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Sumo Lounge Omni & Otto
Testing
As I already mentioned, I'm quite the lounger. I've lounged on 3 different Continents and have no plans of stopping anytime soon. Testing the Omni and Otto is a feat for which I am well equipped. And what better way to test a giant bean bag than to plop yourself down in front of the TV to watch a football game? My weekly Australian Rules Football night became the first testing ground for the pair of nylon lounge lumps. Almost immediately after revealing the jumbo pillow to my guests, one of them took a flying leap into the Omni. Of course the uber-tough nylon was unharmed and the hefty swatches of Velcro and zipper kept the beads from covering my living room floor. Various lounging conformations were tested. Sitting, slouching, chillin', kicking it, even some flopping and plopping occurred. All in attendance concluded that the bag was quite comfy. The added bonus of a matching footstool only enhanced the sitting experience. As tiny and light as the polystyrene beads are, they provide remarkable support once your lower half settles into place. Initially one's body sinks swiftly into the bag, but weight is quickly supported by the mass of plastic spheres. A solid yet yielding mass of comfort provides a blob of protection that conforms to your ass. In fact, once you've settled into the Sumo Omni, the styrene beads feel less like beans and more like a sack full of sand. The smaller Otto ottoman has pretty much one use. As a foot prop this thing is outstanding and compliments the Omni nicely. The styrene filling makes for a perfect footrest allowing your heels to sink comfortably into place while your calves are well supported. As a seat the Otto performs reasonably well but the lack of back support is annoying. The 50 centimeter radius is more than ample to accommodate sitters of most sizes; it just works better as an ottoman. One drawback to owning a massive nylon pouch full of plastic beads is the noise. Adjusting, fluffing and general moving of the Omni creates a fair amount of "bead noise." Bead noise does not go un-noticed by fellow living room dwelling movie watchers. Once a comfortable position is found, however, little movement is required!until the first bathroom break.     Another weak point that I discovered is actually being able to get out of the Omni. The thing is so darn comfy that you don't really want to move once you've settled in. But the low profile of the bag and its tendency towards squish make it difficult to maintain any sense of gracefulness when you attempt to rally yourself into standing position. Then again, it's an evolved bean bag. No one will expect you to make a pirouetting exit on your way to the beer fridge. Finally, where does one store a nearly 25 square foot bean bag? If you plan on leaving your Omni out in the open this won't be an issue. However, when I tried to find a place to stuff the Omni when not in use, I was stumped. Our guest bedroom houses the beast when we need space to walk in our living room, but the Omni takes up a large swath of floor and pretty much fills up the space between the bed and the dresser. You should have seen me trying to stuff it into my MINI Cooper!I could barely see out the back! That said, if you are a loft dwelling, open space sort of bean bagger, the Omni practically doubles as a couch, which brings me to my next point. Perhaps it isn't as large as a full sized couch, but it certainly works as a love seat!if you know what I mean. Did I mention that it is stain resistant? You see where I'm going with this. You were all thinking it! The Omni will easily accommodate the weight of 2 people, for whatever reason you may find to "sit" two-to-an-Omni. During my studies, I found that there were three primary useful configurations best suited to the ultimate lounging experience.
Of course you can always just sort of plop the thing down and ease yourself into the most comfortable position, which really is the point of a bean bag in the first place. Additional uses for the Omni may include:
Kurtis' Note: In the interest of science, I had Sumo Lounge send me a Sumo Omni as well. We've all heard the horror stories of babies suffocating in bean bags, and I wanted to see for myself if this would be a problem with the Omni. My goddaughter, Isabella (now 14 months old), was my test subject, and I saw no cause for concern even if she was left in her playroom alone with the beanbag. The material is thick and tough (it feels almost like a tarp), and there's no way her baby fingers are prying the heavy-duty Velcro strap open. As a matter of fact, she actually took to the giant bag of beany goodness - she loves to lay down on it in the big pillow configuration after she has worn herself out in her playroom. And I don't have to worry about her suffocating, so that's always a plus.
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Add Comment
11 User Comments 1 - Posted by
Nick
on October 2, 2006 - 4:57 pm Who's the dood? Couldn't we have gotten a hawt chick to pose for the pictures like Sumo did? Kurtis must have slept through the 'sex sells' part of his marketing class... 2 - Posted by
Kurtis
on October 2, 2006 - 5:05 pm haha... i was going to have a girl model, but my brother happened to be over one day, so I said hey, might as well get the photos taken now. plus, you can see what a normal sized man looks like in the chair instead of a petite girl.
3 - Posted by
Nick
on October 2, 2006 - 5:30 pm That's yer brother? I see no family resemblance whatsoever. Looks like he's about 5 inches taller and 40 (or more) pounds bigger than you!
4 - Posted by
Kurtis
on October 2, 2006 - 6:16 pm lol. more like 1 inch taller and maybe 20 pounds heavier.
5 - Posted by
handrail
on October 2, 2006 - 8:14 pm at least we didn't have pictures of me in the thing. then no one would read the damn article.
6 - Posted by
Mark
on October 3, 2006 - 12:32 pm I think we need a few more reviews of different colored Omnis... just to make sure they're all as comfy and durable as the one Brad reviewed... count me in for one. :P I've seen those things before, I might have to add that to my list for Santa this year. 7 - Posted by
Kurtis
on October 3, 2006 - 12:38 pm If we don't do a contest with Sumo Lounge, I might give you mine - just pay for shipping.
8 - Posted by
Rich
on October 3, 2006 - 12:41 pm I must admit, that does look awfully enticing...of course I would have to fight the kids for it.
9 - Posted by
Mark
on October 3, 2006 - 1:48 pm I still have a big green bean bag that used to be my grandpa's. It's so worn out now that I can't really use the thing without pieces of fabric falling off, but my brother and I abused the hell out of that thing when we were growing up. There's nothing like jumping off the back of a couch and onto your unsuspecting younger brother while he's watching Saturday morning cartoons and lounging on the bean bag when you're twen... err... ten years old. :)
10 - Posted by
Karenmom
on December 23, 2008 - 11:01 am I ordered two of these Sumo chairs for christmas on 12/5 i was promised everyday that they would arrive by christmas eve....well I called today adn they said sorry it will not be ther ein time, no reason...there tracking system sucks and they lie when you call.....buyer beware!!!!
11 - Posted by
Kevan
on January 20, 2009 - 2:05 pm I'd like to add another buyer beware. I, too, ordered two Omni Plus bags at the beginning of December. I got the run around trying to get them for Christmas. Every day that I called, they would tell me that they were shipping the following day. They finally arrived in giant boxes that had fallen apart and only held together by two strips of packing tape. And to my surprise, it was a liner stuffed with filling... no liner. I've tried for a month, now, to get my order fixed. I always get the same answer, "Your liner is going out today." Four weeks and several calls later, still no liner. And, I'm told that I have to assemble this gigantic mess myself (refer back to the warning about opening your bag). I've taken my complaints through Mindy at customer service all the way up to Andrew the company president. They simply ignore me. But, they did bill my credit card the day after I placed th order. I have filed consumer complaints against this company and contacted my state Attorney General's office. It appears they're good at marketing and poor at delivering a product to the customer. Beware!
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