I was contacted by
Combi a few weeks ago to review their new
Catalyst Stroller. It looked amazing, so of course I said "yes!" To my surprise when the delivery man pulled up, he had 2 boxes for me from Combi. The Combi Catalyst Stroller PLUS the matching Shuttle Infant Car Seat!
I got the infant car seat out of the box and stroller set up (set up was SO easy!!) and then stood back and admired the beauty before me. Lately I have been telling my husband that I finally understand why some men desire a garage filled with a number of different vehicles because with every stroller I review, I desire more and more for my own garage to house LOTS of strollers! They are like a work of art to me, and the Catalyst was no exception. It has such a modern, chic look to it! I also loved the red color in this set.
This stroller pushes with ease! I really liked that you can adjust the length of the push handle. Another thing I loved about this stroller is that you can have it lay completely flat (great for sleeping kids and babies!) and of course it can be adjusted to sit up so your children can look out and see the world. Jacob, my 4 month old, really seemed to like laying in this stroller!
Now, most of my readers know that we are a family with 2 young children who generally both need to ride in the stroller. I also just got a brand new infant car seat (to match my double stroller) before my 4 month old, Jacob was born. So I decided, as much as I WANTED to keep this set for myself, it would not get used as much as it deserved, so I wanted to find someone who could really get some use out of it. About a month after my son was born, my sister gave birth to my nephew Levi, and I thought he was the perfect candidate for this set!
I called my sister to see if she was interested (and of course, she was!) and she even offered to review it for all of you. So, without further ado, here's what my sister Jen had to say about the Combi Catalyst Stroller and
Shuttle Car Seat!
When a parent goes to pick out a
stroller and/or car seat for their child most never think they will
be faced with so many different styles, brands, and accessory
choices. For the past 4 years and for my first two children, I had a
Graco travel system. I choose Graco because frankly, it seemed to be
what everyone else was choosing at the time and my local Target
didn’t really offer any other choices. Don’t get me wrong, it is
a great system and I still use and recommend Graco products. But now
I have my hands on the Combi Catalyst Stoller and Car seat.
I’ll start my review with the car
seat. My son, Levi, who just turned 3 months absolutely, LOVES this
car seat. And I must say, as a Mom whose first priority was safety, I
love it as well. The material used in making the base of the car seat
looks and feels so much stronger and more secure than any previous
car seat I have used. Surprisingly though, it is still very light.
The fabric used on the car seat cleans very easily (I know this
because my 3-year old dripped milkshake on it within the first 24
hours of using it) with a simple damp cloth or baby wipe. Levi fits
very snugly in the car seat as well and perhaps that is why he loves
it so much. My husband can attest that he loves the fact that he can
move the 2nd base (the one you attach to the seat of your
vehicle that holds the car seat itself) easily from our different
vehicles. It clicks very easily into place which makes it great for a
mulit-car family. All in all, I love this car seat and I wish I had
had it for my other two children. Not only does Levi feel secure in
it but I feel secure in knowing that he will be safe when traveling.
It is lighter than seems possible for how well it is made, and the
fabric is very breathable but also very plush.
I would highly
recommend this car seat to anyone!
The Combi Catalyst is first off an
eye catcher. No one can deny that walking your little one down the
street in this stroller makes you feel like a million bucks because
this stroller LOOKS like a million bucks. It is brightly colored and
smartly styled. There are many great features with this stroller, a
few I did not love, but over all a great stroller. I’ll start with
what I liked about it. Aside from its appearance, my favorite feature
is the removable bassinet. Levi has fallen asleep on every walk and
it makes it so easy, once we get home, to just take the bassinet
off, and take him inside without disturbing his sleep. The stroller
also features a very large umbrella top which shields him from the
sun extremely well and the little see-through vent in the back lets
me enjoy watching him sleep. I also love that it has a very big
basket on the bottom for storage. I like to shop the outlet mall so
having a place to put my purse, the diaper bag, and also my shopping
bags is a huge plus! The stroller itself glides very easily and turns
on a dime. One feature my husband loves is that you can adjust the
handle of the stroller itself, which means he isn’t hunched over
pushing our son like he used to be in our old stroller.
There were a few things I would change
if I could about the Combi Catalyst stroller. The stroller itself can
be put in three different locking positions depending on the child’s
age, but I had a very hard time getting it to click into place from
the bassinette position to the 3rd position. I took me a
few tries and a bit of pressure until I finally got it. The other
thing I found difficult was removing the bar that is in place for the
bassinet. Actually I tried a few times but rather than break a
nail, I decided to wait till Levi wasn’t going to be using the
bassinet feature and remove it then. It doesn’t have any cup
holder or areas built in to hold my cellphone or my keys; however
this can be easily solved by buying the accessory attachment.
Lastly, the bassinet and the car seat both do attach to the
stroller, however if you want to use the car seat with the stroller
you have to attach a separate metal piece that holds the car seat in
place and then take it off again if you want to use the bassinet
attachment. Basically what this means is you should decide before you
excursion which feature you want to use – otherwise you will need
to take with you the car seat attachment with you as well.
Overall, I do love the
Combi Catalyst and would recommend it to anyone. Our old Graco has
since been retired to Grandma’s house. I think the Combi
Catalyst stroller is probably most ideal for households with
only one child, or at least only one child that is still using a car
seat. That way you avoid the different steps you will need to take to
adjust it for different aged children. But for now, Levi is in love
and I’m in love with the fact that he does so well with it and that
my husband enjoys using it without throwing his back out. Thank you
Combi for some great features!
To find out more about the Catalyst stroller or Shuttle Car Seat from Combi, visit their website at
http://combiusa.com/. Click on the
store locater to find a retailer near you to purchase this set for yourself!
