Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

At six months old our daughter started to be quite uncomfortable in her bucket style infant seat, so we began the hunt for a new car seat. I spent approximately ten hours researching safety ratings, emergency personnel seat recommendations and other information before deciding on this seat. I knew we would want something compact, yet VERY safe and durable. We also wanted something that we could use for a LONG time (or "forever" so to speak) with extended rear-facing capabilities. Another criteria was the ease of install from one vehicle to another. While shopping I was torn between this seat and the Clek Foonf. Aside from the fact that the Foonf couldn't be a "forever" seat, the Diono won out for several reasons. COMPACT OVERALL, COMPACT EXTENDED REAR-FACING: The first reason is how compact it is. My husband and I both drive GMC pickup trucks (his a Denali Dually, mine a Sierra) so we needed a rear-facing option that wouldn't lean back too much hitting our seats nor take up more valuable seat space than necessary. For an older child you can use an angle adjuster sold by Diono to help the seat take up less "air" space, making it possible to be behind the driver or passenger front seat if necessary (for now, our daughter is too small to make use of this feature so her seat is in the middle back seat). The cup holder is removable, therefore additional passengers don't have to be gouged in the leg. In our personal vehicles it would be possible to have three of these across the back seat, making it ideal for a growing family! (Not that I'm looking to have two more children anytime soon haha!) USER FRIENDLY/EASY USE AND INSTALL: Both sets of grandparents drive smaller vehicles such as a Dodge Journey, a Toyota Camry and a Nissan Altima, so again we needed something compact while also being user friendly and easy to install. We utilize the seatbelt-only install for grandparent vehicles. The great thing about rear-facing install with this seat is that the hard work is done for you by way of the seat's feet. The feet on this seat ensure proper angle and fit on the vehicle's seat without having to adjust the car seat much and without trying to read some leveling device on the side, yet again making it super user-friendly. The harnessing system is also easy to use and adjust. Adjustments to the harness height and buckle placement are very easy to make; I've done it one-handed a few times! Buckling our girl in safely is extremely easy as well. The ratchet-style tightening system makes tightening the straps almost foolproof. ACCESSORIES AND CUSTOMER SUPPORT: There are a plethora of Diono certified and approved accessories you can purchase and use with this car seat WITHOUT affecting the safety of it. We purchased the Diono Ultra-Mat full size vehicle seat protector, the Diono angle adjuster to use when extended rear-facing and the Diono Dry Seat car seat protector insert to protect against spills and accidents. With the exception of the angle adjuster, we have made great use of these accessories so far and have found them to really add value to this seat. The Ultra-Mat is a MUST for us as we all have leather interiors. The Dry Seat insert has also proven to be worth the money as our little one has had a few nasty spit-up incidents that easily wiped away! Customer support has also proven to be extremely helpful with questions. I had an odd question concerning the LATCH install for my truck and customer support was able to assist me within ten minutes of placing the call all while remaining professional and FRIENDLY! While I realize there are likely other seats out there that offer all of these things, I found the safety ratings for this particular seat to be above the rest while also meeting our family's needs. Choosing the right seat for your child can be overwhelming, so hopefully my review can help you in making that decision. *Edited February 2018: I wanted to update my review, as we have now been using this seat for the better part of a year. I now drive a Chevy Tahoe with captains chair seats as the second row. This seat fits nicely on the passenger side. We now utilize the angle adjuster for rear facing, which makes the seat sit at a more upright angle than before. The angle adjuster keeps the Diono car seat from touching the seat in front of it— which is great when you have guests riding in the passenger side front seat! Our girl is 1.5 years old and we foresee being able to rear face her in this seat for at least two more years, especially given how petite she is! The other accessories we purchased are still useful. The protective mat has saved my seat-backs from dirty shoes more times than I can count. The Diono Dry Seat insert has been more than helpful numerous times, especially as we embark on potty training. There is no doubt in my mind that we chose a great seat. We're happy to be a Diono family!