Infinity Iyashi

Up until now, the IT-8500 from Infinite Therapeutics has been our most popular selling massage chair, after the iconic and industry-changing Inada Sogno. The lower price point, the overall feel, and the mechanical foot rollers seem to be the factors that come into play in the mind of the massage chair shopper.

Well, since the announcement last week of their new Iyashi model, I wonder if there will be a big shift in popularity from the IT-8500 to this new chair. It has raised some eyebrows since I first wrote about it last week in this blog and discussed it on my biweekly Massage Chair Industry Update video I taped last week.

The 49″ roller track is what is raising eyebrows. We’ve never seen a chair with full rollers down to the knees available to the public before, although I will say that I have sat in a prototype before, manufactured by a different company, and also saw raw video footage of a model from another massage chair company, which had the full body roller track. It is something that has obviously been played with before but only now are we seeing the chair actually come to market, in the form of the Infinity Iyashi.

I am personally looking forward to seeing this chair when it arrives. I hope to have a floor model in our showroom by the end of this month to begin reviewing on video and with the written word. I will keep you posted as that comes to fruition.

So, what is the difference between the IT-8500 and the new Iyashi, both chairs from Infinite Therapeutics? I am sure many, many people will be asking that question, accompanied by the question “Are the differences between the two chair worth the $1200 price difference?” Well, here are the similarities and differences between the two models, so far as I can tell based on the literature:

Differences

a.) 49″ roller track that massages the buttocks and back of the thighs vs. 30.25″ roller track of the IT-8500,

b.) it does not have neck airbags(rollers only),

c.) Thai stretch (if it is anything like the Thai stretch of the Osaki OS-7075R, it will be a very intense stretch program),

d.) vibration in the Iyashi, whereas the IT-8500 does not have vibration,

e.) the IT-8500 has a 178 degree reclining angle of the chair back, whereas the Iyashi has a 170 degree reclining angle,

f.) the Iyashi has less auto programs,

g.) your program on the Iyashi can last up to 30 minutes; on the IT-8500 up to 45 minutes,

h.) the recommended user weight on the IT-8500 is 325 lbs, whereas the recommended weight for the Iyashi is 285 lbs,

i.) the accommodated height of a person by each chair is 5’1″ – 6’6″ for the Iyashi and 4’11” – 6’5″ for the IT-8500,

j) bluetooth connectivity and droid and ios apps for the Iyashi,

k.) more color options, at this point, for the IT-8500. There may be other colors coming for the Iyashi, but not just yet,

l.) the overall appearance of the Iyashi is quite different from the IT-8500. It seems to have a more bold and colorful chair body,

m.) the Iyashi is built in such a way, with the sliding base, that you can place the chair an inch away from your wall and the chair base, when placed into a reclined position, will slide away from the wall while the chair back reclines. A great space saving idea, which is a concern to a lot of shoppers.

Similarities

a.) mechanical foot rollers,

b.) same number of airbags,

c.) zero gravity function,

d.) music system, although the Iyashi has a music/massage synch feature,

e.) both have a lumbar heating element,

f.) neither chair has a roller intensity control from the remote,

g.) both have airbag intensity controls from the remote,

h.) body scan technology,

i.) made in China.

I hope this gives you a little better idea of what the new chair brings to the table. If you are interested in this chair and want to get one of the first units coming in with the July shipment, I would strongly recommend ordering now so that you can have one available to you. I have a feeling this chair is going to be very popular.

Dr. Alan Weidner
www.massage-chair-relief.com