Massage Chair Comparison: A Review of Different Massage Chairs

Massage chairs are an increasingly common item in many homes. Although they are still generally to be considered as a luxury item rather than a necessity, the price and quality of many massage chairs on the market far outstrips the quality of such items 10 years ago. But before buying a massage chair, it is worth comparing a few different ones, so here are some of the leading contenders.

Sanyo has a particularly good reputation for customer service with its massage chairs, and that is an excellent starting point. Zero-gravity doesn’t mean that the chair can defy the effects of gravity, but it does mean that the chair can put you in the same position that the body, according to NASA (and they know more than us!) naturally relaxes into in zero gravity conditions. The sensors in the chair are able to identify the relative stiffness of the body and response by massaging those areas in particular, and with a multitude of different programs and a high-quality finish, it truly is an excellent massage chair.

Any chair that comes with a built in MP3 facility has to be seen to be believed, although one may assume that anyone who can afford over $4000 for a massage chair can probably afford (and already probably has) their own MP3 player, but it’s a nice touch. Customer again is excellent from Omega is it was from the Sanyo. Again, the Omega has built-in sensors (including infra-red) in order to be able to deliver the right kind of massage to the right part of the body with the right level of sensitivity, including special features for foot massage.

At first glance, you could be forgiven for not realizing that the Human Touch 1650 is a massage chair, such is its traditional look, especially in contrast with the more futuristic look of the Omega Montage as mentioned above. The way it is designed, it would be much more easy to use as a standard chair if you just happened to need somewhere to sit and didn’t want the massage features at any given point. Of course, as you would expect in a chair in its range, it does have a considerable number of massage features for the discerning user. There are a variety of settings for massaging the calves and feet, very helpful after a long day on your feet. Along with the remote control this is a very intuitive and accomplished chair, although if you are taller you may prefer the Sanyo or Omega mentioned above.

The second Human Touch in our review has the same zero gravity feature as the Sanyo mentioned at the very beginning, looking more like a massage chair and less like a traditional chair than the previous Human Touch offering. The HT-7450 has particular features to help in taking stress off the back in its programs, and has two built in heaters for warming the lumbar region in particular. The massage chair comes with a three year warranty for parts and five years for the structure of the chair, which means that the consumer can be assured of the chair’s operation in the first few years.

It is hard to come up with one simple winner in this test, and in fact there will be two. If money is no object and you want a massage chair to look like a massage chair, then the clear winner in this review is the Sanyo HEC-DR7700K Zero-Gravity Massage Chair for its luxury, specifications and customer services. If you want your massage chair to look more like a traditional chair, but still to have enough features to be worthwhile, then you would be best served by the Human Touch 1650 Massage Chair.