Combi Avatar

[MommyH]

Has anyone used the Combi Avatar? Did you like it? If not, what were the problems with it.

Thanks,
Heather

[Joolsplus2]

This seat has not caught on yet, I'm not sure exactly why, I've heard it's nice, but really heavy and bulky. If you want to consider it, your best bet is to find it at a local better baby store, and play with it, see if it fits in your car, and fits your baby. If you take the plunge and order one online, be sure to order from a place with a good return policy, just in case. If I knew anyone who had actually bought one, I'd share the review in a heartbeat, but so far everyone I know has only played with it in the store and, "nice but bulky" is the only report I've gotten, lol.

Maybe there's someone lurking here who owns one and will chime in to share...or at least someone who's played with one in the store!

:)
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 2 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx

[murphydog77]

Hi Heather. I had a chance to play with one for about 20 minutes last night and here are my observations.

First, it doesn't have EPS foam. The foam it has looks a lot like the comfort foam on the Roundabout, but the web site says that it's energy absorbing. I was concerned that it's much narrower through the shoulders than the Roundabout, but when I compared the shells, they were similar in width (didn't have a tape measure, though). There's just so much padding in the cover of the Avatar that it makes it look very narrow.

The base swivels, but more for getting the proper recline for the direction the seat is facing than for installation help (lower on one side for forward-facing to make the seat more upright--hard to describe). The seat has built in lockoffs that looked fairly sturdy and were built directly into the belt paths (i.e. under baby's thighs, not on side of seat). You definitely have to partially remove the cover to install it rear-facing. There's a flap to lift for forward-facing. Installing it forward-facing is going to be a bear for anyone who tries. The belt path is tiny--I could barely get my hand into it. I guess you're supposed to use the lift-up flap mostly. BUT, the ff belt path is under the child's bum. I think this will help get a tight install with the seat.

The bottom of the base is smooth and roundish. It has a circle of non-slip rubber on the bottom, but it rubs off easily and I'd be concerned that it would melt onto a vehicle seat in hot weather.

The cover was nice and covered the entire seat without being easily pulled off. There's a pouch on the side for toys, I guess, and a tether pouch a la Britax. I love all the extra padding that comes on the seat for newborns, though it threads onto the harness, so it's not especially easy to remove.

There really wasn't any way I could compare harness slot heights with other seats. They looked low, but I could be mistaken.

HTH!

Heather, CPS Tech
http://www.carseatsite.com

[MommyH]

Thanks for all your comments.