Carkoon, the most advanced car seat protection or just a marketing ploy?

We all want what's best for our children and like we all know, rear facing car seats are the safest for young children. Currently car seats can vary in price starting from as little as £50 to £250. When I had to buy one for my first child, I went for the best one that was available at that time (MaxiCosy) together with the base for £120 and it was highly rated by Which magazine which gave me more confidence. It made life so much easier but if I didn’t have a budget then there was also one for over £200. Usually babies use their first car seat until they are around one years old so it would've been a silly price to pay for a car seat that would be used for only a year.

There isn't much difference when it comes to choosing a car seat as they are all pretty much the same - a harness, sun shade, side impact cushioning and a newborn insert. But if you could have a top of the range car seat, would you? A revolutionary car seat called Carkoon will be available soon but with a whopping price tag of £500. I wonder how many people will actually be queuing up to buy one.

What is Carkoon?

Carkoon is a new car seat for young children; it provides a protective shell around the infant if the vehicle was to be involved in an accident. The bubble also provides 20 minutes of air and is fireproof. One of the main features is it will also alert emergency services should the vehicle be involved in an accident. With a transmitter including the GPS, co-ordinates of the baby and vehicle can easily be tracked down and reached. The seat can also be swivelled round for easy access putting the baby in and taking the baby out unlike other car seats available. There is also an emergency release button to quickly release the child from the car seat if needed to hastily.

Critics have slammed the Carkoon as just another trendy expensive car seat to show off how much money you have and to be honest £500 for a car seat that can only be used for around a year is a little expensive. Also if it is involved in an accident it is useless, you are advised to buy a new one. It is also very unattractive in my opinion as it looks like a torture device that is used for suffocating a baby. Collisions are also more common head on so a rear facing car seat would be unaffected. Also the website for this car seat is a condescending saying that if a mother can have a designer handbag or iPad, then the best car seat should be purchased too. Have they forgotten that we are in a recession, there are hardly enough jobs out there! I personally don't like companies that try and make you feel bad for not purchasing their products. I know many people who lived the high life before but are having to make sacrifices now, so for £499 the Carkoon gets the thumbs down from me.