APRAMO ONE Review

Quick Summary: The fact that this car seat can last you for twelve years of safety in the car is impressive. No measuring or weighing required here to see when you need to move on to the next stage!

With lots of features to keep your child comfortable, the APRAMO ONE™ could be the only car seat that you ever need to purchase, as it will last from birth to 36kg and through Groups 0, 0+, 1, 2 and 3. Apramo have also decided to keep the harness in up to 25kg due to the safety benefits, which is great for parents who have escapee children!

Installation in the vehicle

Suitable for fitting in your car with ISOfix and the top tether or with your car's own seat belt, it will fit the majority of cars. We've found it really easy to fit in if your car has ISOfix anchors and APRAMO provide ISOfix guides to make it even easier. The ISOfix arms are hidden inside of the car seat and you use the strap at the back of the base to extend them. Once extended, you can slot them on to your ISOfix anchors and there's a red and then green indicator to let you know that all is connected. Once you've fitted the ISOfix, it's then just a case of pushing the seat until it touches the backrest of the vehicle seat, and connecting the top tether strap, which offers more stability. Rear facing, the strap goes through the metal lock off and red guide at the top of the seat and then past the side of the seat to the rear of the car, forward facing it can go directly over the back of the seat to attach. When using the ONE™ rear facing, you will need to keep it in the most reclined position.

After passing the tether strap through the middle of the headrest, you can attach it to the car's anchorage point, which is usually on the back of the seat through the boot, or on the floor. You need to tighten it until the indicator turns green.  

Although there is a big push in the industry at the moment for extended rear facing, the ONE™ only rear faces up to 13kg or Group 0+, so the same as your average infant carrier. This is a shame as would have been a great benefit for the car seat over other products in the market.

If your car doesn't feature ISOfix points, then you can still fit it with your vehicle's own seat belt. The lap part of the belt slides through the belt guides on the base of the seat, and then you can fasten the buckle. After removing any slack, the shoulder part of the belt needs to pass diagonally through the two red belt guides. When you have tightened it as much as possible, lock them off. It's pretty much the same way of fitting for both rear and forward facing with the vehicle's seat belt.

Once your child has outgrown the need for harness fitting, they can use the APRAMO ONE™ using just the car's own seat belt. The harness needs to be removed using the plastic flap at the back of the seat to access. Though it may take a while to do, you will only need to do it the once when you're child reaches either 15kg, or the higher weight of 25kg. For Group 2 and 3 fitting, the ISOfix is optional and up to the user if they want to secure it to the vehicle this way. When the child is sat in the seat, pull the car's seatbelt around and buckle it. Then tuck both the shoulder and lap part of the belt through the red belt guide on the buckle side. The other side of the belt needs to have the lap part through the other red belt guide and the shoulder part in the belt guide near the headrest.  

Day-to-day use

The thing that strikes you on first examination is the beautiful BREATHEX™ fabrics and cushioning. It comes with an inlay to keep a newborn fully supported, which is then removable as they grow. There's also lots of the padding on the seat itself and the shoulder pads of the harness. The covers of the seat are completely removable should they need a wash, which is likely if you're using the seat for twelve years! The design of the car seat is completely transformed when you switch stages. As a Group 0+ car seat, the reclined seat looks egg shaped and rounded, whereas it looks tall and sleek forward facing with the headrest extended.

One of the best features on the APRAMO ONE™ is the swivel. Offering 360° rotation, it makes getting your child in and out of the seat so much easier. More than one of us in the office are guilty of bumping our child's head as we try and lift them in! Being able to swivel the car seat to the door means that there is no climbing in or leaning over required, and you can make sure that your child is safely secured in their harness. It's also easy to swivel the seat once your child is ready to convert from rear to forward facing without removing the seat from the car. By pressing the button at the front of the base, the seat swings round and locks into position. Make note though, if you are fitting the ONE™ with your car's own seat belt, you won't be able to use the rotating feature without removing the seat belt first, which is a slight pain and somewhat puts a dampener on this great feature. You will also need to remove or loosen the top tether when the seat is forward facing before you are able to swivel it.

We love that the five point harness on the ONE™ can be used up to the higher weight limit of 25kg. The usual for car seats is 18kg, which may already be reached by three years old. Parents might not be ready for a child this young to start using the car's own seat belt. Lengthening the harness is done by pressing the button at the front of the seat, with a strap to tighten again. The harness is connected with the headrest, so you can adjust it all in one movement by pulling up on the lever at the back, or the adjusting ring at the top.

Even toddlers can need naps in the car, and the APRAMO ONE™ can keep a child comfortable with five recline positions when forward facing. This is done by lifting the lever under the front edge of the seat. When rear facing as a Group 0+ car seat from birth, it needs to be kept fully reclined, with arrows to line up at the side of the seat to show where this is.

Our verdict...

The fact that this car seat can last you for twelve years of safety in the car is impressive. No measuring or weighing required here to see when you need to move on to the next stage! It's easy to convert too, from the fully reclined, rearward facing Group 0+, to Group 3 using the car's own seat belt. It's a flexible option for families with one or more cars, or who have family members that help out, as it can be installed in the car with both ISOfix and the vehicle seat belt.

Features such as the 360° rotation make life so much easier, when you're swivelling it round to place your newborn and especially in a slim car parking spot. The fact that you can only use the swivel feature when your little one is rear facing, without having to adjust the seat belt or top tether does limit the benefits slightly. Even with the top tether designed to give extra security and stability in the car, there is still quite a bit of movement of the top part of the car seat on the base.

Our one main complaint with the car seat is that it only rear faces to 13kg. With this being the safer way for little ones to travel, it would give this long lasting car seat a great advantage.