I believe the Duo Plus is the 2004 catalog version of the Duo, this being the 2003 version. I haven't found out what the real differences are in practice, although the fabric colours have changed.
Having just bought a second car, and having found it a total pain to keep having to move car seats between the cars, I decided to get a new one for the new car.
OK, so in doing this you can guess that cost wasn't my prime concern, since you could say that two baby seats for one baby is a little extravagant!
I knew that the new car (a Skoda Octavia Estate, which I thoroughly recommend!) had Isofix capability, and I had been considering the seat for sometime. The real problem was finding somewhere local where I could see and try out the seat. It is available from quite a few internet sources at a slightly cheaper price that I paid (179GBP) but i wanted to see it "in the flesh" so to speak.
I finally found one in my local Mothercare store (Slough, Berks) which had recieved it in error in their latest delivery but had decided to put it on the shelf for the day. John Lewis also stock the seat, but haven't had one available when I've been there.
I was 99.9% certain the seat was ok for the car since it is listed on the compatibility sheet on the Britax website (but Ciao guidelines say I shouldn't include the website address - you can guess it!). If you are considering this seat you really MUST check this list first! (Incidentally, this will also tell you if you need to purchase the tether kit, which some cars require for complete installation - Cost about 15GBP I think)
I already have a Britax Rennaisance seat, and it does leave a mark on the seat. The Isofix Duo Plus doesn't which is great - its a new car after all, and with leather unholstery. The Isofix is much lighter, but when installed it is totally rigid, doesn't wobble, and really gives you confidence.
The seat does recline, but not as much as the other Britax I own, however, I think that because the the seat base is smaller, and the child sits lower (closer to the actual car seat) I think there isn't a real lot of difference. I have to say that now that this seat is installed and rarely taken out, we don't recline it at all. When we were constantly moving the other seat between cars, we did use the recline function more - now we don't. Our daughter sits lower down in the actual seat as a result of the smaller base, consequently her feet don't (yet) kick the seat-back in front, which (at the moment) means no scuffing or muddy footprints.
Because the seat fits more rigidly I suppose they have been able to make it a little smaller. It certainly seems so, it fits well, and in the pacific blue unholstery, it looks good. The shoulder strap pads and all the fixings are, in my opinion, an improvement on the already good fixings in our other Britax seat.
So what don't I like? Well I really only have one complaint (although I suppose the cost is high, but then I've already said that this was less of an issue to me), and this is that the seat rattles quite loudly when the child isn't in it. However, it hasn't (so far) been annoying enough for me to investigate to see if I can shut it up a bit.
One thing I can't tell you is how well the seat works if you use the seatbelt fixing method rather than IsoFix, since I haven't used it. I suppose I might if I were to need to put it in a friend's car for the day or something. However, I view that as a secondary consideration, and will trust Britax that its OK. Let's face it, you aren't going to buy this seat if you don't have IsoFix in your car!
Finally, we now have another little one on the way, and I can see myself buying another of these seats before the year is out. That's probably the best recommendation you'll get in this market... a repeat purchase!
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Giving you the flexibility of two installation options the ISOFIX system or a 3-point ... more
seat-belt installation. The ISOFIX system anchors the child seat directly to the car offering maximum protection, while our unique Pivot link system reduces the chil...
Postage & Packaging: free Super Saver Delivery Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
Giving you the flexibility of two installation options the IsoFix system or a 3-point ... more
seat-belt installation. The IsoFix system anchors the child seat directly to the car offering maximum protection, while our unique pivot link system reduces the chil...
Postage & Packaging: free Super Saver Delivery Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
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