Car Seat Troubles

I have been researching the next stage of car seat for what seems like forever.  Luckily, Parker is tiny so he's still in his bucket seat and can probably stay in it for at least a few more months.  But at some point, he does need to be a big boy and move up to the next stage!

That's a lot of carseats in one vehicle!

There are so many things to consider!  Safety, price, comfort, ease of use.... And I don't know what is most important.  I obviously want a safe car seat, but really they all have to pass safety standards.  So then the main issue is price.  Obviously there is a reason that a $300 seat is as expensive as it is, but is it really worth that amount of money?  We need at least 2 car seats, so spending $300 on each isn't really an option.

I would love to have a seat that can be taken in and out of the car easily, which seems to be what most convertible seats are lacking.  This means more money typically it seems, so how important is this?  

At some point I'm going to have to take the plunge and just buy one.  I'm not desperate yet, but at the same time if one is on sale that is a good seat I should be buying it.

The seat that keeps catching my eye is the Evenflo Symphony.  It converts all the way to a booster, has an 8 year expiry and it looks like it goes in and out of the car easily.  It does say that it's a bit wide, and this isn't an issue now, but if we have to put another seat in my tiny civic at some point it might become an issue!

Comment and let me know what car seat you bought and why!  I'm in desperate need of input from other mommies!