So I've been thinking about buying one of those fancy, expensive massage chairs. I was in Brookstone a few weeks back and tried out this one and was pretty impressed:

Renew Zero Gravity Massage Chair


But obviously this is a large amount of money and I want to consider various options, and haven't found much in the way of comparative reviews online.

Anyone have any experience with this or similar chairs? Any advice on what to look for or avoid?

Don't have anything to add about them but I too am interested in the results of this thread. Something I've been considering getting for a while.

I bought a massage chair at Brookstone years ago and am very satisfied. Two things: Initially I used it 2-3 times/day but found that wears off after a week or two. OTOH, it's still worth the price to me for let's say, 2-3 hrs/wk of pure pleasure. You will need the extended warranty which is expensive but I think you can bargain down the price.

Make sure you shop through a portal - discover deals is offering 15% cashback on brookstone...

http://www.costco.com/massage-chairs-cushions.html

FYI I have no personal experience with any of these but you can never go wrong with costco.

how is that zero gravity? do they provide the space shuttle to use it in?

lol @ 'glorified lazy-boys.' When I go to Brookstone there's usually a bunch of ppl keeping an eye on the massage chairs to try and get 5 minutes in one. The chair in the OP is not a toy and if you try one out you will want one if you've got the space but they ARE expensive. I once saw one for $13K! For that money it really ought to take you into space.

I imagine the zero-gravity refers to the function where the chair locks you in and rotates in such a way that your legs are elevated above your head. So I guess it sort of feels like you are floating.

I don't think describing it as a "glorified Lay-Z-Boy" is accurate at all. The two serve completely different functions. It would be like describing a refrigerator as a glorified microwave because you put food in both of them. A typical recliner is a comfortable place to sit for a long duration while you watch TV, read a book, etc. But I don't think I would want to sit in the massage chair for more than the ~20 minutes/day I am actually getting the massage, which is pretty intense.

One concern about ordering from a website like this is that is appears the chairs come unassembled; this seems like a big pain and a risk in and of itself.

My friend had one that was similar to the one in OP though prob not as good, the problem was that when he put the seat* vibration on his whole floor shook and sounded like when your phone is on a table and vibrating times 1000 and the neighbours complained just fyi

other than that it was relaxing but not sure i could justify it

That's the most American chair I've ever seen. Go for it.

Emerites airlines has these in business class. One of my friends (who is an absolutely disgusting and deplorable human being, if entertaining) turned on his front and managed to finish himself off...

Just saying.

That's one of the features not listed in the instructions.

Never knew these things have a secret menu

i'm gonna let this one live and see what it posts next

Can it reach a certain tubular body part ?

When warm apple pies won't do...

i didn't know you ever did any modding

if only they could make a chair as comfy as a bed.

lol I love how this thread keeps getting bumped by message pad spammers

did you mean to post this in February?

Looks like he first posted it Jan 13th, 2013 on redflagdeals

My dentist now has a bunch of massage chairs in the waiting room. It's the nuts!