brittu
02-25-2008, 10:33 PM
When I was looking for my first booster seat this forum was invaluable. So I thought I'd take a minute and mention that I'm about to buy a second Jane Indy Plus, even at $199, and why it's worth it to me.
The Indy Plus is the only booster that uses the latch system. Rather than straps, it uses isofix. Essentially there are two bars that stick back that you snap into the latch part of the seat. Why do I like this? Because it means that the seat is attached to the car. For convenience it means that the seat stays safely in place when no one's sitting in it. And it also may be less likely to move out from under the child in the event of a crash.
The latch also means it can recline while staying correctly positioned.
Because of the way the latch works, the use of the seat isn't restricted to the same weight limits as say, the Regent, is. The latch is holding the seat in place and the seatbelt has to hold only the child's weight. I'd orginally wanted a Regent but you had to switch to securing it with the shoulder belt only (of course the child is wearing the 5-pt harness still) once it hits the max latch weight limit.
The seat also has an aluminum frame. It's less prone to degrading and it's also supposed to be stronger and more protective than a platic only shell.
The head and chest are have adjustable side wings. My 5 year old is tall and slight so I can adjust them to close in around him for even greater side impact protection.
Like other European seats, the company actually does side impact testing. I started by planning to buy a U.S. based product and then dug around their web site only to learn that all of their safety promise were based on usage data and expectations for how the design would perform. The U.S. doesn't require SIP testing so they don't do it. That made me uncomfortable.
I didn't want to spend this much money. In our other car our son rides in a Britax Wizard that I'm very happy with. But the booster is what I send with him when he's picked up for playdates and rides with Grandma. I originally thought that meant I should spend as little as possible since it would be used less. But then I concluded that because he's in the care of someone else, I should really put him in the seat that had the best impact testing and is the one most likely to be installed by others correctly.
It doesn't have cup holders. It's heavy. It's expensive. But after using it for a little under a year I've been really happy with it. Now we need another booster and, while I'm tempted to get a Parkway on sale for $64 I'm going to shell out another $199 for a second Indy Plus.
Hope this is helpful. Thanks!
Britt
The Indy Plus is the only booster that uses the latch system. Rather than straps, it uses isofix. Essentially there are two bars that stick back that you snap into the latch part of the seat. Why do I like this? Because it means that the seat is attached to the car. For convenience it means that the seat stays safely in place when no one's sitting in it. And it also may be less likely to move out from under the child in the event of a crash.
The latch also means it can recline while staying correctly positioned.
Because of the way the latch works, the use of the seat isn't restricted to the same weight limits as say, the Regent, is. The latch is holding the seat in place and the seatbelt has to hold only the child's weight. I'd orginally wanted a Regent but you had to switch to securing it with the shoulder belt only (of course the child is wearing the 5-pt harness still) once it hits the max latch weight limit.
The seat also has an aluminum frame. It's less prone to degrading and it's also supposed to be stronger and more protective than a platic only shell.
The head and chest are have adjustable side wings. My 5 year old is tall and slight so I can adjust them to close in around him for even greater side impact protection.
Like other European seats, the company actually does side impact testing. I started by planning to buy a U.S. based product and then dug around their web site only to learn that all of their safety promise were based on usage data and expectations for how the design would perform. The U.S. doesn't require SIP testing so they don't do it. That made me uncomfortable.
I didn't want to spend this much money. In our other car our son rides in a Britax Wizard that I'm very happy with. But the booster is what I send with him when he's picked up for playdates and rides with Grandma. I originally thought that meant I should spend as little as possible since it would be used less. But then I concluded that because he's in the care of someone else, I should really put him in the seat that had the best impact testing and is the one most likely to be installed by others correctly.
It doesn't have cup holders. It's heavy. It's expensive. But after using it for a little under a year I've been really happy with it. Now we need another booster and, while I'm tempted to get a Parkway on sale for $64 I'm going to shell out another $199 for a second Indy Plus.
Hope this is helpful. Thanks!
Britt