Customer Reviews

Graco Snugride Infant Car Seat, Platinum

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Before my daughter was born I did a lot of research before deciding on a car seat. This one really appealed to me based on other reviews and the top rated safety ratings. The neutral colors are great too, not too girly or boyish. When I received it as a shower gift I was immediately impressed. It is very light and the seat is so comfy feeling with lots of padding, removable head and body supports and high sides to protect my baby. The attached bunting is removable and was very nice especially with a newborn during the colder months. And the adjustable/removable cover is great in all weather; keeps the cold wind off, the sun out and the rain away. The base was easy to install in the car with the latch anchor system, and it is adjustable. We brought our baby girl home from the hospital in it and she fit perfect even though she was so tiny at 6.5lbs. The harness has removable comfort bands, the chest closure and each side of the harness attach separately into the crotch latch which is very nice and makes like so easy with a squirming infant. Even now at 7 months our baby girl fits perfectly and it is so easy to get her in and out of the car. I would also recommend the Graco stroller they make travel and just running everyday errands so easy; the car seat comes out of the car and clicks right into the stroller and off we go. Definitely recommend this car seat it is awesome!!

My husband and I decided to purchase a Graco infant car seat after the good experience we had with our firstborn's Graco travel system. We decided on the Snugride in Platinum because of its neutral tones and good reviews, and I liked the fact that it includes a foot muff for cooler weather. We wanted a color that would pair nicely with the Graco Snugrider stroller frame, and this works brilliantly. The photo makes the light color look almost silver though, when in fact the seat is black with a khaki/beige accent color. I expected that from other reviews I've read, and it's still neutral and sharp looking, so we don't mind. Once we received it, the seat was easy to install in our vehicle (Latch system) and the sun shade was really the only item needing assembly. (That took about five minutes.) The sun shade seems a teeny bit flimsy and the material of the foot muff seems likely to snag on Velcro or other rough materials, but so far we haven't had any problems with either. The material of the seat pad, head positioner and foot muff is extremely soft, which I appreciate for our tender little newborn. It was nice not having to spend the extra money on a car seat head positioner, this one works just fine for our compact little 7-pounder, and I'm pretty picky about his comfort. The 5-point harness, albeit super-safe, is a little cumbersome next to a baby body, but we've remedied that with soft strap covers and our baby doesn't seem to be bothered much by it, and snuggles right into his seat when we travel. I find the seat to be fairly light to carry, and have even lifted it without straining or hurting myself within a week of having a C-section. (Not recommended at all, but shows how light the seat is.) As expected, we're finding this seat to be extremely easy to use, comfortable for baby, well-constructed and attractive. There are a lot of trendy and pricey car seats on the market, but Graco is a trustworthy and reliable brand that offers a great product that we've been very happy with, for a fraction of the cost of other car seat manufacturers.

First, I want to say it's quite stupid of Graco to sell all the seats as one item here on Amazon. They are different not only in color but in design too. When you read a review better check what model you are reading about.

First, I bought Tango and it was not very nice with its independent backside-pulling belts. So I would probably give it 3 stars. I returned it for different reasons but after that I got Platinum. It has better design and lots of nice accessories. It's operated completely from the front and one belt is tightening both straps now.

PROs:
- Lightweight, easy to handle for my not very strong spouse;
- Nice sunshade with a little sunroof;
- Adjustable handle

CONs:
- The handle!! It's really hard to adjust. I struggle with it every time I need to change its position. You have to press 2 levers with both hands at the same time and they are not cooperating, to say the least. And it's LOUD. Clicking and squeaking when you try to adjust it. Don't want to wake up a sleeping baby? Better not try to move that handle.

This suited us really well for our son's first few months. Unfortunately, as he grew, the seat seemed to become more and more uncomfortable for him. We switched over to a convertible car seat (Britax Boulevard, which has been great) by the time he was 7 months. Beware: the color can look a little dingy with wear and tear.

I did a lot of research before purchasing this car seat. Consumer reports liked it so i keep looking at it. I also purchased the stroller that this car seat fits in (which i also love - maybe even more than this car seat). The car seat is very easy to use. It was very easy to put together ( so was the stroller). This car seat comes in and out of the base very easily. I do recommend purchasing a base for each vehicle. The only think i'm not crazy about is my son is 7mths old and is approaching the weight limit for this seat. Had i known more about car seats i probably would have purchased a convertible seat in the beginning. I don't mind spending extra money if i know its something i'm going to use for a long time. Now 7 mths into it, and i have to find a new car seat that can accomidate my son. With that said... I do love this carseat.

This is a very good car-seat. It is soft and seems confortable for the baby.

I just wanted to add that the color is more kaki than white, I was expecting some much lighter hue.

The size is good, and a word to those deciding what to buy:
. This car seat does not have the side impact protection. That is the only con.
. The bigger the car seat the longer you will be able to use it BUT, the heavier and bulkier it will be. With the new bigger carseats you are talking about carrying 50 pounds to get your baby out of the car with the seat (25 for the seat, about 25 -or even more- with the baby). So that is something to consider before buying.

We have been using this car seat in Platinum for 6 months now, and we are really happy with it! I chose this model over the Snugride 32/25 because I couldn't imagine lifting such a heavy seat plus a heavy child. Now that my child is 16lbs, I already find this seat sort of heavy. She will probably grow out of it by length, not weight however.

Pros
- Easy to install
- Easy to clean
- Nice neutral color (we didn't know the sex of our baby before birth)
- Fits securely on all grocery carts I've tried
- Fits child comfortably
- The adjustable base made it easy to install the seat at the proper angle (do buy an extra one if you have 2 cars)
- Easy to install without base (using seatbelt)
- Fits in most restaurant booths and high chairs
- Slight curve on bottom allows it to rocks back and forth, good for crabby babies - make sure its on a flat, safe surface!

Cons
- If you have a small car with a low roof (we have a BMW 335i) and you put the seat in the center, its hard to get in an out because you have to lift up high to get it off the base. I constantly hit the roof with the carry handle and it jostles my baby around and sometimes awake :o This never happens in our SUV though
- Newborn heads will tilt to the side even with the head protector, although it did help
- Handle can be a pain in the bum to adjust backwards and forwards. You have to press in both releases on each side really hard
- There's no cover for the sunshade viewing window, not good if the sun is in your baby's eyes or if they are sleeping and you want it dark. However, I made my own very easily with some old fabric
- Sometimes my baby seems really hot from it, but I bet that happens with most any car seat
- You do have to re-thread the harness when your child gets taller, not a problem for me, but could lead to an improper install if you're not careful

I've been so happy with Graco, that I will probably purchase a Graco convertible car seat for when she outgrows this one.

There are two MAJOR negatives for me about this car seat. First, as other users have stated, the handle does not move easily and is very loud and squeaky, which is just a nightmare when you have a sleeping baby. Second, you can only adjust the straps one way by elongating the top straps, you cannot lengthen the piece that goes in between the baby's legs that the straps snap into. This is a huge problem as your baby grows, especially if you use a "bundle me" (which EVERY mom I know uses in a cold climate) or if your baby is wearing any bulky clothing, or a cloth diaper. My baby is 18 pounds and 27 inches at 5 months and my baby has already out-grown this car seat for this reason. I would have loved to be able to have used it through the winter, so this is a huge disappointment and the main reason why I would never buy again! One last note, the strap adjustment is under the baby's legs which is just awkward to try and blindly thumb around to get to after your baby is in the seat and you want to tighten up the straps!

My baby loves her carseat. It is easy to pop in and out of the base and she falls asleep in it everytime she gets into it. I get lots of compliments on it. It fit perfectly into the graco stroller that I already had.

You can see plenty of reviews on the functionality of this carseat-it works just fine for us and we like that is is rated #1 in safety, which is most important.

Though, I'd like to review the fabric for the Platinum Snugride. It's a beautiful color, kind of taupey-champagne. Though, it stains with just drool and creates water spots that you cannot get rid of, or you will just create more spots. Also, it's kind of delicate fabric. My tiny baby rubbed her feet on a spot ]and there is already peeling and little balls forming. It's almost like a satiny fabric, which just isn't practical for a baby's everyday gear. It also doesn't help my baby stay cool and she can become sweaty.

I recently purchased a Meeno Babies Cool Me Bucket Seat Liner in black to help with the constant stains and to keep my baby from getting sweaty. [[ASIN:B004RVKGJI Meeno Babies "Cool Mee" Universal Bucket Seat Liner (Black)] So far, this has worked really well. Although I am not a fan of the quality of the Platinum fabric, I do like the sleek look of it, as I do not like the other cheesy patterns. With the new seat liner, this looks and functions much better.