Of the three Fujikura massage chair models on offer – the 900, 1000, and 2000 – the 1000 chair is the mid-priced model. It’s very competitively priced and you get a lot for your money. Here’s a review of the Fujikura 1000 chair and what you get and don’t get.
First off, the 1000 Fujikura massage chair looks stylist and contemporary. It’s upholstered in synthetic leather and is available in black, brown or ivory. Don’t think that synthetic leather means cheap. The fact is real leather isn’t the best material for a robotic massage chair; it simply isn’t durable enough to cope with the moving rollers and air bags. Probably the world’s best massage chairs are made by Inada and they’re all upholstered in synthetic leather.
We’ll compare the features of the 1000 with the Human Touch HT 100 massage chair. The HT100 chair is a very popular model and is only slightly more expensive, so it’s a very good yardstick. We’ll also compare it to the iJoy 300 robotic massage chair – again, another very popular model that retails for a little less than the Fujikura 1000.
The vertical rolling stroke of a chair is something to be seriously considered. The taller you are the longer vertical stroke the better. On this point the 1000 wins hands down against its competition. The 1000 comes with a vertical rolling stroke of 29″ whereas the HT 100 chair comes with a paltry 20″. The iJoy 300 chair – the cheapest of the three – does better at 25″.
All three chairs feature power recline but not all offer the same reclining angle; the more degrees the chair reclines the better, both in build quality and user benefit. The iJoy chair offers the least recline, between 115 and 155 degrees; the HT massage chair does better, offering between 120 and 170 degrees, but again the 1000 comes top with a range between 110 and 170 degrees.
Foot massage is now incorporated with better quality chairs. Disappointingly, the iJoy has no foot rest (although you can buy an ottoman with no massage function). The Human Touch massage 100 chair does come with a foot massage but you have to manually move it to massage either the calves or the feet. It’s only the 1000 that offers a complete foot rest with both a calf and foot massager. The calf rest is fitted with 14 air bags that provide four air-massage combinations – with 2 intensity levels. The foot rest is fitted with 12 airbags, and provides 4 modes of massage.
All 3 models offer various massage functions. The Fujikura 1000 comes with 6 functions: rolling (back stretch), kneading, flapping, kneading & flapping, shiatsu, knocking and vibrating. You have the choice of automatic or manual massage operations and that can target certain areas of the body. There are 3 speed settings. The HT100 comes with rolling, kneading, compression and percussion (with just one speed setting). What’s better about the HT100 over the 1000 is the Range Control option. You can either have spot or partial. The spot option allows more specific areas of the body to be massaged and the partial massage strokes 3″ up and down for kneading or compression. The iJoy offers the same functions of the HT except there’s no spot option.
Which offers the best massage is a subjective matter. The 1000 chair offers a firmer massage perhaps, but the HT100 does seem to offer a slightly more varied massage routine.
Overall, the Fujikura 1000 massage chair really does offer the best in terms or function at this price range. I find it hard to find any faults with it, you could want more features but then you’d have to pay a lot more. However, there is one complaint I have and that has to do with the power recline. It isn’t a one push system; you have to continually press the button as the chair reclines. This does mean that those with a short reach will have difficulty in keeping it pressed until the maximum recline position has been reached. I think some will have to remain seated and wait for the seat to full recline before then lying back on the chair.
In conclusion, if you’re looking for one of the best robotic massage chairs in this price category then the Fujikura massage chair is certainly worth taking a closer look at.