Are you on a budget and looking for a reasonably priced massage chair that can get the job done without costing you an arm and a leg?
If so, then these are not the chairs for you. They meet the first part of your requirement, being inexpensive, but we do not recommend them for reasons we’ll describe in detail in the sections below.
This MCombo Massage Chair review will take a closer look at the entire MCombo product line, six different chairs in all, and outline the various features they have to offer. As you will see, these are not proper massage chairs in the accepted sense of the word.
MCombo Massage Chair Overview
As you can see from the table, these chairs suffer from some serious deficiencies, right off the bat. For starters, even the best of the chairs is lacking a massage roller track (L-Track or S-Track being the industry standards). They’re even missing proper massage rollers.
In place of rollers, all of these chairs use fixed-position massage heads that vibrate when the chair is activated. Being stationary, if the massage heads don’t align with your body’s pressure points, all you can do is reposition yourself in the chair and hope for the best. Not a very optimal solution.
The major problem we have with MCombo is the fact that it’s an off-brand. There’s almost no information about any of these chairs. About the only places they can be found are on Amazon and eBay.
We found their company website, but they don’t have any online user manuals. Plus, we’re not really sure how easy (or difficult) it would be to get any of these models repaired should something go wrong.
A further clue to the questionable nature of these chairs lies in the warranty. Most massage chairs offer a 1 to 3-year warranty, with some companies offering five or even ten-year warranties. MCombo’s warranty is for 90 days only. That should send up a giant red flag to any serious buyer right away!
With those things in mind, let us now begin with the least expensive of the chairs, and work our way toward the top end of the MCombo product line.
Understand that all of these are considered budget-priced, low-end chairs – even the most expensive of MCombo’s products is less expensive than most low-end massage chairs offered by established brands.
MCombo Massage Chairs Comparison Table
Before we get into the particulars of our MCombo massage chair review, let’s take a look at MCombo’s product lineup:
7902 | 7903 | 8031 | 8885 | 8886 | 6160-008 | |
|
Massage Heads | 8 | 8 | 12 | 20 | 20 | 20 |
|
Swivel | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ |
|
Heat | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|
Air Massage | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✓ | ✓ |
|
Zero-G | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✓ |
|
MP3 Support | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ |
MCombo Massage Chairs In More Detail
MCombo 7902 Massage Chair
This is essentially an office chair with vibrating heads and heat and is priced as such.
This is essentially an office chair with vibrating heads and heat and is priced as such. There aren’t many features to talk about, but we’ll break them down, just below:
Eight Fixed-Position Massage Heads
The 7902 comes with eight fixed-point massage heads placed at various points in the chair’s back and seat. According to the product description, there are 4 “pre-programmed massages” and five different massage modes, but these are all simple variations on the basic theme.
Turn the chair on; it vibrates. The intensity and speed change so, but these are not sufficient to properly describe them as unique massage experiences.
Note that the chair also comes with a separate footrest, and it contains two of the eight massage heads, so you are getting a vibration-style calf massage as well.
Swivel Base
The chair swivels a full 360 degrees, reinforcing the feeling that it’s a vibrating office chair.
Heat
There is a heating element in the lumbar region of the chair back which you can activate via the included remote. It’s a binary function, either on, or off, with no temperature control, but it is a nice addition.
Very Simple Remote
Since there aren’t many features on the chair, the remote is quite easy to master. It could be argued that MCombo tried to make the remote more complicated than it needs to be by offering different buttons to access the different “massage modes.” Nonetheless, even given that, there’s no learning curve here.
MCombo 7903 Massage Chair
This model’s feature set is identical to the 7902, with the exception that this 7903 model can recline to a maximum angle of 120 degrees (the 7902 cannot recline). It costs marginally less and has a slightly different aesthetic. Those are the only differences.
MCombo 8031 Massage Chair
This is essentially the same chair at the 7902, ported to a basic recliner frame instead of an office chair.
Continuing with our MCombo Massage Chair review, we arrive at model 8031. This is essentially the same chair at the 7902, ported to a basic recliner frame instead of an office chair.
There are a few interesting differences to point out here, though, and of all the chairs offered by the company, this one bears the most consideration.
More Stationary Massage Heads
Because it’s slightly bigger, it has additional fixed-position massage heads (12 vs 8 on the 7902).
Again, the company claims multiple “massage modes, ” but there’s honestly just not much you can do with stationary massage heads. They turn on; they vibrate at various speeds, and they turn off. No amount of window dressing is going to change that fact or get around their limitations.
Heat Function Retained
Like the 7902, this model has what amounts to a heating pad built into the chair back. While it basically works in an office chair, it gets a chance to shine in a recliner, on the thinking that you’ll e sitting in this chair to lounge and extensive a nice touch, even if you don’t care about the massage heads.
It should be noted here that although this is a very low-priced chair, it’s quite comfortable, which is another win for the model. You’ll genuinely enjoy sitting in it.
Swivel Base
A bit of a surprise in what amounts to a recliner. The fact that you can swivel is interesting, but it is doubtful that anyone would be convinced to buy the chair on the basis of that feature.
Cup Holders!
Okay, now we’re talking. Since this is a lounging chair, the combination of heat plus cup holders is pretty sweet. We could see this as a decent, budget-priced gaming chair, which makes it worth a second look.
MCombo 8885 Massage Chair
As we continue to move up to increasingly expensive MCombo products, the 8885 represents a true dividing line.
All of the previous products we’ve taken a look at were clearly modified versions of chairs you would normally find in your home (desk chairs and recliners). The 8885 looks like a massage chair, complete with leg massage ports.
It comes a bit closer to imitating a genuine massage chair too, but as we get into its features, you’ll see that it’s still some distance from it.
Still More Massage Heads
The remaining chairs in the MCombo lineup have twenty, Shiatsu-style, stationary massage heads. They still suffer from the same limitations we talked about earlier, and although the company tries gamely to talk up the various massage programs, the heads still don’t move.
Yes, you get a decent Shiatsu-style massage from this chair, If the massage heads happen to hit the pressure points on your back. If they don’t, you’re out of luck.
Air Massage Mode
We looked high and low for information on the exact airbag count in this chair. The company does not make the information available. Our best guess is 14, but that’s just an estimate based on massage quality and feel.
These are First Generation Airbags, so in addition to not getting many of them, the older technology doesn’t render as good a massage as the newer technology. Nonetheless, if a decent air massage is a must-have feature for you, and you’re willing to live with the chair’s other limitations, then this might be a good fit.
It should also be noted that the air massage can be customized via the remote through three different intensity levels.
Note that although the air massage does include the calves, there are no foot rollers at the bottom of the leg ports.
Lumbar Heat
This feature functions the same way here as it did in the other models we’ve talked about. It’s a nice feature, and always a welcome addition.
MCombo 8886 Massage Chair
Similar to the 8885 model with the addition of a neck and head massage pillow and more airbags.
The 8886 is functionally similar to the 8885 model. The only two changes to talk about are the addition of a neck and head massage pillow (a slight rearrangement of the twenty-fixed position Shiatsu massage heads) and the addition of more airbags (we estimate twenty in this model).
This makes sense. Since the two models are priced with a fifty-dollar difference, you wouldn’t expect major differences in features.
But in an attempt to differentiate the two, the company lists the following as the eight “major innovations” of the chair:
We realize that there are only five “innovations” listed here. What the other three are, we don’t know. They don’t appear anywhere in the product’s description. This is most likely a language barrier issue, but we cannot say that for certain.
The manufacturer seemed especially interested in driving home the point that the chair was fire-resistant, so it may be the case that this is another of the model’s “innovations,” although, given the scant 90-day warranty, not a very comforting one.
All of this to say, please don’t buy this 8886 chair. We would feel bad if you did!
MCombo 6160-008 Massage Chair
Wrapping up our MCombo massage chair review, we end with the company’s top-of-the-line offering: The 6160-008.
It is clear that the company tried to pull out all the stops, feature-wise, with this model, and in a couple of instances, they succeeded.
The 6160 shares many features in common with the 8886, chief among them being the twenty fixed-position Shiatsu massage heads, lumbar heat, and Air Massage Mode, but of all the models the company offers, this one comes the closest to resembling a genuine massage chair.
Zero-Gravity Seating
The presence of Zero-G seating would normally be a great feature, but given that the massage heads are stationary, it is of limited value here.
If they’re not hitting your pressure points the way they should, there’s still nothing you can do to change that, and what you wind up getting is a slightly stronger, more intense massage that’s not giving you the benefit you’re looking for.
The chair only offers a single Zero-G position, and it’s accessible with one touch from the remote, so credit where credit is due – it was a good attempt.
More Airbags
Again, without specific information from the manufacturer, we’re estimating twenty-eight First Generation Airbags, which is certainly sufficient to give a good quality air massage, and it is adjustable via the remote through three different intensity levels.
Airbags in the leg massage ports render a good calf massage, and this chair does feature stationary massage heads in the footwells, giving you something close to a foot massage, which is an improvement.
Improved Heat
The heat feature has been expanded in this model to include both the lumbar region and the leg massage ports, providing therapeutic heat to the calves, which is a nice addition.
There’s still no way to control the temperature, and you can’t selectively enable heat in one area but not the other, but this change still represents a big improvement over previous efforts.
Easy-to-Use Remote
The 6160’s remote is reasonably well organized, and in the absence of an abundance of features, the learning curve for the chair is slight. Mastery won’t take any time at all.
Pros & Cons of MCombo Massage Chairs
We’ve tried to be fair in our extended MCombo Massage Chair review, and paint a complete picture of what you’re getting if you decide to buy any of these chairs. But as you have seen, they have their share of problems, shortcomings, and limitations.
While it would not be fair to say that the company’s products are epic disasters, the quality just isn’t there. The features are lacking, and in many cases, poorly implemented. Plus, the quality of the massage these products can deliver suffers accordingly.
These chairs are extremely low priced. That is perhaps their biggest potential advantage, but this is offset by their poor quality and relative lack of capability.
MCombo Massage Chair Review Conclusion
Of all the chairs offered by MCombo, the only one we can recommend for serious consideration is the recliner, MCombo 8031, which we feel would make a good lounging or budget-priced gaming chair.
In our view, none of these meet even the minimum requirements to be considered true massage chairs and are best avoided. For just slightly more money, you can get a true massage chair with an S-Track, rollers, and a host of other features that these products just don’t offer.
References & Resources
- MCombo, Official Brand Website.
- The effect of compressed air massage on skin blood flow and temperature, PubMed.
