They are 5-10x cheaper than the big brand ones sold at the offline stores? They look like booster seats, but the description says "suitable for under 5, below 15kg". Are they safe and licensed to be sold in Australia??
E.g.: https://www.dicksmith.com.au/da/buy/smartlife-mumugongzhu-co…
Searching for it on YouTube brought up this one designed in Germany, made in China, sold in the UK and, oddly enough, has a kangaroo as its logo. The reviewer there uses it with her 2-yo, and the description on Amazon says it's "suitable for children weighing 9-18 Kg."
Update 1: Many commenters here referred to AS/NZS 1754. Indeed "it is illegal to use an overseas model or restraint that doesn’t meet this standard." Isn't it odd, though, that North American and European standards are deemed illegal, while the Australian one is put on a pedestal? Seems like a protection racket to me. NZ doesn't make that distinction.
Update 2: Further evidence that there may be a material (i.e. $$) incentive for North American and European standards to be made illegal in Australia is that the main source of safety rating people use (www.childcarseats.com.au) is a .com domain. OTOH, for those who say "safety is paramount" while also saying "just make sure it meets Australia's super rigorous requirements", have a look at what that very same source has to say about it (emphasis mine):
All child car seats on this website meet the Australian Standard AS/NZS 1754. However, this sets the minimum safety requirements for child car seats, and CREP encourages consumers to choose and use child car seats that far exceed these minimum requirements.
Update 3: In further researching this issue of standards, I found this recommendation (in a US website) quite interesting:
If you can safely keep your child in a harnessed car seat for a while longer, do it. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that kids use a car seat until they reach the maximum height or weight for that five-point harness. This is usually not until at least age five. Three-year-olds are not ready to ride in a booster seat, even if they fit within the manufacturer's height and weight guidelines. …
Many convertible and harness-to-booster car seats have harnesses rated to hold kids up to 65 pounds. In fact, children in the U.S. today can often stay in a harnessed car seat until age six or beyond. Thanks to advances in car seat safety technologies, four-year-olds that might have been moved into a booster 10 years ago can still safely ride in a rear-facing car seat.
Even fairly tall children can remain rear-facing through toddler years and then switch to a forward-facing harness until kindergarten age. For most kids, even those in the 95th percentile for weight or height, there shouldn’t be a reason to move to a booster before age five.
Update 4: Upon recommendation from a few of us here, I did send the query to Kogan regarding AS/NZS 1754 certification, and Kogan responded passing it on to the seller. To those concerned with my son's safety, I thank you and trust you may be assured to find out I just bought the InfaSecure Rover from Baby Bunting for $169 (minus 3.5% cashback and $10 COTD voucher).
No way I'd use any child seats that hasn't been tested in Australia and approved for use here.
They cheapest ones are like $150 odd at Target.