The Cybex Aton is a compact infant seat that is for babies between 4 and 32 pounds and less than 30 inches tall. It is designed to fit in small back seats and features a base with a steel chassis and a tensioning plate that helps achieve solid installation with little effort. The infant carrier weighs just 8.8 pounds and fits tiny newborns well.
Manual
If you have read a few car seat manuals, you know that not all manuals are created equal. The Aton manual is very well laid out with helpful illustrations. The manual covers the installation and use of the Aton as well as proper cleaning of the cover and the harness. The manual also covers using rolled receiving blankets for supporting the body of a tiny newborn. The manual also features good car safety information and recommends that parents keep their children rear facing as long as possible for best protection. In my experiences as a Child Passenger Safety Technician, I have read many, many car seat manuals. The Aton manual is one of the most user friendly and informative manuals I have read. There is a storage spot for the manual on the bottom of the infant carrier with a plastic cover to protect it.
Installation
The Aton base has this great sticker that outlines proper installation of the base. This sticker is not a substitute for reading the manual, it is only intended to be used as a reminder.
To install the base with LATCH you first have to lower the recline foot to expose the LATCH storage. To lower the recline foot, press the orange lever at the foot of the base. The Aton features push on LATCH mini connectors as well as guides to attach to the vehicle lower anchors that make installation even easier. Here you can see the exposed LATCH storage as well as the sticker that reminds parents that not all center seating positions have LATCH. Using LATCH in a seating position that does not allow for its use is a very common and potentially very dangerous installation mistake.
Before installing the Aton, the tensioner plate should be in the open position shown in the picture above. After attaching the LATCH connectors to the LATCH anchors, the slack is to be removed from the LATCH strap but not tightened. The tensioner plate is then closed making the installation acceptably tight. Installations should always be checked at the belt path to ensure that there is no more than 1 inch of movement in any direction.
Installation with the seat belt is similar to the LATCH installation. When installing with the seat belt it is important to not tighten the seat belt so that there is enough slack in the belt to allow the tensioner plate to close. It is important to note that the tensioner plate is not a lock-off. The seat belt must be locked after the tensioner plate is closed.
Infant Carrier Use
The infant carrier comes with an infant insert made from EPS foam under the cover to help the seat better fit babies under 11 pounds. There is also an infant inlay that can be doubled over at the bottom to help the seat better fit a tiny baby better. Cybex recommends that the inlay be used until the baby is 22 pounds or needs more room in the seat. The buckle and chest clip are both easy to operate. Placing the carrier in the base is slightly different with the Aton than it is with other infant car seats on the market. The carrier must be tippled slightly back and then snapped in to place.
Releasing the seat from the base involves a different process than other seats as well. The release is on the back of the base. It is a large, gray rectangular button with a green rectangular button in the center. The green button is pressed and that allows the gray button to be pressed and release the seat so that the seat cannot be accidentally released from the base.
Our lovely model pictured in the Aton is two months old, 12 pounds, and approximately 23 inches long. She was so comfortable in the Aton that she fell asleep shortly after the pictures were taken.
The Aton features a two position Designer Canopy. At first glance it does not appear that the canopy will provide much coverage for the baby but looks can be deceiving.
The Cybex Aton has earn its way on to our list of favorite infant car seats with its ease of installation, lightweight carrier, and well written manual. The safest car seat is the one that fits your vehicle, your child, and can be use correctly every single time. The Aton is compact enough to fit in most vehicles even when at a newborn angle, it fits tiny babies well, and it has many convenience features that make it very easy to use. The 2012 model retails for $249.95 and the 2013 model is available for pre-order and retails for $269.95 through Cybex. Retailers that carry the Aton can be found here.
I bought the cybex anton in May of 2012 for my beautiful baby boy born May 29, 2012.. and I LOVE IT! I do not understand why it is not more widely known or sold… It is an AMAZING car seat … it is lightweight and compact and yet roomy… my son is now 8 months old and he is 95th percentile in height and 60th percentile in weight and he still fits comfortably… although I am starting to have trouble with the straps — but I would absolutely recommend this to any new mom!
CONS: I wish it was more widely known.. because if I had spoken with someone who knew anything about the product line I would have also bought the callisto or onyx stroller rather then investing in an UPPABABY. I was told that a different model (I forget which now because I threw them out) would work equally as well for my anton on the vista stroller –THIS WAS NOT THE CASE. The car seat fell off the stroller – twice – and I never used it again… why twice you ask? Well, the first time I figured it was user error … 2nd time — no way… anyway — if I knew the seat would not fit on that stroller I would have bought a cybex stroller to go with the anton… totally worth it because I would not buy any other car seat given a second chance