The design team at Graco is a master at creating booster seats that are easy to use, well-priced, long-lasting, and provide an excellent belt fit. The Affix is a cousin of the much loved TurboBooster, but adds lower anchors to an already popular seat. AND! It’s now available in Canada so we’re updating this review so reflect the key differences between the United States and Canadian versions of the seat.
CSFTL Quick Stats
- High back booster weight range, United States: 30-100 pounds
- High back booster weight range, Canada: 40-100 pounds
- High back booster height range, United States: 38-57 inches tall
- High back booster height range, Canada 40-57 inches tall
- Backless booster weight range: 40-100 pounds
- Backless booster height range: 40-57 inches
- Highest booster guide position: 20 inches
- Expiration: 10 years
Features
- Lower Anchor connectors
- Integrated cupholder
Measurements
- Width at widest point (front of seat including built in cupholder): 18 inches
- Width at armrests: 16.5 inches
- Weight: 9 pounds in high back mode
- Weight: 6 pounds in backless mode
- Internal width at the child’s hips: 10 inches
- Internal width at the child’s knees: 15 inches
- Seat pan depth: 15 inches in backless mode
- Seat pan depth: 13.5 inches in highback mode
Carpooling Essentials
- Easy to set up without (very much or any) adult assistance
- Easy to carry
- Consistent belt fit
The Affix is not prone to falling apart when it’s moved between vehicles. For kids who bring their own boosters to carpools this small detail makes a huge difference!
Versions of the Affix
The Graco Affix comes in two versions: with the back and backless. The manual lists some low minimum age limits for use: 3 years old for high back mode in the United States, 4 for backless mode, 4 years old for either mode in Canada. CSFTL advocates that children be at least 5 years old before moving from a harnessed car seat to a booster seat. We’ve found that children who are younger than 5 years old lack the skeletal and emotional maturity to sit correctly on a consistent basis.
Features
Shoulder Belt Guide
Graco booster seats have an easy-to-use shoulder belt guide. The shoulder belt guide may sound like a small thing, but a well designed shoulder belt guide can make a huge difference in how well a booster seat works for families.
The Affix features a well designed shoulder belt guide that allows the belt to move freely. Once the vehicle seat belt is threaded through the belt guide, the top portion secures the belt in the guide. The guide is also nice and wide, which makes threading the vehicle seat belt through easy for adults and kids alike.
Headrest Placement
There’s a wide range of requirements around headrest placement among booster seats so it’s important to take note of the requirement for your child’s booster seat. These requirements are written in the manual (and in our reviews, if we’ve spent some time with your particular seat!).
The manual of the Affix specifies that the bottom of the headrest be even with the top of the child’s shoulders in high back booster mode. This ensures proper shoulder belt positioning and head support.
Lower Anchor Connectors
The Affix includes lower anchor connectors. Lower anchor connectors keep the seat secured while the child is not in it. This saves the kiddo, or the caregiver , from having to remember to buckle the booster in once they get out of the vehicle. An unsecured booster becomes a projectile in a crash if the booster isn’t carrying a passenger!
Assembly
The high back Affix ships unassembled. The box includes the base, armrests, cup holder, and the seat back as separate pieces.
Here’s how to put it all together:The armrests are labeled left and right. Snap each one into the corresponding armrest on the seat’s base.
Once the armrests are attached, place the base and back on the floor, then align the hinges from the back portion of the seat with the hinges on the back of the base of the seat. After they’re attached. hold on to the base of the seat, and move the back portion of the seat upright to secure the back of the seat to the base of the seat.
Cupholder Storage
The backless version of the Affix ships with the cupholder hidden underneath the seat in a tidy little compartment. Remove the cupholder from that compartment and attach it to the seat. Then you’re ready to go!
Installation
The Affix includes standard j-hook style lower anchor connectors that are mounted on two separate flexible webbing straps. To install the Affix with the lower anchors, place the booster on the vehicle seat in a seating position that has LATCH and attach each connector to the vehicle’s lower anchor. To tighten the lower anchor connector straps, pull the two straps at the front of the seat.
The lower anchor connectors are a convenience feature — they provide no additional protection to the child. Utilising the lower anchor connectors on a booster seat prevents you or the child from having to remember to buckle the seat when not in use.
Space Saver
The Affix widest is at the front of the seat. It measures 18.5 inches wide at that point, including the integrated cupholder. Extending the snack holder adds another 2.5 inches to the seat’s width, making it 20.5 inches at the front edge of the seat. The back of the base is a narrow 16 inches wide.
Though the Affix’s seat pan is not overly wide, it’s fairly deep. It’s 13.5 inches deep in high back mode and 15 inches deep in backless mode. This allows for a lot of leg support for the occupant, and reduces the probability that a child will slide forward in the seat.
Vehicle Headrest Support: Not Required
The Affix does not require headrest support from the vehicle head restraint behind it when used in high back mode. Like all backless boosters, the backless Affix requires head support from the vehicle to the tops of the child’s ears.
Fit to Child
High Back Mode
5 Years Old
Our first model is 5 years old, 46 inches, and 49 pounds. This is the first booster he has ever used. He found the Affix comfortable and has asked to ride in this seat regularly instead of his five point harnessed car seat.
The vehicle seat belt fits him properly. The lap belt is low on his hips and touching his thighs, and the shoulder belt crosses his collar bone with the belt guide above his shoulder.
6 Years Old
This model is 6 years old, weighs 55 pounds, and is 47 inches tall. The Affix fit her equally well and she’s got plenty of room to grow.
10 Years Old
At 10 years old, this 70 pound, 53 inch tall model doesn’t have a lot of room in high back mode. Fully extended, the headrest just barely positions the shoulder belt above her shoulder, but she was very impressed with the comfort and fit. She liked it so much, she asked if she could keep the booster, which we took as a great sign!
Backless Booster Mode
6 Years Old
This model is 6 years old, weighs 55 pounds, and is 47 inches tall. The Affix fit her as well in backless mode as it did in high back mode. and she’s got plenty of room to grow. She is a regular booster rider who’s tried a number of different booster seats and she was comfortable in the Affix in both high back and backless modes.
10 Years Old
This 10 year old model weighs 70 pounds and is 53 inches tall. She’s got enough room in this seat to ride comfortably for some time yet, possibly until she can pass the Five Step Test.
The lower anchor connectors kept the seat in place. The wide open belt guide and roomy armrests made it easy for both of these models to buckle.
The Affix comes with a seat belt adjuster when used in backless mode, but we have not yet run into any scenarios where we needed to use it to achieve a proper belt fit.
Important Information: Where to Find
All of the key labels and manual storage are found on the bottom of the backless portion of the Affix.
FAA Approval Like all booster seats, the Graco Affix requires a lap/shoulder belt to use, so therefore is not FAA approved. The backless portion is light enough that it could be a great travel option. Just carry it on board the aircraft, store it in the overhead bin, then use in the car at your destination.Expiration The Affix expires 10 years from the date of manufacture. The sticker with the model number and date of manufacture is on the bottom, right by the compartment that is used to store the cupholder. The expiration information is moulded into the plastic on the bottom of the seat.
Manual Storage There is a storage spot on the bottom of the Affix to keep the manual neatly tucked into the seat.
Pros
- Easy to adjust
- Lightweight
- Has lower anchors
Cons
- Width/size make it a less viable option for 3-across situations than some other boosters
Overall Thoughts
The Affix offers a consistent belt fit for all of our models in both high back and backless modes. Our models preferred the high back mode for additional comfort, and we would recommend this mode for younger (5-8 year old) booster riders for the additional support.
We had a hard time finding any drawbacks to the Affix. It’s reasonably priced, easy to use, and fits a variety of children well. And now, it’s available in Canada and the United States!
The Affix is available at Amazon.com.