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We present a review of the Panasonic EP 30003 TU. Our goal is to present a potential massage chair purchaser with an unbiased, thorough and comprehensive review of the Panasonic Real Pro Ultra. We have developed a 5 category system to evaluate a massage chair. We give equal weight to each category and give 0 to 20 points rating and then add them up to present an overall score. Our categories include Warranty & Customer Service, Comfort/Ergonomics, Ease of Use, Features and Massage Therapy. We hope this disciplined method of evaluating a massage chair will help to guide anyone looking at massage chairs. The Panasonic Real Pro Ultra EP 30003 TU shiatsu massage chair price is in the mid range of $2,000 to $3,000.

Warranty & Customer Service: It is important that the manufacturer stand behind its product and provides good customer service. Panasonic has 1 year labor and 3 year parts. Panasonic uses a counter to monitor the machine hours. The warranty will expire after 1,000 hours of use. Panasonic has average warranty coverage. Customer service is through your retailer or national service centers. Service time and quality is variable and dependent on where service is obtained. Our Rating in this category is 16.

Comfort & Ergonomics: The comfort and fit of any chair is important for the use. Panasonic usually makes it chairs pretty ergonomic. The Real Pro Ultra is no exception. The back pad is comfortable and plush. The head pillow can be adjusted to fit different heights of users. The arm rests are padded and are fairly wide. The footrest does not extend, so this can be problematic for taller users. Taller users would have to bend their knees to get a foot massage or extend the footrest horizontal to and put their legs through. Our rating in this category is 17.

Ease of Use: With more and more features, options and choices being offered in massage chairs, ease of use is important. Some remote controls are clustered with a mind boggling array of controls. The problem is to learn all these options. The top manufacturers design controls and adjustments to be intuitive and easy to understand and use. Panasonic has vast experience with electronics and uses that to keep its controls simple and intuitive. The control is well designed and the descriptions accurate to keep learning fast. We rate it an 18 for this category.

Key Features: The Real Pro Ultra by Panasonic has an pressure point sensor and the exclusive Junetsu massage therapy. The human body has around 350 pressure points. There are almost 100 for the back, neck and shoulders. The EP 30003 has a body scan to sense these pressure points. It then tailors the shiatsu style massage to the individual user. Panasonic also developed the Junetsu massage therapy into this model. The Junetsu uses firm pressure with a penetrating circular motion for the back. This is a unique massage offered only by Panasonic. We give the EP 30003 an 18 in this category.

Massage Therapy: The Panasonic Real Pro Ultra is equipped with customizable self-programs, 5-minute quick refresher massage and 4 other massage programs. The 4 other programs include shiatsu, deep, Swedish and stretch. The lower body air massage includes 14 airbags for calf and foot coverage. The Junetsu or ultra fine kneading is a new feature by Panasonic which is also in this massage recliner. The back rollers give you 132 square inches of coverage. Manual controls include tapping, kneading, rolling and combination. For the price range, the massage therapy is pretty thorough. The ultra fine kneading is a great addition for this price point. Our rating in this category is 19.

What is the overall rating for the Panasonic Real Pro Ultra EP30003 TU? Adding up our scores, we rate the Panasonic EP30003 TU as an 88/100. The best feature is the Junetsu ultra fine kneading massage. Panasonic developed this for its higher end chairs and was able to integrate into the EP 30003 at a much lower price point. The remote control also has the voice guidance system which is nice for new users. The warranty for the Real Pro Ultra is about average. You may want to investigate extended warranties for additional protection. Some taller users may find the chair too small, but try it to be sure. The massage chair is solid and reliable with some good technology for the price point. If you are looking at massage chair recliners in this range, you should check this one out.