Evenflo Big Kid Booster Car Seat - Mercury

Comment: This is a well-made, easy to haul-around booster seat. The manufacturers say that it is "suitable for 30-100 pounds" on the outside of the box, but do not disclose the height requirements (nor age requirements, for that matter). We bought it for a vacation-- thought it would be lighter and easier to "gate check" than a conventional, convertible toddler carseat. The owner's manual (once you open the box) reveals that the child must also be 38" tall and at least 3 years old, which would have been NICE TO KNOW in advance of buying it (our son is about 37" tall, and was really just a tad too short for it). Even Evenflo's website does not include this critical information in the carseat's description! Once he's a little bit taller, it'll be a very nice carseat. LOVE the retractable drink holders (both sides) and the arm rests that pivot up (much easier for kid to climb into seat). It is very easy to detach the seat from the back portion, which is good if you want to collapse it to stick in a large bag for gate checking, but not so good when you're carrying it by the back (the release handle is in the back and is the most convenient thing to hang on to) and it "releases" and comes in two! It would be nice if they attached a carrying handle. Good seat, though. Pretty inexpensive, too.

Comment: I was so excited to get this seat for my 6 year old but was really dissapointed when I recieved it. The booster seat was too big for the seat in my minivan so you were unable to buckle the seatbelt. It also moved alot and my child is very thin so I felt it would be unsafe for her.

Comment: I bought this booster as a "second" seat. It is very comfortable and the price is good. It is for my husband's truck-the seats do not recline. I did not check if this seat reclined or not, but bought the Graco Turbo booster for my car as both my seats and the booster recline (saves on floppy heads). I think this is a great seat for the comfort and price.

Comment: I went to the store to buy the Graco Turbobooster for my daughter. When the Graco seat turned out to be a higher price than what I expected from my research, I looked at the other seats in the store and noticed that the Evenflo Big Kid seat was on sale for $29.50. The Evenflo had some features that the Graco did not. I'll summarize what I know of both seats here:

1. Graco TB's armrests are fixed in place; Evenflo's rotate up and out of the way

2. Evenflo's armrests install at 2 different heights, which I love - some seats the armrests are impossibly high or low

3. Graco TB's cupholders are very shallow; Evenflo's are deep enough for drinks and supplies

4. Graco TB's lower price-point seats have no padding at all; Evenflo's has better padding for an even lower price

5. Graco TB reclines, but I think this is only useful if the seat where you install it actually reclines, as the back of the booster should be flush with the seat. Evenflo's does not recline.

6. Graco TB's back and seat do not connect to each other (the back pulls out immediately if you lift the seat). Evenflo's clicks together and releases easily, but not when you don't want it to.

7. Graco TB's seat gets taller by pulling the headrest up from the body, in essence making a long "neck" of the seat. Evenflo's seat gets taller by pulling the entire body up from the seat. Evenflo's design makes more sense to me, as in general when a person grows, their head stays relatively the same distance from their shoulders. Graco's seat, when fully extended, puts the shoulder molding of the seat way below where the child's actual shoulders would be when sitting in the seat.

Hope this helps in your selection. I was pretty surprised to not come home with the Graco I had researched, but I am very happy with my choice. My daughter loves it too.

Comment: This seat is great for my 2 yr old granddaughter. The back is adjustable so she will probably be using it until she is at least 6 yrs old. I truly recommend it. The price is affordable also.