 GREAT SEAT |
| Review Date: July 31, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Helen S. Lam, |
REVIEW
- Foldable seat - This is the key reason that we purchase this as opposed to buying another Britax Marathon. Once the seat is folded, it is about 7" thick. There are tabs on the frame to allow you to carry it with a strap (sold separately).
- Carry bag (sold separately) - We also purchased the bag/backpack to carry the seat onto planes. It fits the seat like a glove and can be converted from shoulder-carry to backpack. BTW, if you want to go minimalist, you can also unbuckle these straps and hook them onto the seat's frame. Very convenient.
- Steel frame - Although the Radian is slimmer than the Britax, it is still quite heavy (20 lb.) due to its steel frame. Since we only plan to lug the seat on infrequent plane trips, this was not much of an issue for us.
- Fabric - Suede feel, less velour-like, more fitted than Britax. Padding is about the same thickness as Britax but looks less as the suede fabric is more tailored (not as puffy).
- Seat Size - definitely a narrower seat (many board members have reported that you can fit 3 of these seats in the back seat).
- Comfort - My 3 year old son has not had any complaints about the seat. I did notice that the seat belts are a bit closer together when buckled and thus making the padded epaulettes (comes with the seat) essential to prevent seat belt burn on the neck.
- Chest Clips - They do feel a bit flimsier than Britax (has extra rubber pad (HUGS in their lingo)).
- Rear Facing - We are using it forward facing so we did not need to install the additional based for rear facing. I am annoyed that the car seat is not all in one piece but I suppose it lowers the weight for traveling for those who only need forward facing.
- Recline - There are only 2 options - recline or upright with very little recline. We chose the recline position and my son is comfortable napping in this position. It is also not overly reclined to prevent him checking out the road.
- Installation - Some people complained of installation problems. We used LATCH (forward facing) on our 2006 Mazda5 and did not have any problems with the installation. We have yet to try installing it with a seat belt. Overall, I think the Britax is easier to install with its clip locks for seat belt installation and versa tether to allow for front tethering options. However, if you plan to use LATCH forward facing, both the Britax and the Radian65 are equally easy to install.
CONCLUSION
The Radian65 is a very nice seat that is far more portable due to its folding seat than the Britax Marathon. I especially like its innovative portable features with the carry bag and the tabs on the seat for carrying it. This is a cool feature that I did not find in any other seat.
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The ONLY car seat that works in my situation.
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| Review Date: January 23, 2007 |
| Reviewer: T. Nagelmann, Hawaii |
| My car ('95 525i) has a lap belt in the center back seat, making a belt-positioning booster impossible. Additionally, the only seats I have seen that accommodate a 44# child are GIGANTIC! Since I have 3 kids in the back seat, two already in boosters, a huge car seat was not an option. I have been at a loss, keeping my big kid in his Britax Advantage for waaay longer than he should have been. I was so happy to find the Radian65! I could install it with the lap belt, the weight limit is 65#(!), and it actually fits between the two boosters without crowding my other two kids. This would have been enough for me, but I am also very impressed with the quality of the seat. The design details were very thoughtful, and the workmanship is on par with Britax. It looks like a much more expensive seat. Which brings me to my final point: I live in Hawaii, and shipping is always a killer. Amazon's price for this seat was not just $20 less than anywhere else (and believe me, I did plenty of research), but they shipped it to me for free - which, combined with the lower price, ended up saving me around $100! I couldn't be happier. |
better than britax
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| Review Date: August 24, 2006 |
| Reviewer: Ari's Ima, New York, NY |
| We recently bought a second car and needed a new carseat. My son is 22 months and weighs 27 pounds, so we ideally wanted a convertible carseat. We have a Graco Comfort Sport in the first car but I didn't want a second one (see my comfort sport review, I wanted a carseat that is safer rear-facing). I couldn't seem to find anything I was happy with other than a Britax, but the price seemed a bit excessive. I looked into booster-type carseats that only sit forward, but my son was really too young for them, and I knew in a Britax he could still sit rear-facing. Somehow my husband came across this new seat by Sunshine kids that sounded great. We bought the last one left at BuyBuyBaby with a 20% off coupon (not valid for Britax products) for around $160.00 and installed it rear-facing in our Hyundai Elantra without any trouble. We used LATCH and attached the floor strap, and the seat doesn't budge at all. Before putting it in the car, I put my son in it to see which slot the shoulder straps should be in and where to position the crotch strap. It was very easy to install and adjust the straps. Unlike the Britax, there are 5 slots for the shoulder straps and 3 for the crotch. Even though the seat can be used for up to 65 lbs, it's not as monsterous as the Britax. It's narrow enough to allow for 2 other passengers to sit in the backseat of the car (the carseat is in the back middle). When rear-facing, the seat is in a reclined position, so my son is very comfortable. However, the back of the carseat does hit the back of the front passanger seat, so the frontseat passenger can't recline. I have no problems tightening and loosening the carseat straps so that he's buckled in safetly no matter what he's wearing. The straps don't get tangled easily, and are easy to straighten out when they do. The material is holding up very well- it still looks brand-new, besides for the pretzel crumbs! I plan on turning the seat around when he turns 2, and I'm sure I'll continue to love the seat in the forward position too. I highly recommend this seat. |
Works great for our 5 year old
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| Review Date: January 31, 2007 |
| Reviewer: SPN, An American in England! |
We purchased this car seat for our 5 year old because we weren't happy with her high backed booster seat. The seat belt didn't always hold her in place and we didn't feel she was all that secure. We're happy with this seat because:
1. It has a 5 point harness
2. It is on the latch system
3. It fits securely in our car
4. It's narrow enough to fit in our back seat with 2 other seats
5. Our daughter thinks it's really comfortable
We live in London and brought the seat from the US with us, our car is narrow and we often have 3 children in the back seat all needing car seats or boosters, this seat fits in.
We also bought the travel bag with it and folded it for our plane trip home. We checked it through as luggage and it was really convenient. We've traveled with other car seats in the past and they are quite bulky when packing into the carry bag, this one was really easy! It didn't take that long to fit it into our car once we got home.
Great seat - I would highly recommend it! |
Amazing performance during high-impact crash
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| Review Date: March 9, 2009 |
| Reviewer: C. Jensen, |
My 16-month old daughter and I were recently in a car accident on an interstate, going highway speed. Our car spun out of control, slammed into a rock wall, and then knocked down a big highway sign that then fell on top of our car. Props to our Nissan Altima for keeping us intact, as well as our Sunshine Kids carseat for keeping my daughter entirely unharmed. There were not even marks on her from the leg/shoulder straps!
This carseat is definitely heavy, but considering its steel frame, there's no way around that; I'd rather struggle with it when I travel, than have a flimsy seat for my child. A tip for travelers: this seat is narrow enough to remain opened, and set inside our Maclaren stroller. If I am by myself, I carry my daughter in a sling, or she walks, and we push our car seat to wherever we need to go.
I highly recommend such a sturdy carseat for your child, and will definitely be getting another one when our younger baby outgrows the infant seat! |
Able to fit 2 in Prius plus Peg Perego SIP
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| Review Date: September 9, 2006 |
| Reviewer: S. Lortz, Torrance, CA |
Problem: 2 toddlers and 1 infant all need to fit into a 2004 Prius.
Solution: 2 Radian car seats forward-facing on each side in the back seat and a Peg Perego SIP infant seat rearward-facing in the middle. All seats are using the LATCH anchors and the Radian seats additionally are employing the headrest/seatback tethers.
Note: This setup also works in the Scion Xb.
You could probably find something other than the Peg Perego to use as an infant seat since it is really the narrow base dimensions of the Radian car seats that make this setup possible.
The only minor drawbacks I can see to the Radian car seats are the price (on the high side but still at $180 each not the most expensive seats out there) and the weight (HEAVY in comparison to others but that is the trade-off for the sturdy quality due to the steel support frame construction). |
Great seat!
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| Review Date: November 6, 2007 |
| Reviewer: momof2, Iowa |
| We have this seat for our 3.5 year old daughter. At 39 lbs and 41+", she's tall for her age. She has about 2" of room left in this seat. Anyway, this seat can be difficult to install. Set aside a couple of hours and be prepared to sweat it out! It's heavy, 22 lbs, so wrestling it into your vehicle can be a challenge. However, once you master whatever it takes to get it in your car-it's easy. One key thing to do is pull back the cover to better reach the belt path when tightening LATCH straps or the seatbelt. We've installed this seat, forward-facing, in many vehicles- 2006 Chrysler Town and Country, 2004 Honda CR-V, 1999 Honda CR-V, 2005 PT Cruiser, 2005 Dodge Stratus, 1990 Subaru Legacy and 2004 Toyota Camry. All installs were rock solid. We have also installed it, rear facing, in a 2006 Chrysler Town and Country. My daughter loves her Radian and so do we. In spite of frequent difficult installs, it can be put in most vehicles, some with more difficulty than others. My husband can get the Radian seat into most any vehicle in less then 5 minutes. Most kids will outgrow the Radian65 by height before weight (making the Radian80 an unnecessary purchase, for most people). This is a great seat! We like it and think others will too. |
THE BEST of the best.
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| Review Date: February 4, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Tiffany Holley, FL United States |
We got into an interesting discussion a while back on a networking group I belong to... I was fascinated/horrified by what Kay (the owner of My Precious Kid) had to say about car seats.
I had already bought a nice little booster seat for Miss J, since she will be graduating into that size catagory right about the time the baby comes. But Kay was adamant from her research that these still-really-little people need to stay in a 5-point harness as long as possible to keep them safe.
There are a bunch of very sad videos on YouTube about this topic, which a quick search will bring to your screen.
I was convinced, and I got Miss J a "Big Girl Car Seat": the amazing RADIAN 65 Car Seat.
There is a Radian 65 and a Radian 80, with the difference being the weight limit. Since J is much taller than she is heavy, she will certainly be outgrowing either seat by height before she reaches 65 lbs., making the 80 unnecessary for our particular situation. It does come in pink, though, which was tempting...
I read though some of the reviews of the seat here on Amazon, and it was pretty amazing to hear the variety of whines about difficulty to install, weight, etc.
Was it easy to put in my Tahoe?
Well, okay, not as easy as the booster seat, no. And some of the things I did have to readjust after installing it once and looking at my handiwork. My older son helped (can you see me trying to reach over the seat to get to the buckles with my 8-months pregnant belly? Not.), and it took the two of us... oh... maybe 10 minutes. Let me be generous and say 15.
I'm not kidding. Is 15 minutes, once, not a totally reasonable time investment for something that can save your child's life?
I have a little more sympathy for people who said it doesn't fit in their vehicle. I was originally going to put it in the center of the back seat, where she's currently riding. Turns out it can't be installed there, because of the seatbelt buckle configuration of my pre-LATCH vehicle. But of course after watching Kyle's video (on YouTube), it really shouldn't be there, anyway, as there's no place in the center back to link a top tether!
So, off to the side she went...
(BTW, installing again on the driver's side after changing my mind, once we'd "got the drill down" and had all the correct straps installed and adjusted, took about 3 minutes).
It has so many great features you just can't dismiss: steel frame construction, trim profile and upright position (J HATES reclining!), a unique "safe strap" for use in certain configurations (including Miss J's) that would help reduce the strap load on her in the event of a collision (WOW!), it folds flat for travel and transport (and is FAA approved for airline use)...
I find it in all ways superior to the Britax Marathon we have now . . . and did I mention that it's a lot less expensive?!
Where was this seat when I was shopping so diligently 3 years ago? |
Radian 65 carseat is wonderful!
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| Review Date: January 20, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Jennifer Day, Fresno, CA USA |
| We were looking for a carseat/booster for our 3 year old son who had reached the 40 pound weight and 40 inch height mark. We were not comfortable putting him in a regular booster with the car seat belt and were on the lookout for a seat that would meet our needs for a 5 point harness with an extended weight and height limit. We had asked a friend who is a carseat technician and she gave us 2 recommendations that were in our price range. After looking at them both, we decided to purchase the Sunshine Kids Radian 65 seat. We are very pleased with it and love the fact that the base is fairly narrow (we have 3 kids across the backseat of our Subaru Outback!) and the height provides a good support. The latch hooks are easier than any other latch system we have ever used and installation is a breeze. I love that it has the ability to fold up for easier travel and there is an additional strap you can purchase so you can carry it over your shoulder if carrying it through an airport. This seat is approved for aircraft travel as well and we look forward to giving that a try. It would be nice of that strap was included with the seat instead of having to purchase it additionally. This seat is heavier than any of the seats we have ever used, it feels more substancial and we feel we made the right choice in choosing the Radian 65. Amazon.com offered a very good price and we had this seat less than 24 hours after placing the order! Exceptional products and exceptional prices! Many thanks! |
A good priced alternative to keep your kids in a 5 pt harness longer!
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| Review Date: May 24, 2007 |
| Reviewer: A. Volz, |
I bought this for my 4 year old daughter that had been in a high back booster (HBB). Although she misses her cupholders, and tells me so, everytime we're in the car, she's never complained about the comfort of the seat. It's a heavy seat that takes a little extra time to install correctly, as you have to use the belt with a child over 50(?) lbs and this can sometimes make it a little harder than a latch install.
This car seat is a wonderful choice for those with small backseats, or those who need room for 3 across, like I do. I can easily fit 2 of these for my preschoolers, and my 11 year old still has room between them!
Overall, a wonderful buy, especially if you buy it early. The price is quite reasonable if you figure it goes safely from 5 lbs to 65! Most seats designed for multiple age groups usually have a failing in one of those ages. IE great carseat, horrible booster. This one does a great job all the way up.
Please have your install checked by a qualified tech!! 80%!!!!! of carseats are used incorrectly! Even I was, and I considered myself pretty savvy! |
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