As we mentioned a couple weeks ago, Mio is quickly outgrowing her infant car seat and accompanying Snap n’ Go, and although we got her a new stroller, we still needed to find a larger car seat for her. Since we found her outgrowing the infant car seat before six months had even passed, we really wanted to invest in a car seat that would last us a few years so that we would not constantly have to upgrade to more car seats as Mio grows since they can be pretty darn expensive!
I didn’t do nearly as much research as I did for the stroller, as there are comparatively fewer options when it comes to convertible toddler car seats. While I at first considered either of the very popular Britax Boulevard or Britax Marathon, I found myself drawn to one that I’d seen at Buy Buy Baby when we had gone to take a look at the Quinny Zapp Xtra — the Maxi-Cosi Pria 70. Maxi-Cosi is a brand under the same umbrella company (Dorel Juvenile Group) as Quinny, so their products boast the same sophisticated design and great quality that attracted us to the Zapp Xtra.
The great thing about this convertible car seat is that it can fit smaller babies in it with its TinyFit system, starting from only 4 lbs to 22 lbs.
Later, you can easily remove the TinyFit system for the car seat to fit a larger toddler, rear-facing from 18 to 40 lbs. When your toddler is ready, you can turn the seat around and it will comfortably fit children up to 70 lbs forward-facing.
Additionally, those nifty parts that have the <air> symbols are Air Protect advanced side impact protection, which is being integrated into more and more car seats these days. Air Protect is a new technology meant to soften the blow to a baby’s head in a side-impact crash — it’s essentially a constantly deployed airbag, or a super soft pillow capable of absorbing the a large impact and effectively extending the amount of time a child’s head has to stop in an impact situation. While I hope we never get into a car accident with Mio in the car, it’s nice to have that assurance and peace of mind that she’ll be in a seat with the best protective technology on the market (especially when you’re like me and not the best driver on the road).
More great features: the straps are very easy to adjust, and the clips are sturdy yet easy easy for adults to unfasten. Height is adjustable with the sliding headrest, and the seat is thickly padded for extra comfort and snug fit. The fabric on the Pria 70 is very smooth and almost slick, making it easy to quickly wipe away sweat and any spills, and won’t overheat your child in hot weather. I also read that Maxi-Cosi’s seats generally rate cleaner on the toxic chemicals list than other companies’ convertible car seats. It even has a cup holder! The Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 is still a very new convertible car seat on the market, as it only just became available in August, but it seems like car seat experts agree that it is a revolutionary seat in terms of fit, versatility, and safety.