Far from mechanical

The first thought that flashes through my mind when I sink into the OSIM uInfinity massage chair is — here’s one more job that humans are going to lose out on to machines.

Whenever I have spotted them at airports and malls, I have given massage chairs a wide berth. How can a robotic chair know and knead the exact spot where your knots of tension are? How can you tell the chair to adjust the pressure according to your liking?

Well, it turned out that it could do all this. If anything, the kneading, pummeling, squeezing by this “humanised” chair is better than a real masseuse, and quite scientific. Also the varieties of massage the chair knows is truly impressive — from deep tissue, beauty, to stress relieving or rejuvenating, there are plenty of programmes to choose from in the massage menu. And you can opt for specialised area massages — lumbar, neck and shoulders, foot and so on — or full body.

I tried quite a few on the menu, including the rejuvenating programme recommended to be taken early morning. But I must say it was the “CEO massage” that hit a particularly sweet spot for me. Given that I spend a lot of time hunched over my desk, this particular massage, which gently releases the tension around the neck and shoulders and treats the lower back was rather blissful.

The chair is easy to install and use — you can literally plug and play. Even somebody like me who is all thumbs around a gadget could figure out the controls on the remote within minutes.

If you download the app, there are a lot more things you can do such as listening to your choice of music as you relax and unwind in the chair. What’s also nice is that while you can recline and stretch out fully on it, much like a business class airline chair, the chair folds and tucks into a compact unit after use. It does take up a lot of space though.

There are some dos and don’ts, of course. Ideally, you should not be on it more than 20 minutes at a stretch, but fiddling around with the programmes, the temptation to be on the chair for hours is high. Although the brochures say low risk, given that it runs on electricity, those with blood pressure and heart issues are advised to check before getting on. The price is steep but I guess the convenience of a massage anytime you want rather than booking appointments cannot be overlooked. I remember reading that 22 per cent of Japanese households own a robotic chair — well, now I know why!

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