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Hmm...if you're looking for encouragement on buying the Graco, it seems like everyone (well, TONS of people) has one! More of my friends use Graco car seats than any other brand. Car seats all have to pass the same inspection to be sold in the U.S., so if that's the seat you want b/c of the swing feature, I say go for it!

On the opposite side, if it's going to constantly bother you that it looks cheap, maybe you should get a nicer one. But I guarantee you're the main person who will notice--no one else will be paying attention to your car seat! We're going w/Britax because it's compatible with the stroller we want, but otherwise I'd probably get a Graco seat.

Everyone I know has a Graco. We are borrowing my friend's since her son's since he only used it for 4 months. She said that it was great. The fabric isn't ideal but for free I can deal. Plus you can always buy a cover on etsy, which we might do.

We have Britax for both infant seat (Chaperone) and Convertible (Boulevard) and I've found them to be excellent quality, easy to use and totally worth the money. I think in situations like this you should follow your instincs and go with your gut.

We had the same experience when we looked at them. In fact, my husband compared the Graco to "lawn chair" quality material. She said the Peg Perego and Gracos were heavier and more difficult to install (not that they're HARD, but not the easiest) with the stroller we went with (an Uppababy Vista). The Peg Perego was much heavier and she said it sits very upright, which is not always good with smaller babies. The Chicco Romantic was less bulky/wide and lighter, too. It also has side impact protection. She said it was the top of the line one to go with. The Graco SnugRide and Chicco Keyfit 30 seem to come in at the top of the lists, though.

I looked to Consumer Reports when making our decision. According to them, Safety 1st had the best crash protection ratings. We decided to go with the Safety 1st Comfy Carry Elite Plus (~$80) due to price, crash protection rating, ease of use and fit to vehicle ratings. It's also one of the lighter car seats (6 lbs), though it's weight restriction is 4 - 22 lbs (whereas other infant car seats can go as high as 35 lbs.

@Adira: I haven't experienced this yet, but I read that most babies will exceed the height requirement before they hit the weight limit anyway, so having a higher weight limit doesn't make much of a difference unless you have a really short chubby baby.

I have nothing else to add to this, I'm just reading for future reference.

When I was researching, Consumer Reports rated Chicco one of the best. I only seriously looked at the Graco 35 and Chicco 30 (since the others seemed too flimsy or too expensive and heavy), and they both seemed about the same. I actually wanted a higher weight limit so we could go longer in it if we wanted to- we just switched at 11 months, almost 30"tall, and 22 lbs. We went with the Chicco, which we are perfectly happy with...my only criticism of it is that you can't set it on top of the shopping carts, not that it's the safest thing either.

I am loving the Graco My Ride 65 for convertible car seats, we call it the "command center"- that thing in my opinion is comparable to the huge Britax seats for way less money! The side protection sold me, but he still has good visibility to see out.

@Adira: it really hadn't been to bad, just a little inconvenient- he trends to fall asleep just as I pull into the grocery store parking lot... I have never been successful at keeping him asleep after moving him from the seat to a baby wearing device during naps.

I've gotten very creative at stacking food around the seat in the grocery cart, so I can do a full stock up even with the carrier

@Foodnerd81: Yes most babies do outgrow the carseat in height before weight. My baby is 7.5 months and weighs about 16.5 lbs but she is already about 28inchs. so she will definitely never reach the weight the 22lb weight limit before we switch seats

The Chicco and Graco Snugride have high safety ratings.