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My husband used to be a car safety engineer. His team crashed cars & shot dummy heads inside vehicles all day long to test crash impact at different speeds, & they designed the impact foam structures in car interiors. So he did some intensive research on infant car seats for our baby.
We went to BabiesRUs & checked out every infant car seat they have on display. He quickly dismissed Graco Snugride because the buckle tongues are made of cheap plastic, which will snap instantaneously upon a 10-15mph impact so much for the 5-point harness. Baby will be ejected like a basketball. Ironically, it's hard to unbuckle during daily life maybe it aims to prevent babies unlock themselves but I had to struggle over 2 mins to unbuckle the belt on each of all 4 Graco models (same car seat, just different fabric cover). Then he quickly ruled out all car seats with flared top where baby's head would be. Because upon impact, especially side impact, the last thing you want is to have baby's head travel some distance to hit the side. The neck would be snapped by then. Ideal protection would be snug fit, which minimizes movement, hence the impact. So that eliminated MOST of the infant car seats. Without getting too technical, flared open top = minimal protection. This OnBoard Air 35 offers the most snug fit underlying structure (not padding), and has metal buckle tongues like the ones in cars. It also fits on top of our stroller. So this is our choice.
I didn't like the fabric cover (plain black) at BabiesRUs, so I ordered this Decatur color from Amazon because the silver shade would match nicely with my Instep Grand Safari stroller. The actual product is much better looking than what's shown in the picture. I noticed the bottom of the car seat looked different from the one I saw at Babies R Us (Mackena cover), maybe because BRU's is an older model. The one I received was manufactured in June 2012. Fabric cover is made in China, but the underneath car seat plastic mold is made in USA.
We promptly stripped the car seat to inspect the foam/padding. I uploaded some pictures hopefully it'll be helpful to other parents. Basically, under all the different covers/different brand car seats, lies the same thing a plastic mold with foam/padding glued onto it. For real cars, they use a higher grade & thicker foam, because of heavier adult weight distribution. For baby, e.g., this car seat uses 1/2" thick foam, which, for an up to 35lb child, should be sufficient. The "Air" feature, however, is nothing but marketing. Once stripped, there's no airbag (despite marketers attempt to steer you toward believing by using the word "Air"). There are simply 2 foams on each side, which is meaningless (same with any other car seats paddings). They are more for comfort than for protection. What really matters is the structure of the plastic mold & how snug it is for the child. Try hit the top side of any car seat you intend to buy & feel how solid it is. Do not buy the ones that are soft & flimsy. A review mentioned that Graco & Chicco have only 1/2 length of the form up to the shoulder, not the head. This one has full back length foam.
Also, don't get sucked in by "new models" facaded by new fabric designs. Underlying structure is what really matters. I noticed that Saftey 1st has a "newer model" called SE or O2. I compared the 2 product descriptions side by side if you delete "SE" or "O2", they are in identical wording. I bet if you strip the fabric cover off, underlying plastic mode + foam/padding are the same. But they want you to pay $50 for a few embroidered circles on the new cover. Nice try. But if the fabric is less prone to pilling, that might be worth it.
With all this said, however, maximum protection requires a seat to stay with the car's body so in a sense, any child car seats, because they are an "addition" to a car, will never offer the same degree of protection as the car itself. Therefore, there's really no point of spending $300 for Britax, because it doesn't offer any more protection than a basic car seat. All the bells & whistles, air, padding, foam, blah blah, it's all marketing, hence the billion $ baby goods industry.
I've read a few moms' complaints about having to use 2 hands to release this car seat from the backseat. I found if you tilt the car seat toward the same direction of the latch while pressing it, then it will come out effortlessly without waking the baby.
Also, some other reviews complained about the canopy being flimsy. Indeed. I stripped off the canopy too, & found that the plastic strip to hold it in shape is really soft & easily bendable. Definitely not ideal, but not a major issue. Some mom said that cheap plastic strip broke in 4 months & Safety 1st has terrible customer service they will not send replacement. So I'm supergluing mine right now, hopefully it'll stay put.
I also have to agree with other reviews on the cover pilling. The seat cover is made of polyester, so pilling will be inevitable as baby moving in the seat. Also, the little premie insert has velcro on the back, which'll easily leave some harsh marks on the seat cover. So if you don't need it, take it out.
Amazon first sent me a defect product: the box was dented & open upon delivery, the soft rubber piece on the handle bar was missing, so it almost cut my hand open as I was picking it up the first time, cause there were scratched hard plastic pieces sticking out right where your hand is, and the seat cover already has multiple pilling & lint residue. Incredible I was stunned this, from Amazon?? I tried to imagine how someone cut off that rubber piece on the handle bar it would require some serious effort & a sharp knife. I called Amazon immediately & thanks to their great customer service they overnighted me a new one, which is perfect. I would highly recommend this car seat despite some minor flaws.
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One reviewer does not understand the function of the Air Protect system. It is not supposed to be the same as a car airbag, which could be deadly for an infant. It protects from side collisions. It is a passive air release system. More information on this can be found on YouTube at . Most comparison tests do not include side collision tests even though these can be the most deadly for babies.
