a few times a week) and one for her husband’s car. This delays the big expense of purchasing several full-sized carseats for more than 1 car. It may save you money if your child no longer rides in multiple cars once she is older, but in most cases it merely gives you more time to save up for those big purchases.
5. The portability of infant seats comes in handy during cold winters/hot summers as they don’t have to be left in extreme temperatures.
Finally, one more benefit associated with the infant car seat is the ease of transport during the winter/summer. I don’t face this issue as much here in California as we have fairly moderate year-round temperatures (though we have had temperatures in the 30s lately!), but I know other parents are grateful for the option of harnessing your baby inside your warm/cool house rather than taking her out to the cold car with its cold carseat or hot car with its hot carseat.
Other positive considerations
This model was very easy to install. While my VW Passat has LATCH in its outboard positions, I wanted a center seat install so I used the seatbelt lock-offs. I read and re-read the directions and also googled general infant seat installation instructions on-line (where I learned to actually kneel on the base while I pulled the seatbelts to get an even tighter fit). The base also has a handy knob to adjust the recline, in case your car has bench seats that are angled too much or too little.
The most important "rule" I've read is that the safest car seat is one that is correctly installed, correctly used (e.g., your baby is harnessed without twisted straps or too loosely), and used every time your baby is in a car. I had this seat professionally inspected by a certified technician and the only mistake I made was in pulling the seatbelt so it locked (which caused the infant seat to pull to one side).
Finally, the Fusion model (only available at Babies R Us/Toys R Us) comes with a cold weather boot that goes over your baby's feet. We never used that as I found it more of a hassle than just draping a blanket over her.
General Drawbacks:
1. The one factor that may persuade some parents to avoid this model is the fact that Consumer Reports’ latest testing showed that this model failed its crash tests at higher speeds, EVEN THOUGH THEY LATER RETRACTED THEIR FINDINGS.
Consumer Reports released a "sneak peek" at their test results of infant seats in early January that claimed only 2 infant seats (not including the Graco Safeseat) passed their more rigorous crash tests, which were at speeds above the government crash tests for infant seats. CR decided to increase the speed of the frontal crash test and institute a new side-impact crash test for infant seats that are the same standards used to test cars.
However, CR JUST withdrew those results two days ago after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration tried to replicate the tests and found that "some of the crash tests were conducted under conditions that represent being struck at more than 70 mph."
So here's what you need to know: the Safeseat model passed the minimum standards set by the government and CR's tests are being re-evaluated. I'm sure there will be some parents who ONLY heard about the preliminary results that were SPLASHED across every newspaper and moms' message board across the country.
When the news first broke about all but 2 infant seats failing the new tests, there was a great deal of controversy on this issue among members of various message boards, including the one published by Debbie and Alan Fields, the authors of Baby Bargains (a book I highly recommend as it's based on feedback from parents and not just lab testing of baby gear).
In short, some say that government tests are sufficient to prove the seats safe and that Consumer Reports was preying upon the fears of parents (especially because the magazine did not release detailed information about HOW seats failed), while others were alarmed by the results and rushing to buy one of the 2 models that passed.
I carefully read all the varying opinions and statements out there (including one released by the manufacturers’ association) and decided that while we are not tossing our Safeseat to the curb, I was going to upgrade early to a full-size seat for my primary car since we are on the freeway for at least 90 minutes a day. The fact that Consumer Reports didn’t provide more details on how the Safeseat failed made me wary.
Now that the results have been retracted, I will be more confident about having my daughter in the Safeseat, but I already went out and bought a full-sized seat. It's fortunate that I know we can eventually use this, but I feel terrible for parents of particularly small babies who went out and bought one of the 2 models that passed the tests and now have 2 infant seats.
2.The weight is almost unbearable as your baby gets over 20 pounds
I consider myself a somewhat strong woman, but I find it difficult to carry my nearly 22 pound baby in a 10 pound infant seat (making it almost 32 pounds!) more than 30 feet. Thus, lately, I only lift her in the infant seat when she’s fast asleep. I normally can lift 30 pounds fine, but the infant seat is wide and somewhat awkward to carry compared to hand weights. I usually carry it with two hands, one on the handle and one on an edge of the carseat.
3. Some complain it doesn’t fit well in their cars.
I drive a VW Passat sedan and have had no complaints about the fit. My husband’s Honda Pilot is even roomier, so that makes it much more comfortable when an adult passenger sits in the back with the carseat. But I’m sure there are certainly valid complaints about the footprint of this infant seat. I’m about 5’ 8" so I imagine any drivers and front-seat passengers that are taller than me and require more legroom will find it near impossible because the infant seat does require more clearance than smaller models.
4. The fabric isn’t breathable.
I really liked this color scheme when I first saw it. It's a silver/blue/green combination and looks nicer than the floral/pastel carseat covers I've seen on other models.
However, as some parents have pointed out, the fabric on these models is not very “breathable.” The metallic like sheen of the fabric apparently has caused some babies to become covered in sweat. I didn’t find a problem with that, even in the hot California summer, but noticed it was actually a nice benefit this winter as my daughter’s back is warm when I remove her.
5. The 5 point harness system straps often twist and must be adjusted each time you secure your child.
This is an inconvenience, but I don't consider it a major drawback. Each time I am about to secure my daughter in the seat, I make sure the straps are properly positioned and try to line them up and stretch the buckles wide to the sides so they stay in the right position as I slip my daughter in. I admit it's an annoyance to set it all up and then realize that one or both of the straps have slipped underneath her.
Final Assessment
Before the Consumer Reports test results were released, I would have highly recommended this seat to every parent. They have since retracted their test results, but I still have a few reservations because failing at 70 mph is still a concern since I do drive on the freeways. I understand that is a more rigorous crash test than required, but if 2 models passed, then I am more inclined to consider those models.
Nonetheless, we still plan to save this seat for our next child and see whether there will be a release of additional information when Consumer Reports repeats the testing (assuming they do). As some have pointed out, Consumer Reports’ testing sometimes is unrealistic and they do not evaluate baby gear as well as they do cars or refrigerators. Thus, I’ll be watching and waiting to see how the Safeseat fares in future evaluations.
April 9, 2009 update:
We're expecting our second daughter in June and definitely plan to re-use this car seat for all the same reasons that we initially purchased it. The SafeSeat has been re-named the Snugride 32, but it continues to be a very versatile and safe seat. In the meantime, our eldest daughter moved from this seat to a Britax Boulevard and a Britax Regent.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 150
Age Range of Child: 0 to 12 Months
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
smiles33
|
 in Education, Kids & Family |
 in Books |
 - Top 1000 |
|
Reviews written: 333
Trusted by: 197 members
About Me:
Feverish baby vomited on me AFTER I changed to dry-clean-only work clothes. Murphy's Law.
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.