Convertible Car Seat Summary
More and more parents are choosing to buy convertible car seats over infant car seats these days, and there are two main reasons why; lifespan and money savings.
The reason to choose a convertible car seat over an Infant car seat should not be based purely on price alone, however given that you will need to purchase a number of car-seats, it is an option with pro’s and cons to be considered before making a final decision.
Infant Car Seats
Infant car seats (sometimes call baby capsules) tend to be more convenient when transporting a newborn baby around. The car seat easily clicks into a base, making it much easier and quicker to get the baby in and out of your car. A second base means that grand parents can easily and safely take the grand children on drive or pick them up from day care. Another seemingly convenient aspect to infant car seats is the fact that they can be carried. One of the main reasons in choosing a baby capsule over a convertible child restraint is that many of the infant car seats can easily snap into prams with the use of a suitable adapter.
Some parents may consider it a problem, but infant car seats can only face rearwards. An A1 type child restraint can be rear facing to approximately 6 months of age, an A2 type child restraint can be rear facing until 12 months of age. Many parents also find that as their baby gets bigger, it becomes much more difficult to carry them around. This leaves a lot of parents only using their infant car seat for the first six or seven months.
A huge advantage of the Infant car seat may the that you only need a second base and your parents can easily pick up the children from day care. Check out our reviews of Child restraints and baby capsules.
Advantages Convertible Car Seat
Convertible car seats on the other hand are designed to rear-face and forward-face. They can be used from birth to approximately four years of age (50th percentile), so they are much more practical and cost-effective. Most convertible car seats can rear-face until your child is 12 months of age, however the Infa Kompressor height markers are that of a 24 month child.
The downside to using a convertible child restraint, is that they must stay secured in the car at all times and you can’t remove the child restraint and carry the child around in the child restraint.
All things considers, the long-term benefits of convertible child restraints far exceed the benefits and convenience of infant car seats.