Check Amazon for Baby Car Seat

An infant car seat is the most important product purchase you will make for your baby on the way. You’ll need a car seat to transport your little one home from the hospital so you should purchase it before the baby is born. (Along with a basic layette set and a case or two of diapers, as well as a safe place for your baby to sleep when she arrives home).

When you purchase your baby’s first car seat, you have two choices: an infant car seat or a convertible car seat.

Infant car seats deemed safer for newborns
Infant car seats are determined by experts to be safer than convertible car seats for newborns and babies under one year old. An infant car seat is smaller than a convertible car seat and designed specifically to fit your infant safely. All infant car seats come equipped with five-point harnesses, determined in crash tests to be the safest type of restraint system.

Infant car seats: a portable option
Most infant car seats double as baby carriers. You can remove the car seat from the car when you reach your destination and carry your baby in the convenient hard shell carrier. The carriers are designed to lock onto shopping carts for easy trips to the grocery store and also sit in “baby slings” in many restaurants.

Additionally, many infant car seats come with a detachable base that you install in your vehicle. If you have two or more cars, as many families do, you can buy multiple bases and use the same car seat in both cars, saving money.

Infant car seat as travel system
Many infant car seats are part of a “travel system,” a full-size, full-featured stroller that you can use from birth through the toddler years. In a travel system, the infant car seat locks into place in the stroller.

The baby faces you, and a clear plastic window lets you easily check on your baby.  The sun screen for the stroller along with the car seat / carrier’s own sun screen meet in the center of the carrier to create a “shelter” for your baby, where he will be free from the stares of curious eyes, as well as natural elements like sun and wind.

Some travel systems are designed to fit a variety of brands of car seat / carriers. Others fit only their specific brand of car seat / carrier.

Features common on most infant car seats

• Designed for rear-facing installation
• L.A.T.C.H. (Lower Anchors and Tethers for CHildren) system for installation – All vehicles manufactured after 2002 come with anchors that make installation using the LATCH system possible
• Sun screen
• Infant cushion designed for smaller babies

Other features you may want to look for in an infant car seat

• Removable, machine-washable padding
• Weight limit of 32 to 35 lbs. – Infant car seats typically fit babies from 5 to between 22 and 35 lbs. If you expect to have a large baby, look for a car seat that accommodates the upper end of this range. Babies must ride rear-facing until they are at least 20 lbs. AND one year old. In light of the AAP’s recommendation that babies stay rear-facing as long as possible, it makes sense to buy a car seat that permits this.
• Part of a travel system
• Doubles as a carrier with a secure, comfortable handle
• Multiple harness slots to accommodate your baby as he grows
• Includes detachable base (with additional bases sold separately) so you can easily use the car seat in multiple cars

Questions to ask before you buy an infant car seat

Here are some questions you should ask yourself, and possibly discuss with your partner, before buying an infant car seat:

How much do you want to spend? – Perfectly good infant car seats exist for under $100. Price is not necessarily an indicator of quality. In some cases, car seats of different price points and brands are made by the same parent company. The major difference in the car seat is the brand name and possibly a few features that offer greater convenience. Is a “popular” or trendy brand name important to you?

Do you plan to use the car seat for future children, too? If so, you may want a gender neutral color and a pattern or design that is not too trendy. (Remember car seats typically expire after 5 years.) Additionally, you may want to select a less “girly” pattern – even for a female child — if Daddy will be carrying the car seat / carrier frequently.

Do you prefer a car seat that matches your car’s interior?

Do you already have a stroller travel system and need a car seat to match?

Do you want the convenience of a travel system or do you plan to use a separate lightweight stroller?

Do you have multiple cars, requiring a detachable base for the infant car seat?

When considering specific models:

Is the carrier handle comfortable? Is the car seat lightweight? Even the lightest weight carriers get cumbersome with a 20 lb. baby inside. An ergonomic design makes all the difference.

Is the five-point harness secure yet easy (for the parent) to open and close?

Are the buckles easy to adjust? Many of the better car seats permit you to make adjustments to the harness from the front rather than the rear. It is important that your baby sit in a car seat with the harness adjusted properly – if this task is easy to accomplish, you are less likely to forego necessary adjustments.

Has the car seat been a part of any product recalls? You can check www.cpsc.gov for a list of recalled baby products.

How well does the seat fit your car? Some stores will let you take the car seat out to the parking lot to test it in your own car. You may be asked to leave your driver’s license behind.

What do reviews say about the seat?

Some Popular Models of Infant Car Seats

Graco Snugride
Chicco Keyfit
Peg Perego Primo Viaggio
Britax Chaperone
Maxi Cosi Mico

Check Amazon for Baby Car Seat