by James Knolan
Our goal is to present a potential massage chair purchaser with an unbiased, thorough and comprehensive review of the Panasonice Real Pro Elite. We have developed a 5 category system to evaluate a massage chair. We give equal weight to each category and give 0 to 20 points rating and then add them up to present an overall score. Our categories include Warranty & Customer Service, Comfort/Ergonomics, Ease of Use, Features and Massage Therapy. This systematic approach forces us to a disciplined method of evaluating a massage chair to help guide anyone looking at massage chairs. The Panasonic Real Pro Elite EP-3222 shiatsu massage chair price is in the Luxury range of $4,000 to $5,000.
Warranty & Customer Service: First is how the manufacturer rates in both warranty coverage and customer service. The manufacturer needs to stand behind its product. Panasonic gives a 1 year labor, 1 year parts and 1 year in-home service as well as 1 year shipping. Panasonic puts a machine life cap of 1,000 hours of use. Panasonic gives a short warranty combined with the 1,000 hour cap (for heavy users), the warranty rates as ok. The electronics company’s such as Panasonic (or Sanyo) like to sell extended warranties. Panasonic offers in-home technician service and will pay for shipping for the first year. Customer service is through your retailer. Service times vary on the service center location. Overall Rating for Panasonic warranty and customer service is 15.
Comfort & Ergonomics: Massage chair recliners should fit the body and be comfortable to site on. The Panasonic Real Pro Elite has soft padded armrests. The EP-3222 has a soft upholstered detachable head pillow to support the head. Overall, the chair is comfortable to sit in. One point of restriction is the footrest. The footrest stays at a fixed length and cannot be adjusted for taller individuals. If you are taller, then you can raise the footrest horizontal and put your legs straight through. You then miss the foot compression massage. Overall Rating for Panasonic comfort and ergonomics and customer service is 17.
Ease of Use: Ease of Use is an important consideration with the advance of electronics. The average massage remote has an average of 15 buttons. This can just be overwhelming without an engineering degree unless it is designed right. The remote control of the Panasonic Real Pro Elite is fairly intuitive to use. Additionally, Panasonic has added Voice Guidance. Of course, voice guidance is a mixed blessing. It is good when you need something and annoying when you do not. The 4 automatic programs are easy to use where one can select and just sit back and relax. The side panel contains more manual controls for the manual massage techniques and the lower body air system. The Focus button is a nice option which allows the user to repeat a massage that it just performed. Our rating in this category is 17.
Key Features: The important features of the Panasonic EP-3222 are the Swede-Atsu which is designed to replicate the techniques of a massage therapist, 33 airbags in the lower body air massage system and the back rollers cover 185 square inches. The Swede-Atsu uses rubber massage heads to replicate the stoking of the palms of the hand, pressing by the heal of the hand, and kneading with the thumbs. The expanded back coverage to 185 square inches is impressive to cover your back thoroughly. Panasonic packs a whooping 33 airbags into the Real Pro Elite. There are 3 lower body massages including Grasp, Auto and Squeeze. There are a number of impressive features included in the EP-3222. Overall Rating for the Panasonic Real Pro Elite for features is 19.
Massage Therapy: The Panasonic Real Pro Elite EP-3222 has both automatic and manual massage settings. Panasonic incorporates 4 full body automatic courses, four 14-minute Pre-Programs, and 5 massage speed settings for a total combination of 14 manual massage courses. This massage chair is endorsed by the American Chiropractic Association recognizing the many health benefits that this massage chair can provide. Endorsements aside, the massage therapy in this chair is fairly comprehensive and will not disappoint. The Panasonic Real Pro Elite is a 19 in Massage Therapy.
How does Panasonic Real Pro Elite EP-3222 rate? Overall, our rating of the Panasonic Ep-3222 is an 87/100. The remote control is easy to use, intuitive and comes with the Voice Guidance. The back and lower body massages are pretty comprehensive and effective. The warranty is a bit of a concern, since the direct factory warranty is rather short. It is possible to purchase an extended warranty, but this impacts the delivered price. If you are tall, then the footrest is an issue, since it cannot be adjusted. However, the technology used seems reliable and delivers a thorough massage. If you are looking for a shiatsu massage recliner in this category, this is definately one to seriously consider.
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