In a Nutshell:
The Karman XO-202 Electric Standing Wheelchair is a top of the line, cutting edge electric wheelchair that can do it all, offered by a legend in the industry. Recommended for anyone who needs a full-featured electric wheelchair that also offers stand-up capabilities…provided that you can afford it.
Customization options
Ease of Use
Comfort
Performance
Overall Rating
4.6/5
Benefits
Drawbacks
Recommended For: Anyone who needs a full-featured electric wheelchair that also offers stand-up capabilities provided that you can afford it.
Do you suffer from a serious mobility issue that requires assistance standing up? Have you been looking for a robust, full-featured electric wheelchair that can do everything, including providing automated aid to get your feet under you?
If you answered yes to either of those questions, you’ll love our detailed review of the Karman XO-202 wheelchair. This is an utterly fantastic mobility device that can do it all. Its cutting-edge technology took top honors in our recent roundup review of the best wheelchairs for seniors.
As incredible as it is, though, it has limitations and one major flaw (it’s costly) that may be a deal breaker for some potential buyers.
In the following sections, we’ll review everything this fantastic model offers and give you the inside scoop on its major strengths and weaknesses (and it has a few) so you’ll have all the information you need to make an informed purchasing decision. If that sounds good to you, let’s get started and see what this impressive machine can do!
Key Features of the Karman XO-202 Electric Standing Wheelchair
The first thing you’ll notice about the XO-202 is that it looks like something straight out of a “Transformers” movie. It acts that way, too, given its ability to help you stand up.
It would be overselling it to say that it’s beautiful, but it is sleek and futuristic-looking, an aesthetic that will undoubtedly appeal to many. We like its look and would rate it as one of the most attractive chairs today.
Even better, it’s ruggedly built and durable and offered by one of the most respected names in the industry, which means you know you’re getting a top-quality product. If a problem arises, you can rely on the company’s world-class post-sales support. Click here to read more about Karman wheelchairs.
Wheelchair Specifications
Here are the chair’s basic statistics:
This last item is of particular interest to us. Since the chair was designed for those with severe mobility issues, three different safety options ensure maximum protection for the person sitting in the chair or getting a standing assist.
Adjustability & Comfort
Regarding adjustability, you’ll find a lot to like here. Many chairs on the market today offer one or two adjustment options, typically where the height of the armrests and the length of the footrests are concerned.
That’s not at all the case with the Karman XO-202 wheelchair. Pretty much everything is adjustable. As mentioned above, you can order the chair with one of three seat depths and two seat width options.
It doesn’t stop there, though; you can also adjust:
Enough fine-tuning options are available here to customize the chair to be a perfect fit.
Comfort-wise, you’ll also find a lot to like. The Karman XO-202 Standing Wheelchair offers surprisingly comfortable memory foam padding in both the seat and the seat back. Few wheelchairs are genuinely comfy for long-duration sitting, but this is one of them. It’s not a great chair for napping, and it’s still not as comfortable as an overstuffed recliner, but you’ll have no problems sitting in it for most of the day if you need to.
A Few Words About Portability…
While most wheelchairs (electric or manual) break down into smaller components or collapse for ease of transport, the Karman XO-202 Electric Standing Wheelchair does neither.
Its dimensions are what they are, and when you combine that with the fact that it weighs more than a hundred pounds, you get a chair that’s more than a little bit of a challenge to move from Point A to Point B. Not that it’s impossible, but you need the right vehicle to get the job done.
Your best bet will be a van with an access ramp so that the person using the chair can drive it into the van, park it, and lock the brakes. Barring that, a ramp and a pickup truck would work, but in most cases, you cannot fit this beast into other vehicles, although a lift may be a workable alternative.
If you have to manhandle the chair for transport, you’ll need an assistant with a strong back.
On-Board Storage & Extras
Although the base model chair doesn’t come with any built-in extras, at the point of sale, you can order a stunning range of extras, including:
Although we love it when wheelchair designers find a way to put on-board storage under the seat where it can be easily accessed by the person sitting in the chair, in this case, owing to the design and function of the Karman XO-202 Stand-Up Power Wheelchair, there’s just no way that’s possible.
While we love the vast array of extras on offer here, given the staggering cost of the model, we do find ourselves wishing that at least a few of these would have been incorporated into the base model.
Splendid Indoors, Above Average Outdoors
Sporting wide 14” rear wheels and serviceable 8” front casters (both “flat-free” with plenty of treads), you’ll find the XO-202 quite capable of handling a variety of challenging outdoor terrains, and there’s not an indoor surface we can imagine that the model couldn’t conquer with ease.
Combine that with its 5 MPH top speed and a 25-mile range, and you get a chair that may not be able to go quite anywhere, but it can certainly go just about anywhere you’re likely to want to take it and get you back safely and comfortably.
Indoors, its tight 25” turning radius means that once you master the controller, you can easily navigate in, out, and around tight spaces.
Okay, So There’s a Learning Curve Here…
While there’s not much to do assembly-wise, make no mistake: This chair has something of a learning curve.
Trying to figure out how to strap yourself in with the XO-202’s three different safety features will take up a few inches of your time, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
You’ll want to spend some time practicing with the joystick so you can learn how the chair handles. Then, you’ll want to experiment with the built-in remote to get used to how the adjustments and configurations work, to say nothing of learning how to fine-tune the chair for optimal comfort.
However, Those things are worth learning because once you master this chair, you’ll find that it can go almost anywhere and do almost anything. It’s almost like an automated assistant, helping you and your human assistant if you have one.
Pros & Cons of the Karman XO-202 Wheelchair
There’s so much to like about the Karman XO-202 standing wheelchair that we almost don’t know where to begin. We’ll just hit the high spots rather than repeating all the glowing praise we’ve given the chair.
In no particular order, then, some of the great things about this model are:
Those are undeniably good things, but as we said at the beginning, it comes with one huge catch. You’ll pay about as much for the XO-202 as a quality used car.
As great as it is and as attractive as it may be to a broad swath of the market, its staggering price tag may leave you with sticker shock and will invariably put it out of reach of a substantial market segment. That’s a real shame because, in a significant percentage of cases, the people who need it the most and who could get the most benefit from it won’t be able to afford it.
Unfortunately, there’s not much to be done about that. We don’t feel that the company is overcharging for the model; it’s just that you can’t realistically create such a grand design without increasing the price, and there are so many things the XO-202 can do that it’s no wonder it carries a hefty price tag.
Final Thoughts on Karman XO-202 Wheelchair
We love the Karman XO-202 wheelchair. It handily won top honors in our roundup review of the best wheelchairs for the elderly, and we stand by that decision.
That said, this chair isn’t for everyone. We recommend it without reservation for those with severe, long-term mobility issues, as these people can fully utilize every feature the model offers.
For everyone else, it’s probably more wheelchair than you’ll ever need, and you can certainly find one with fewer bells and whistles for a fraction of the price.
Recommended Reading
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Drive Medical Cirrus Plus Electric Wheelchair Review
We looked into the Drive Medical Cirrus Plus Electric Wheelchair, a valuable game changer for long-term mobility.
References & Resources
- Karman Wheelchair, Official Brand Website.
- Karman XO202 Use Manual, Karman.
- Electric Wheelchair Advantages, Karman.
- Power Wheelchair Dangers and User Safety, Wendt Law.