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NEWS
Portable Car Seat Massagers
The Wall Street Journal looks briefly at
portable car seat massagers. Models featured are the HoMedics Ultimate
Comfort 8-Motor Massager, Hammacher Schlemmer's Heated Massage Seat Cushion,
Brookstone's TheraSpa 10-Motor Massager, the IZON In-Car Massager, the
Conair Heated Back Massaging System and the Sports Imports Limited Car
Massage & Heating System kit.
According to the report:
Upside: Cushions can be toted to any chair, not just the driver's
seat, including office and home settings.
Downside: Massage settings are set via remote controls, which may be
another distraction while driving. Also, if you're expecting a deep-tissue
massage in your car, you'll be disappointed: Some of the products just
vibrate, rather than knead.
October 21st, 2007
Feeling Kinda Knotty?
Wired reviews the
Homedics Shiatsu Pillow:
Feeling kinda knotty? For under 50 bucks, you can turn your studio
apartment into a makeshift day spa with Homedics' fluffy beige shiatsu
pillow. It's small enough to fit on any seat in the house, whether it's your
antique rocking chair or the discarded loveseat you found in the
park....After positioning it on my lower back, my stinging lumbar felt
almost instant relief. Propping it up against my shoulders caused my stiff
neck to feel like a piece of well cooked asparagus. And if you're one of
those narcoleptic massagees (like me), don't worry—the pillow turns itself
off in 20 minutes, so your muscles won't turn to jelly. Ah, so relaxing...ZZZZZZZZ.
October 4th, 2007
There are Massage Chairs, and Then There
are Massage Chairs
 Some
good reviews for the Robo Massage Chair:
Sci Fi Tech:
There are massage chairs, and then there are massage chairs. Take the
Robo Massage Chair for example — not only does it look like a great place to
park your backside, the chair also understands a variety of commands to make
your all-over body massage light and gentle, or deep and penetrating. Not
having to lift a finger to change a programmed preset doesn't come cheap;
the Robo Massage Chair will set you back $5,799.
Electronic House:
Stop the presses—I’ve found something I want for a combo Christmas,
birthday and Mother’s Day gift…
It may look like something out of a sadistic dental office, but once you sit
in the Robo Massage Chair, it may require some sort of professional
extraction to get you out.
Instead of yelling at your spouse about pressure and problem areas, this
chair responds to your voice commands....It can also save up to 20 massage
preferences.
October 3rd, 2007
Panasonic's New Chair Looks the Business
 A
lot of buzz going around for Panasonic's new EP30005 massage chair. You can
read a company press release
here.
Tech Digest
writes:
We've not looked at massage chairs much...but this model from Panasonic
looks the business.
The EP30005 is supposed to deliver the deepest massage available, with an
intensity control to set the depth. It has well over one thousand massage
modes, and even scans the user's body to adjust massage height.
It can store multiple massage routines for up to four different users, and
is able to perform Shiatsu, Swedish, and Junetsu massage.
Great if you can afford it, it'll set you back around US$4,499.95.
September 22nd, 2007
Just Yell at the Chair
It's the voice-controlled massage chair for the lazy elitist, according to
Gizmodo. It's the
Inada Robo Chair:
So when you're too lazy to reach around for the remote, you can just yell
at the chair to start rubbing your back. Just like you said to your ex-wife
before she left you and took the kids. Although you'll probably have to take
out a loan to afford the $6,000 price tag, especially with all the alimony
you're probably paying.
July 5th, 2007
Questions to Ask When You Buy a Massage
Chair
What
should I look for in a massage chair? a reader asks the About.com web
portal. A brief summary of the reply:
* Where would you put the massage chair?
* Who will be using it?
* What features does it have?
* What is your budget?
* What is the warranty on the massage chair?
June 8th, 2007
Osim a Hit in India
Massage chair sales are booming in India, and
Osim is the big beneficiary:
The worldwide market size for massage chairs is calculated to be around
$2 billion and Osim has a 25 per cent market in the same. In Asia, and
especially in India, Osim hardly has any competition.
Products like the iSymphonic massage chair; the iSqueeze (a foot-and-calf
massager) and uZap (an oscillating massage belt) are one of the largest
selling products and high-end massage chairs account for another 30 per cent
of the sales.
The India arm of Osim has delivered 100 per cent growth for the company and
we expect to carry forward our dominance.
March 14th, 2007
Massage Chairs for Dentists
"Open wide and say 'spa'," writes the
Wisconsin State Journal in a detailed report on massage chairs in
dental surgeries.
Two Madison-area dentists have installed high-tech massaging chairs for
their patients, and in a few parts of the country they've already become
popular. ErgoSoothe dental chairs are outfitted with air-filled bladders
that look like little balloons, wrapped in varying densities of memory foam.
They act as pulsing jets and create a gentle kneading sensation. Patients
can choose to have their upper back and shoulders massaged, their lower back
massaged, or the whole shebang.
Unlike the ill-fated massaging dental chairs invented in the 1950s, which
were noisy and shook the patient while the dentist loomed overhead with a
drill, modern dental massage chairs are silent and the patient doesn't
vibrate.
"It's all about getting the patient to relax," said John Busby, the owner of
Affiliated Dentists who had five of the chairs installed during a renovation
of his Monona offices. "Once patients experience the massaging chairs, they
don't want to go back to the regular chairs."
Lydia Kirchstein, who was in the office for a cleaning at Affiliated
Dentists recently, said she's had a lifelong fear of dentistry. "This is
actually awesome," she said with a dreamy smile as she lounged in the chair
after the hygienist finished her work. "It's very relaxing and it takes my
mind off what's going on in my mouth."
Greg Killian, a Middleton dentist who has had three ErgoSoothe massaging
chairs since last spring, said "after 10 minutes on these chairs, the day
goes away. It's enough to relax any soul." Patients are more willing to
undergo dental work because of the extra amenities, he added.
The massaging units add about $500 to the cost of ErgoSoothe chairs (prices
vary based on other features). Pelton &
Crane, the North Carolina manufacturer of the chairs, has done studies
that show the chairs actually alter the patients physiologically. Massaging
the body's pressure points, the company says, stimulates blood flow, lowers
blood pressure and reduces stress levels.
Rick Williams, a dental supply dealer who handles the chairs in southwestern
Wisconsin, says they are also a "very effective marketing ploy. People will
go and tell their friends about the massage they got at the dentist's office
and it attracts new patients."
Williams, who sells products from many dental manufacturers, said that
Pelton & Crane is currently the only company that is making dental chairs
with fully integrated massage technology. Some dentists put massaging pads
on chairs, which can be unsanitary because they are cloth, and they might
cause vibration in the oral cavity.
February 8th, 2007
Fires Spark Massage Chair Recall
Matsushita Electric Works is
recalling more than 68,000 Panasonic-brand massage chairs after two
fires when power cords inside the chairs' motors emitted sparks.
Both chairs were demonstration models, and had been subject to repeated use
by store customers. No-one was hurt, and the company said such fires would
occur only in rare cases.
The chairs had been sold domestically and around Asia.
February 1st, 2007
Multi-Million Dollar Brand Campaign for
Human Touch
Interesting press release from
Interactive Health about promotional plans for its Human Touch massage
chair brand:
Human Touch will work with Boulder, CO based TDA Advertising & Design on
the logo redesign and advertising campaign. Human Touch’s campaign will
focus on the health benefits of the products that are made possible by its
sophisticated robotic massage technology.
This multi-million dollar brand campaign reflects the company’s updated
strategy and evolving Human Touch clientele, symbolizing the beginning of an
exciting new era of growth for Human Touch.
“We wanted to create a logo which reflected the high-end design that they
put into every chair they create. The Human Touch name already speaks to the
incredible feeling the chairs provide, so we thought it was important to
create a mark which emphasized Human Touch’s overall design philosophy,”
states Thomas Dooley, founder, TDA Advertising & Design.
January 30th, 2007
Sanyo's Massage Chair - Is It Also a Lie
Detector?
Several other websites are now taking an interest in the new Sanyo
massage chair that I featured yesterday (below).
Slash Gear
commented:
I’m not a big fan of massage chairs, but Sanyo Zero Gravity Massage Chair
is so comfortable I can sit on it forever. It features SANYO’s intelligent
stiffness detection sensor technology, which diagnoses stress areas by
measuring changes in pulse rate and perspiration....The chair also moves the
body into the most neutral position with diminished stress on the back. This
position also provide better circulation.
Yahoo! Tech said:
My favorite item at the booth—and possibly of the show so far, only
'cause my tired feet and back are aching—is the Sanyo 7700 Zero Gravity
Massage Chair, which can adjust its rollers to any body size. The new
control pad offers a great degree of customizability, letting you adjust the
level of kneading or tapping you want on different parts of your body.
Put your hand on the galvanic skin-response sensor and let it figure out
where you're stiff (it adjusts the massage accordingly). Rollers are shaped
like thumbs, to give it a more human, less robotic feel.
And
Engadget offered an intriguing take:
The standout feature is the "stiffness detection sensor" that "locates
areas of physical stiffness and gauges fatigue by changes in skin
temperature, perspiration, and pulse." Interestingly enough, those three
measurements are the things lie detection tools are made up of my friend, so
if you've got the 1337 skills to wire up a massage chair to some swank
analytical software, you could potentially extract just about any truth you
ever wanted while the culprit simply enjoys the ride.
January 19th, 2007
Sanyo's New Massage Chair
 At
least one new massage chair was introduced at the recent Consumer
Electronics Show - the Sanyo Zero-Gravity Massage Chair with "intelligent
stiffness detection sensor technology". Professor Glenn "Instapundit"
Reynolds, writing for Popular Mechanics,
commented:
Naturally, I had to test it out. It felt good! I was reminded of Homer
Simpson's experience with the "Spinemelter 2000" massage chair. Like Homer,
though, I'd need a windfall to buy this one: Price point isn't set, but it's
likely to come in at around $4700.
Gizmodo
said:
It's got "intelligent Stiffness Detection Sensor technology," figuring
out where your body needs some TLC by checking changes in your pulse rate
and where you're sweating the most. They claim it's very similar to galvanic
skin response technology used in lie detectors.
If you're so stressed out that you require this much fancy technology to
massage you after a long day at work, might I suggest a career change?
January 18th, 2007
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