Saturday, August 23, 2008

Product Review of Panasonic EP-30003 KU Shiatsu Massage Chair

By Steve Esquire


This is a massage chair review of the Panasonic EP 30003 shiatsu recliner. This is the new line of recliners called the Real Pro Ultra by Panasonic. This review will point out some of the important features, warranty coverage and specifications of this chair. The EP-30003 is a mid range model in the price range of $2,000 to $3,000.

Let us first take a look of the warranty of the EP-30003. The warranty coverage is your protection from defects from the factory. You want strong warranty coverage since it protects you from unknown problems in the future. This is a big ticket item, so it is important you get trouble-free enjoyment for the amount you are paying. Panasonic provides a 3 year warranty on the parts. You get 1 year on the labor with 1 year of shipping expense covered for parts if needed. Also, in home technician service is now available from Panasonic. You can get an extended warranty to match the major chair manufacturers but at additional cost. It is recommended that you get the extended warranty.

Technology is advancing at a breathtaking pace. The amount of features being added to massage chairs is nothing short of extraordinary. With the variety of features comes a challenge with keeping the chair easy and intuitive to use. The EP30003 has a very nicely designed remote control. It has buttons to activate automatic programs directly. It also comes with a voice guidance system. The voice guidance system will talk you through the controls that is great for beginners to use. You can also memorize programs. If you like a particular massage you can memorize the program so you can select it whenever you like without having to reset the controls.

There are two important features of the EP30003 that we would like to point out. Of course, there are many more, but we won't cover everything in this review. One of the more relavant features for Americans is the leg rest extension. The leg rest can be adjusted out to better position the areas on the legs. Also, this helps individuals that are taller to better fit in the massage recliner. The other innovative feature is a new massage technique. Panasonic has developed the Junetsu massage. Junetsu means ultra fine kneading in Japanese. This Junetsu technique uses small circular motions. These small circular motions are used in conjunction with firm pressure to penetrate through the muscles and to the surface of the bone. This is a great addition to the shiatsu and Swedish massages already offered in this chair.

The Real Pro Ultra has a sleek, post modern design. It is somewhat industrial in its design and lacks some designer touches. This is a bit of a drawback. The massage recliner is comfortable to sit in. It has soft padded armrest covers. The synthetic leather is surprisingly soft to the touch. There is a contoured head pillow to give support. The backpad has adequate padding to be soft to sit in. The rollers do not stick out too far when not in use, so the chair is comfortable to sit in when not being used for massage. This is overall a well designed chair.

There are one touch automatic programs in the Real Pro Ultra. These automatic programs include such programs as Shiatsu, Swedish, Deep, Stretch and Quick. The first four are 15 minute programs and the Quick is a 5 minute invigorating massage. Each of the automatic programs is targeted for specific benefits for the user. You are free to use the manual massage techniques. These manual massage techniques are Junetsu, Shiatsu, Swedish, Knead, Stretch, Tap and Full Roll. You can also select specific back courses to target your back. You can select the whole back, upper or lower back. This focuses the massage in that particular area. There is a built in air massage system which targets the feet and calves in the leg rest.

We like the new innovative massage technique, the Junetsu introduced by Panasonic. We also like the extendable leg rest to better accommodate the American market. The chair is well designed and ergonomic. We are not impressed with the overall look and style of the chair. Panasonic should be able to produce chairs that are impressively designed on the outside, not just the inside. The massage therapies are fairly comprehensive and effective. This is certainly a contender for your attention if you are looking for a good quality and solidly built massage chair in this price range.

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