Graco Contempo
vs.
Safety 1st Vineland

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Graco Contempo

2
Ease of Storage
2
Ease of Clean
2
Ease of Use
2
Ease of Set-up
2
Entertainment for Baby
2
Style

Safety 1st Vineland

Graco Contempo

This sleek and stylish yet functional high chair is a great choice for parents who need a space saver high chair that can fold up extremely slim. The Graco Contempo High Chair folds significantly slimmer. When folded it stands upright on its own and can easily fit in narrow spaces such as your pantry, broom closet or even next to your fridge. When open, this high chair is very easy to use and clean, and has convenient features such as 6 height adjustment and 3 one-hand seat recline positions, premium padded leatherette seat that is a snap to wipe clean (chair also comes with an extra fabric cover), dishwasher-safe pull-out tray insert, etc. And it comes fully assembled, so can be used straight out of the box. This high chair is intended for use with child up to 3 years of age, not to exceed 40 lbs (18 kg).

Safety 1st Vineland

Safety 1st's Vineland solid wood high chair is designed to fit in dining rooms of all styles. It has a classic, wooden look with pleasantly polished cherry finish and a machine-washable, removable seat pad to match. The food tray is plastic, which makes sense as it is a lot easier to clean than wood. It is adjustable and has four positions and a one-hand release mechanism with a special safety feature to prevent your baby from kicking it off. When the tray is removed, the chair remains with a fixed snack tray for desserts. The chair has a three point harness system, and is quite stable on its sturdy wooden legs without being too bulky. All in all, this is a pretty good high chair for babies who can sit on their own.

Ease of Storage

One of the highlights of this high chair is that it is a super space saver. The Contempo High Chair folds to an extremely slim size.

It is very compact, stands upright on its own (no need to lay against a wall), and fits where other highchairs don't.

According to reviews it folds remarkably flat and when folded, can easily fit in a pantry or broom closet of even be slid next to the fridge.
The Vineland doesn't fold neatly away like some of the other baby high chairs. Rather, you'll find it is quite sturdy, but not as big as you'd expect it to be.

In fact, the Vineland is comfortable enough to store without folding, as it doesn't take up a lot of space. Its modest size is a good fit even in a small apartment kitchen.

Ease of Clean

The Graco Contempo is easy to clean, with features like a dishwasher-safe pull-out tray insert (some versions come with 2 insert trays), and easy to wipe-off base tray, quality machine-washable upholstery and a spare seat cover.

According to reviews, the removable seat pad is easily wiped clean and can be machine-washed separately.

Some parents commented that it is a bit difficult to get the cover off for washing and to put it back on again. Also, the extra seat cover provided is fabric, rather than vinyl.

Food can sometimes get caught between the trays, which means the base tray needs to be wiped-clean because it doesn't fit in standard dishwashers. The straps are not removable and cannot be washed in a dishwasher or washing machine, just wiped clean.
The vineland is not an easy to clean high chair. The seat cushion is cloth, so not so easy to wipe down like the vinyl ones. This means that more washings are required for cleaning, especially if your child is a messy eater.

The removable tray is dishwasher safe, so in theory, you can wash it with your other dishes, saving time. In practice, the way the chair's trays snap on to the chair and on top of each other, makes it harder to clean than you would expect.

Ease of Use

This high chair gets very good reviews on its ease of use. It has 6 height adjustments, 3 recline positions that can be manipulated with one hand, an ergonomic base tray with a curved, easy to clean surface and a top tray that slides out smoothly single handedly. It also features a convertible 3 or 5-point harness that you can change according to child's age, with a crotch bar.

The 6 height levels allow you to have your baby at table height or at your level. The easy to use recline provides body support for infants and a comfortable position for feeding or an after-meal bottle or nap. There is also a soft infant head support, for extra comfort.

The double tray is an advantage. You can use both the snap-on top tray and the bottom one. The 5-point harness is also very easy to use and designed for quick removal of the baby when the harness is unsnapped.

There are excellent reviews from parents on the recline feature, the height adjustment mechanism, and the overall ease of use of the Graco Contempo. According to reviews the wheels are easy to roll, although may be squeaky sometimes. Very few reviews mentioned any problem with the castors (wheels) locking system. Some reviewers mentioned that it may be too easy for toddlers to pull up the top tray and spill food. Also the un-adjustable footrest is not very functional.
The Vineland is usually easy and reliable. It is very sturdy and does not topple over easily like some other high chairs. However, it is not adjustable for up or down reclining, and the back of the chair is at amost a 90 degrees angle. This makes the Vineland not very suitable for young children who can not sit on their own.

The food tray has four adjustments and a guard that will not allow a child to put his feet into the tray's adjustment handle. This ensures that your baby will not accidently remove the tray while eating.

The food tray fits well on the chair, and can be adjusted so it is closer or further away from the baby. It is usually quite easy to pull out for cleaning, but doing it single-handedly - while holding your baby - may prove a little difficult.

The three-point harness is confusing for some parents, and may seem low quality. These seem to be isolated incidents and not a recurring issue with the chair.

The seat pad is a little on the thin side, and some parents commented that it could be a little thicker. However, you need to remember that this is a chair for baby, and the thin cushion is probably enough. The seat is attached with velcros, and is easily removable for cleaning.

The Vineland's base is not much broader than its top, meaning that there is ample leg room around it for when you need to put your baby in or take her out of the chair. You don't have to stoop to do it like with some of the other high chairs.

Ease of Set-up

One of the highlights of this product is that it comes fully assembled and can be used straight out of the box.
The Vineland requires a little assembly after you buy it, and it is sold with clear instructions and all the tools you need.

While this is a very sturdy high chair, it is still a breeze to set up. You will usually need 5 to 10 minutes to assemble the chair, and most buyers report that they had no problem whatsoever with it.

The only problem you may encounter with the Vineland's set up is a slight wobble to the chair after assembly is complete. Watch out for this as you put it together and you'll be fine.

Entertainment for Baby

The Graco Contempo doesn't come with any toys. You can purchase toys separately from Graco's Mix n' Match series. Those can be snapped on tray slots and entertain your child before or after their meal.
The Vineland does not have any toys or something similar to entertain your baby when sitting with no food.

Style

The Graco Contempo has a contemporary, sleek and stylish design, and it comes in a variety of modern patterns and more neutral colors. The seat cover is leatherette, which is artificial (synthetic) leather. This chair is a good alternative if you don't like the loud, bright colored, child-like print of the Fisher-Price Rainforest, and it is much more likely to blend in with your kitchen or dining room d�cor.
The Vineland looks very attractive with its elegant, rich, dark wood finish, The wood and the seat pad both look quite good and are of natural, neutral colors. The colors make the chair blend nicely in almost any dining room, regardless of the wall or dining table colors. Unlike many other high chairs, that always look 'baby-ish', the Vineland becomes almost like a real piece of furniture.

When you first lay your eyes on the Vineland it looks a little too bulky. This feeling goes away once you get used to the high chair. When you start using it, you'll find that when it's pulled up towards the table, it is like any other chair - only more sturdy.

The Vineland is not perfect in terms of style. Like many types of wooden furniture, the high chair's wood is soft and may scratch easily. Additionally, some buyers complained that the chair's colors are not exactly as asvertised. The seat pad and removable tray are neutral cream color,unlike in some of the photos.

Graco Contempo

Safety 1st Vineland

Graco Contempo

Average rating: 4.5 / 5
based on 125 customer reviews
Feel factor: 20


Thank you graco

(Score 4/5)

These highchairs are fabulous. I have twins so I had to buy two highchairs. These were not super expensive and they are easy to clean easy to store and fold easily. I can't say enough great things about the pattern as well. A great purchase.

Posted on: 2010-08-30
By Chelsea



Great highchair

(Score 5/5)

We love this highchair. Its very comfortable, SUCH a beautiful design for boy or girl, and easy to wash. My only bad thing to say is that the dishwasher safe tray NEVER fits in the dishwasher..its huge and it doesn't fit right in any dishwasher so if you are looking for a highchair with a easy dishwasher safe tray, probably not the best one. But this chair makes up for it : )

Posted on: 2010-08-28
By Bs Mom



It's fine. but has no extra cover

(Score 3/5)

I bought this high chair because it was the #1 recommended by consumer reports. I like it fine, but it is hard to clean and mine did NOT come with an extra covers as some other reviewers apparently did. I wish I had that extra cover because it does get dirty and needs to be washed regularly. I have a 9 month old and our high chair cover is stained and I am not impressed by how it has held up from being washed -on delicate cycle. I have looked online and as far as I can tell I can't even purchase another cover separately. it also has some crevices on the corners that the removable tray does not cover that get food trapped in them. as far as I can tell they are purely decorative and a little tricky to clean. It does fold nice and flat.

UPDATE: I did obtain an extra cover by calling Graco customer service, but it is a different color. I was surprised when the extra cover was vinyl coated, I wasn't expecting that. But I think I like it better. My advice for others purchasing this high chair would be to check babies R us for discontinued styles for half price, then if you want the machine washable cover make sure it comes with an extra one -some styles do and some don't, so why pay the same price for one without the extra cover? -or get the vinyl coated one.

Posted on: 2010-08-18
By Annie



Very good, but not perfect.

(Score 4/5)

My wife and I read reviews for months on seemingly every new baby piece of equipment available, prior to having our son. We were and are happy with our selection in this highchair, it's living up to its impressive reviews. Although are son is only 4 months old and we haven't started the serious foods and major clean ups, which seems to be the focus of the majority of negative feedback for this chair. No problems with the space it takes when opened, love how well it packs away, and the adjustable seat is a nice feature for the high dining table and low sofa. Needless to say it's early, and the review may change as our son grows and the demands for this chair change. One thing that has come to our attention is the area of the chair behind the tray and at the top, near the hinges. His arms get stuck! (Not Good) design flaw. Thought I had all the safety angles covered. Didn't see this one coming. Watching with a really skeptical eye now. If I become any more uncomfortable with this....c-ya bye!

Posted on: 2010-08-12
By Kim



Great Highchair!

(Score 5/5)

I did a lot of research before purchasing this item. The fabric is really surprisingly easy to clean and is also machine washable. The Rittenhouse model does not come with an extra cover, but they are available in a different pattern from Graco. My favorite feature is that it collapses very thin and can be stored near a wall in my dining room without taking up a lot of space. However, you do need 2 hands to open and collapse this highchair. I always set it up before I pick up my son. The extra tray cover does fit in my dishwasher. The 5-point harness is easy to put on and can be easily converted to a 3-point harness. The harness easily comes off with the press of the button. It's nice to know that if my son starts choking, I can quickly get him out. The T-bar is attached to the small tray, which cannot be removed (this is what the top tray attaches to). I like that it's attached so that my son cannot slip out of the bottom. This was an important safety feature for me.

There are 2 spots located on the tray to attach the Grace Mix n Match toys, which are super hard to find. I ordered the zebra and giraffe toys and my son loves them. The only complaint is that the zebra's feet are too big, which prevents the detachable tray from attaching. But, this has nothing to do with the actual highchair.

All in all, this is a great highchair and I would recommend it to my friends!

Posted on: 2010-08-10
By Anua
Helpful index: 100%

Safety 1st Vineland

Average rating: 4.0 / 5
based on 32 customer reviews
Feel factor: 10


High chair isn't safe.

(Score 1/5)

My son was sitting in this high chair and banged his head on the tray as he fell asleep. He hit his head so hard that the hospital accused me of child abuse. DO NOT BUY THIS HIGH CHAIR if your children fall asleep after eating.

Posted on: 2010-05-23
By Carol Hunt



Nice High chair

(Score 4/5)

This high chair is very beautiful and not too difficult to clean. I got tired of washing the cover so I have him just sitting on the wood. It's a little uncomfortable I'm sure, but he doesn't seem to mind. Overall, this is a great high chair and I highly recommend it.

Posted on: 2010-01-30
By Christy Elam



Would recommened

(Score 5/5)

Bought this as a gift and she loves it still uses it today, 2years later.

Posted on: 2009-08-02
By Ashley Cheramie



Perfect

(Score 5/5)

Really easy to assemble, great price and good quality, I have to say I am quite impressed. I love it. Not to mention it goes well with my house!
However, it is more of a cherrywood color.Definately reccomend it. No sense in spending 150-200 on 'brand name' sort-o speak.

Posted on: 2009-07-10
By Crystal Anderson



Best Real Wood High Chair

(Score 5/5)

We are very satisfied with this high chair. I shopped around a lot and almost settled for a plastic high chair until I found this one. DH assembled it in less than 10 minutes. It is very sturdy, easy to put baby in and out, tray truly moves with one hand, and top tray pops out for easy cleaning. I am so glad we found this chair and didn't settle!

Posted on: 2009-07-06
By C. Briceno

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