Mail Bag – Inada Sogno Questions; Osaki OS-4000T; 5’2″ User!

May 13, 2014
 By Dr. Alan Weidner
May 13, 2014
 By Dr. Alan Weidner

Mail Bag – Inada Sogno Questions; Osaki OS-4000T; 5’2″ User!

emailQUESTION #1
Briefly could you speak to these points

Three Features the Inada Sogno Dreamwave Should Have – But Doesn’t


MY RESPONSE #1
Good morning, Mike.
Here is my response to the 3 points brought up in this article:

1. Deep tissue massage – I have learned that deep tissue massage is a relative term. What is deep for one is not deep enough for another. Our experience with the Sogno, which I have in my showroom, is that when the headpiece and attached pad are lifted up and over the back of the chair and the 3D rollers are extended fully forward and the chair is reclined, the roller massage is quite intense….comparable to most chairs. There are some chairs that have a more intense roller, like the Osaki OS-7075R and the Infinity IT-8500, but the Sogno has plenty of intensity in it’s roller system. It’s default massage intensity is at a lighter setting, plus the massage as a whole is more nuanced and refined, thus leading a user to think that it is too light. But, when fully deployed, as I mentioned above, the roller massage can be very intense.

2. 3D Rollers – The rollers do move forward with the assistance of airbags.Human Touch also uses an airbag technology for the 3D feature in their earlier Human Touch models, i.e. HT-7450, HT-9500, and HT-7120, but it is used differently from the Sogno. The rollers are adjusted not by the airbags “pushing” the rollers forward but by airbags along the sides of the chair inflating to push the body out further from the roller track. Newer chairs are using intrinsic mechanical movement of the rollers for extending and retracting the rollers. I don’t know if one is better than the other, but I do know that the therapeutic benefits are the same.

3. Automatic Restore – I guess it depends on what you want. Inada created their chair with the idea that if you want to continue with a program after your session is done, you don’t have to set the recline or the ottoman position again; you are already in the perfect position to begin another program. I do like the auto-restore feature that other chairs have, especially if I am done and ready to get out of the chair after my session times out, but when I want to stay longer in the chair and start another session, it is a bit of a time waste to have to wait for the chair to restore to it’s original position and then press another program and wait for it to recline again. With the Sogno, you just have to push the program button again and the chair starts up right away without any delay. So, I guess what I am saying is that this feature is neither right nor wrong…it just depends on what you are wanting to do when your session is over. I hope that makes sense.
QUESTION #2
How does the movement of the seat of the Osaki 4000 compare to the movement of the IT 8500 seat? Does the Osaki seat move in a “figure 8” like the IT 8500 (which mimics the Inada Sogno seat somewhat) or, does the Osaki 4000 seat just inflates and deflates on each side of the buttocks???
MY RESPONSE #2

Osaki OS-4000

Osaki OS-4000

Hi, Frank
The comment about the foot rollers in the OS-4000 on that review has raised more than a few eyebrows. Osaki brought in a couple of these models with the foot rollers for testing purposes only. They are considering offering an updated model with the foot rollers in the OS-4000…but it is not confirmed or even decided yet. They were merely bringing them in to test. Somehow, the Col. got one of them shipped to him by accident and, although he is very happy about it, this model is not even available. Sorry about the confusion. If they decide to offer this modified version I will announce it on my blog and my biweekly Massage Chair Industry Update (which I encourage you to subscribe to so that you can get updated with the latest news in the industry). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5HZgTM-RPc&list=UUU_RtUaiUgH2DXmieOMTcfg

The seat massage in the OS-4000 is different from both the Infinity IT-8500 and the Inada Sogno. It has airbags that push the seat up from below and then airbags at the side of the thighs inflate to move your buttocks over the seat. The seat does not move laterally at all. All the motion is up and down with the thigh airbags pushing the hips from the side. They have tried to mimic a figure-8 motion by having two cells in each thigh airbag…each one inflating separately from the others.

The IT-8500 and Inada Sogno have airbags that actually move the seat from side to side, with the Sogno also having airbags that push the seat up simultaneously.

UPDATE: Osaki has recently rolled out the new OS-4000T model which includes the foot rollers. That is the product that we have on our site now.
QUESTION #3
Hi Dr Weidner,

Can you please help me find an appropriate massage chair? I wish I live closer to your store, as I don’t think I will be able to take advantage of your generous travel reimbursement offer due to my schedule.

I am petite, 5’2″ and generally prefer lower intensity massage, though I sometimes appreciate targeted deep massage to work out a big knot. I work at a hectic desk job, on the computer 6hr or more a day. So shoulders, arms & neck are definitely places that need TLC. I also get restless legs st night sometimes, and have found compression band on the calf to be helpful.

The main user will be me, though my husband (5’9″) could also be using it. He works at a similar job, has neck and shoulder problems. He underwent shoulder surgery a few years ago to address an impingement issue. I also expect our tween kid to be competing with me for the chair. But I should be the main user 🙂

No specific budget in mind, but quality & value for money are important to me. Thanks,

SL
MY RESPONSE #3
Hi, SL
Thanks for your email. Most chairs will fit you and your husband just fine, but for a chair with a lower intensity massage, with the capacity for a deeper tissue massage should you need it, I would recommend chairs that have the 3D roller intensity adjustment, which will allow you to move the rollers forward and back to facilitate more and less intensive roller massage, respectively.

Inada Sogno

Inada Sogno

The Inada Sogno is a great chair, widely considered the best massage chair in the world, that has a default massage that is quite light and refined but has the ability to get quite intense should you want it. It is a Japanese-made chair that has a very low failure rate (less than 1%) and fantastic warranty (3 years parts and labor, in-home). It will fit you both very well and though it will massage the neck very well with either airbags or rollers, it also has airbags that inflate from the bottom of the headpiece down onto the trapezia muscles at the top of the shoulders. It should be a great feature for your husband’s shoulders.

Other chairs that have 3D roller massage AND that would cater to your height include the Osaki OS-3D Pro Dreamer, the Panasonic MA70, and the Panasonic EP30007. These would be good chairs to start studying on our site to see if any of them might work for you. But, again, I think the Sogno might be the best choice.

I hope this helps. Please feel free to email me back or call me at 801-651-2026 with any other questions. I am always at your disposal.

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

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