I've never experienced a workout quite so rigorous as the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last week. The world's largest innovation event spans 1.8 million square feet of exhibit space. For three eight-hour days, I schlepped my laptop and camera bag across the thinly carpeted floors. My body, fueled by coffee and Clif bars, ached and fatigued quickly. Unsure how I would survive the convention, I set out to review every luxury massage chair I encountered at CES. My mission gave me an opportunity to break from walking and receive much needed, therapeutic relief. It was a wild success. Here are my favorite chairs, ranked least to best: 4. Daiwa's Relax 2 Zero Chair Pro: The Relax 2 Zero chair by Daiwa uses air bag technology to relieve muscle tension from head to toe. The bags inflate and deflate, gently pushing the body from side to side. Con: The pressure was a little much for me, however, and I winced several times when the bags pinched my arms and legs too tightly.
The materials felt cheap, as well, which became the most apparent during the foot massage. The rollers in the foot cradle felt like a bag of marbles held in a Ziploc baggie. 3. Adako's Zenith Chair Pro: Adako's "zero-gravity" Zenith chair is a dream for those who appreciate a good glutes massage. The chair's L-shaped roller track travels from the neck to the hamstrings, delivering concentrated pressure at the body's intersection: the buttocks. Plus, with a price tag under $8,000, the Zenith chair is the most affordable one I tried. Con: While the glutes massage was out of this world, the chair provided an unmemorable experience for my other body parts. Plus, the L-shaped track limits its reclining capability. 2. Inada's DreamWave Chair Cost: $9,499 ($10,499 for the TruBlack Leather model) Pro: Stepping into Inada's DreamWave chair is like getting a hug. The chair provides 1,200 square inches of coverage — more than any chair on the market, according to Inada USA President Cliff Levin — so it gives the illusion of cradling you.
Its 16 pre-programmed sessions means there's an experience for everyone. I prefer a gentle Shiatsu massage, and the Stretch session tugged at my limbs lightly and comfortably. Con: The DreamWave chair's pervasive coverage trapped my body heat and made me sweaty. My biggest concern, however, is the near $10,000 price. Pro: Infinity is massage chair royalty, and in fact, a sales manager at a rival company's booth recommended I check them out. After a few minutes in the IT-880, I understood why. Infinity chairs feature one of the longest roller tracks on the market, so it cups the head and gives a mind-blowing crown massage. The chair also inverts, lifting the legs above the upper body and improving circulation and blood flow. The clincher here is in the price tag: Infinity's IT-8800 comes in more than $3,000 cheaper than Inada's DreamWave chair. Con: N/A — If I had that much money sitting around, my first call would be to Infinity. Pro: Tware's AiraWear is a massage vest that fits underneath your jacket.
Small, inconspicuous motors inflate and deflate the vest from the inside, providing for a therapeutic compression massage. The wearer can choose a program from the company's app, which communicates with the vest over Bluetooth, and select the intensity. Con: The vest doesn't apply much pressure, and instead, replicates the feeling of an iPhone vibrating in your back pocket. While it's a fun novelty item, you're better off booking a massage appointment. We don't send spam and you can unsubscribe at any time. Sanyo Massage Chair Review As part of our feature on the Ideal Home Show 2012, our Sarah tried out the Zero-Gravity Massage Chair made by Sanyo. We spoke to Kelvin from Sasaki Bodycare to find out more. Sanyo's Therapeutic Massage Chair: At the Ideal Home Show 2012, our Sarah tried out a pretty impressive massage chair. It was the Sanyo Therapeutic Massage Chair, and it's a very clever product. Whereas most massage chairs run a single programme with some minor variations, this chair is the only one to detect your tension spots to give you a personalised massage, to ease away the aches and pains of the day.
The chair's display shows you your stress and stiffness points, and gives you control over the massage: There are three models of chair available, the 7 Series, 5 Series and 3 Series, and if you're interested, you can arrange for a free home demonstration. For more information on the Sanyo Zero Gravity massage chairs, contact UK distributors www.sasaki.co.uk. At the show, we spoke to Kelvin from Sasaki, to find out how the chair works its magic: Sarah gets an awesome massage from the Sanyo Zero Gravity Massage Chair (4 mins) Here are a couple of pictures of our Sarah, relaxing and relieving stiffness in the Sanyo Zero-Gravity Massage Chair: Sanyo Massage Chair - Featured in Show 74 Ideal Home Show 2012 Round-up Ideal Home Show - Show 74 TranscriptTop positive reviewSee all 256 positive reviewsWe already have another massaging chair from the same manufacturer, the HoMedics SBM-600H-GB Shiatsu Ultimate Back and Shoulder Massager and although it still gets used occasionally, it has always been more a question of tolerance rather than pleasure.
Its bigger brother CBS-1000 is in a different league, however, without a shadow of a doubt a better designed product and absolutely worth the extra. If you're thinking of getting the SBM-600H.....well, don't. Buy this one instead. Sorry to repeat this, but it is worth the additional expense and is unlikely to disappoint, while the much cheaper SBM-600H is a false economy.Sometimes there's a fine line between the two, and this Shiatsu massaging chair demonstrates that (very) physically. It will pleasure you, but it will push you to the limit. You'll take it though, because you'll think it's doing your body some good. Your kidneys might not forgive you, mind.Like the SBM-600H, the benefits of this device vary considerably according to the angle of incline, and the one that won't work (for me, anyway) is an upright one. Not good in a dining chair, for example, or should I say the best it can do will be unattainable. Far better, in my opinion, to place it in an armchair and better yet one with a variable recline facility.
I tried it with the armchair back well down to near horizontal, and while this presumably places a lot of demands on the device for the more amply proportioned amongst us - I'm around 100kg for example - the CBS-1000 seems totally up to the task and feels strong at all times.There are two fundamental options: Rolling and Shiatsu. Each one can be refined to whole back, upper back only or lower back only. There are two additional options, those being heat and vibration. The vibration is great but I wish it could be applied to more than just the seat area, because there is little or no sensation of vibration in the back itself, where I would have thought it might be most needed or appreciated.The Rolling option is quite simple in that the application is purely vertical, an up-down pressure to either side of the spine. Compared to Shiatsu, it's quite mild but still gets you gasping as it rolls over the most delicate sections - for me that means over and near to the kidneys, the softer area below the shoulders and ribs and above the pelvis.
Good stuff, especially with heat application.The Shiatsu option is the real thing though, or at least much closer to providing a real Shiatsu experience compared to its cheaper sibling in the range. In addition to the vertical rolling, you get a rotating massage that creates more of a 360-degree up-down-left-right manipulation which to be honest can be almost violent at times but again it feels as if it's doing some good. You know how, in so many different vocations and walks of life, you're supposed to go through pain to arrive at pleasure? This machine ably demonstrates that philosophy.There are other adjustments you can make, all via the corded remote control, each designed for you to tailor the massage to your own shape, needs or preferences.It's an impressively powerful piece of equipment, more robust and substantial than initial impressions might give. It may not literally be the real thing, but the compromises are reasonable given its compact size, portability and in my view very reasonable price.
This is the one to have. Top critical reviewSee all 55 critical reviews TopMost recentRollin' Rollin' Rollin', yaw hideWhat's this?We already have another massaging chair from the same manufacturer, the HoMedics SBM-600H-GB Shiatsu Ultimate Back and Shoulder Massager and although it still gets used occasionally, it has always been more a question of tolerance rather than pleasure. This is the one to have.A massaging chair with loads of settingVery good product - not reallyOh my word! Next Best Thing to a Masseur ?Much better than expectedwell worth itExcellent product with firm massaging mechanism My husband has a bad back from an injury in his twenties and picking ...Get fast answers from reviewers See all 72 answered questions What do customers buy after viewing this item?Best SellingHoMedics ShiatsuMax 2.0 Back and Shoulder Massager46Top RatedHoMedics Shiatsu Foot Massager with Heat FM-TS9-GB561Lowest PriceLifemax Heated Back and Seat Massager 226R363Need customer service?