In a Nutshell:
An excellent, robust design, and even better, frequently found on sale. The Fujita SMK92 is recommended for anyone, but especially those who suffer from chronic back or foot pain. If you find it on sale, add half a point to the final rating, as it becomes an exceptional value for the money.
Overall Massage Quality
Customization options
Ease of Use
Value for the Money
Comfort
Brand Reliability*
Overall Rating
4/5
Benefits
Drawbacks
Recommended For: Anyone, but especially those who suffer from chronic back or foot pain.
Are you looking for a full-featured massage chair that can do it all?
Do you want an array of top-end features without paying top-end prices?
If so, you’re going to love our detailed Fujita SMK92 massage chair review. This is an expensive, but feature-filled chair that exists at the top end of the mid-range. Not everyone will be able to afford it, but if you can, it’s well worth your attention.
We’ll outline everything this exceptional design can do, and mention its very few shortcomings, so you have complete information before making a final purchase decision.
Let’s get right to it!
An Overview of the Fujita SMK92 Massage Chair
Fujita SMK92 Massage Chair Features
S-Track Design & Quad Rollers
The SMK92 is built around proven technologies, utilizing an industry standard S-Track and quad rollers. The rollers are fantastic, because of how closely they mimic the feel of human hands, and the S-Track allows them to follow the natural curve of your body’s spine.
The combination of these two technologies results in a superb basic massage. As you will see, similar to other Fujita massage chairs, the company makes good use of a variety of other technologies that provide enormous synergy and dramatically enhance the quality of the massage this model is capable of.
3D Body Scan
This technology is a superb addition to the design. Before a massage begins, the chair scans your body and makes subtle adjustments to the position of the rollers to ensure they’re hitting all your pressure points.
In case the tech gets it wrong, the SMK92 has buttons on the remote that allow you to tweak the position of the rollers and adjust the width of the massage field. This two-pronged approach makes it almost impossible to get anything but a world-class massage.
3D/4D Roller Technology
Another technology that enhances the core massage experience, this one requires a bit of explanation.
All S-Track and Hybrid L/S-Track Massage chairs already see their rollers move in three dimensions. Because the track is curved to follow the shape of the spine, the track allows the rollers to move along the Z-axis, in addition to the X- and Y-, but the Fujita SMK92 takes things a step further.
By placing extension arms on the rollers themselves, it allows them to move up to 3” away from the track itself, resulting in a deeper and more penetrating massage.
Note that with this technology and set to maximum intensity, the SMK92 is capable of rendering a true deep tissue massage that is almost certain to be too intense for casual and hobbyist users.
A Fair Number of Options
Here, we have to admit that we were a bit disappointed. For a chair at the top end of the mid-range, we were expecting to see more options than this one offers. With less than fifty massage combinations on tap, it’s slightly below average in this department.
The massage techniques you have access to are as follows:
So it’s got the basics covered, but you only get one advanced technique, whereas many budget home massage recliners it competes with offer two or more.
In addition to these, the SMK92 also provides the following pre-programmed massage options:
Note that if you’ve read other Fujita SMK92 massage chair reviews, you may have seen a reference to nine auto-programs. This is because on the company’s website, they list the number at nine. However, to arrive at that number, they count air massage as a program, which we treat as a separate feature.
All massage routines default to a fifteen-minute duration and can be further modified via five intensity levels.
Air Massage Mode
Fujita does not list the precise number of airbags the SMK92 offers. But, after a careful review of the schematics they do provide, we estimate the number at 46. This is about average for a chair in its price range, and the resulting massage is as excellent as you’d expect.
You can either opt for a full-body massage or selectively activate airbags by the following body regions:
Additionally, the air massage can be modified via three levels of intensity. As with the roller-based massage, all air massage routines default to a fifteen-minute duration.
Body Stretch (And Separate Foot Stretch!)
If you suffer from chronic pain, this is going to be far and away your favorite aspect of the SMK92.
Body stretching works in the same way that a chiropractic adjustment does and provides almost immediate pain relief by taking pressure off compressed discs in your spine.
While this is a superb feature and an excellent implementation, Fujita goes above and beyond where stretching is concerned, by offering a foot stretch too!
This feature is separate from the body stretching and provides tremendous relief if you spend several hours a day on your feet. We’ve seen massage chairs that offer a variety of body stretching options, but this is the first one we’ve seen that offers a foot stretch, and we think it’s a fantastic addition.
Heat For Your Feet
One thing we were disappointed in was the absence of lumbar or other back heat. Given the fact that the SMK92 offers both deep tissue massage and body stretching, it’s clear to see that it has been designed with therapeutic benefits in mind, which makes the conspicuous absence of back heat that much more jarring.
This model does provide heat, but only in the foot wells. Even better, there is some ability to control the temperature, by allowing you to select either high or low heat. This isn’t as good as allowing for precise temperature control, but it’s more than most other manufacturers offer, and must be counted as a win for the design.
Calf & Foot Massage
If you’re on your feet for a significant amount of time each day, this is another feature you’re surely to love. The SMK92 has enough airbags to render a superb calf and foot massage, made better by the presence of a Shiatsu massage plate at the bottom of the foot wells for added relief.
Rollers would have been better still, but the combination of airbags, massage plate, temperature-controlled foot heat and foot stretch makes this one of the strongest features the SMK92 brings to the table. You’re going to love it!
If we had to pick just one feature as the stand-out of the design, this would be it. Fujita really went the extra mile here.
Extendable Ottoman
In our view, this should be an industry standard, but it isn’t. So we’re always glad to see it whenever a company chooses to include an extension module to the ottoman. In this case, the extension module allows the SMK92 to accommodate users up to a maximum height of 6’5”, which is exceptional.
Repeat Massage Mode
Although the SMK92 does not include any means of adjusting the default massage duration, it does provide a “repeat” button which allows you to select the same massage routine twice. This gives you the option to create a thirty-minute massage.
This is inferior to a true time adjustment feature, but it’s better than not having anything at all. We rate this as a sub-par implementation, and a bit of a disappointment.
Memory Slots!
Far too few massage chairs offer memory slots, but happily the SMK92 is one of the models that does, and we’re glad to see it. You get two memory slots, which allow you to save your preferred massage settings and access them later at the touch of a button. Another excellent feature addition.
Surprisingly Simple Remote
Despite the fact that this model offers a robust set of features, the remote is well designed and laid out. You won’t have any difficulty navigating your way to any feature you want to use, and it won’t take much time to master this chair.
There is a learning curve here, but it is slight. You’ll be able to sit down and start enjoying your first massage in a matter of minutes.
Pros & Cons of the Fujita SMK92 Massage Chair
As you can see, the Fujita SMK92 delivers lots of value. It’s got an impressive array of features, including several powerful therapeutic capabilities, making it an exceptional design.
Having said that though, the model does have its shortcomings. Here are some changes we’d love to see:
Explore similar massage chairs by clicking here.
Fujita SMK92 Massage Chair Review Conclusion
Even without the items on our wish list above, the SMK92 is an excellent design. We would recommend it to any user without hesitation. Although, note that it is especially attractive to those who suffer from chronic back or foot pain.
The calf and foot massage is one of the strongest feature implementations we’ve ever seen.
Recommended Reading
Apex AP Vista Massage Chair Review
Our Apex AP Vista review explores this massage chair’s versatility and therapeutic benefits.
Kahuna Massage Chair LM6800 Review
Offering superb value for money, we reviewed the Kahuna LM6800, a massage chair any person would love.
References & Resources:
- Fujita, Official Brand Website.
- The Effectiveness of the Hand, Shiatsu Therapy.
- 5 Self-Massage Moves for Back and Neck Pain, You Beauty.
- Experiencing Pain After a Massage, Arizona Pain and Spine Institute.
- The Many Benefits of Getting A Massage, Spine Pains.
