Choosing a car seat as a new parent can feel like a chore. When there’s so much on the market, it’s difficult to narrow down the one.
Then you have to keep up with the driving rules, am I allowed to have my child front-facing? From what age? Do they have to be a certain weight? Do I need a car seat base? Can I just strap the car seat in?
These were a few of the 1000 questions running through my mind as a first-time-mum when I had my daughter. I ended up going down a rabbit hole of information only to be overwhelmed further and shutting my laptop after getting no where.
Fast-forward to 1.5 years on, I am now what I would call a seasoned mother who is on the hunt for a car seat for my 17-month-old toddler, who seems to have outgrown her current Cybex Cloud Z i-size.
But this time, I’m armed and I know what I’m looking for.
Ideally I would like a car seat that can be used for future babies as well. So, over the course of the next few weeks I’ll be sharing my very honest reviews of a selection of car seats on the market. This week it’s the Amana Siena Twist car seat. How does it compare to the rest? Read on to find out.
Amana Siena Twist
Price: £175 on KiddiesKingdom (price correct at time of writing)
Quick lowdown:
- 360 degree rotation
- 5-point harness system & 3-position recline with front-of-seat adjustment
- Stowable harness for use as a booster and stowable Leg for easy storage
- Suitable rearward facing from birth to 18kg
- Suitable forward facing from 15 months
- ISOFIX System for Easy and safe installation and support leg
The review
Though this car seat is slightly cheaper than the Ickle Bubba Radial i-Size Plus 360 Spin, which is very similar, the materials used are sustainable yet it still looks lavish.
In terms of my first impressions, straight out of the box I noticed how comfortable the car seat would be for my toddler. Like any curious child, she of course dove straight into it and wanted to be strapped in.
While I explored the car seat she happily sat watching TV looking extremely relaxed — which is big for a toddler who doesn’t actually sit still.
The 360 degree rotation was easy to figure out, considering we struggled when we tried to rotate the Ickle Bubba, this one was a lot more user friendly. Alongside this I really like the fact that this car seat can be used for up to 12 years.
What’s great is that it has a booster seat that can be used once your child grows bigger, for me this is really important because when you’re spending so much money on a car seat, it needs to be long lasting.
However, I would knock a point off as though it says it is suitable from birth — I wouldn’t recommend for this car seat for newborns as you cannot remove it from the car if your baby is sleeping.
Also, though it does recline into three positions, for a newborn I feel it doesn’t recline as far as the infant specific car seats, such as my current Cybex Cloud Z.
To conclude, I would recommend this car seat for parents looking for one made with comfortable sustainable materials, with 360 degree rotation that is long-lasting. For the price, as it is cheaper than the Ickle Bubba Radial which has more or less the same specifications, it’s a great budget friendly luxurious looking car seat!
The verdict: 8/10