I am a guy that likes his comfort. That being said, I am extremely picky when it comes to my lounge furniture. I’ve tried various “gaming chairs”, bean bag chairs, and other similar products over the years, and I’ve found them all lacking in various areas. Things like no arm rests, the inability to retain a comfortable shape, or just general uncomfortable-ness are deal breakers. When I got to opportunity to try out Sumo’s Sway Couple, I was a bit skeptical, but now, I’m a believer. This truly is the chair to end all chairs. The kingdom of my geekiness now has a throne, and what a throne it is!
Before I get into the review proper, here are the technical specs so you can get a general idea of how large this puppy is.
- Weight of 50 lbs makes transport a snap compared to say, a couch.
- The chair measures 51″ W X 44″ L X 33″ H
- Guaranteed to retain its shape and never go flat
- Convenient storage pocket for holding various items
- Available in microsuede or corduroy
- 7 color choices over both materials
The model I received was the corduroy version’s ‘Raspberry Red’. It’s not as vivid a red as the other Sumo products, but it’s a nice mix of practical and stylish. The corduroy doesn’t make the wispy sound you get from cord pants or anything, which was a welcome surprise.
The chair definitely passes the 'kid tested' part of the equation.
With that out of the way, let me give you a rundown of the rigors I put the chair through. As soon as it came out of the package, the whole family wanted a crack at it. My niece is the kind of young lady who hasn’t yet gotten to the age where ‘handle with care’ is even a consideration. As soon as I got the chair out of the box and set up in the living room, she literally took a flying leap into the chair. We were all kind of freaking out, because we thought she was going to slide across the floor, possibly damage her head and take this review in a very bad direction. Thankfully, the chair barely moved! I found out this was due to the way the chair is constructed.
The bottom conceals the zipper cover as well as prevents slippage!
I’m not exactly sure what the material that makes up the bottom of the chair is, but the fact that it’s not corduroy, make a big difference over other lounge chairs. You can shift in the chair to find your ideal position without having to worry about slipping and sliding all over the floor. Speaking of comfort, the filling of the Sway Couple doesn’t seem to be completely filled with ‘beans’ The back and the seat, are much fluffier than you’d expect. The base feel more like a traditional beanbag filling, though. I personally think this is an ingenious way to go. The base can still be shaped a bit like a bean bag chair, but the actual part you’ll be sitting on kind of contours around your body as you sit. It was really difficult to find a position I didn’t find comfortable.
Animal fur, the bane of furniture, is largely negated by the Sway Couple
As you can see above, everyone in the family wanted a try on the chair. Our dog, Duchess had a field day. I guess you could use the Sway Couple as a glorified doggie bed, but this led to the one complaint I had about the chair, albeit a temporary one. It’s getting warmer, and when that happens, animals shed. After her excursion on the chair, it was covered in hair. Corduroy is an unfortunate attractor of hair, crumbs what have you. Unlike many other chairs though, you can easily turn the Sway over, unzip the cover and wash it if necessary. In this case though, a lint brush was enough.
Comics or video games? The eternal question.
One feature that was welcome on the Sway Couple is the pocket on the right side. It’s perfect for your game controllers, remotes, or whatever you like. Once you’re sitting down, you’re going to be so comfortable, you’re not going to want to get up, which is where the pocket is useful. My first night with the chair was spent reading comics and watching movies. It was a pretty great experience, and the fact I could store sundry items made it all the better. I wouldn’t recommend trying to use it as a cup holder though. The pocket doesn’t have a lot of give, so your favorite beverage could be secure, but it could also get squished easily.
One thing I consider a bit of a misnomer about the Sway Couple is the name. I guess you could sit on it as a duo, but it’d be really cozy. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing, but your mileage may vary. I can sit on it with my niece and be quite comfy, but with two adults, maybe not. The only other complaint I have about the Sway Couple is again, something that isn’t really a strike against it. I have an incredibly low heat tolerance, and I’ve found in non-air conditioned environments, I experience a bit of the dreaded back sweating. That’s pretty true of any piece of furniture though, so I can count it against the chair itself.
After the family got their fill of the chair, I decided that since it’s mine, it’s going in my man cave. transport of the Sway Couple, was pretty easy. It weighs about 50 pounds, so I could lift it myself. The doorways in my house are pretty narrow, so I did have to compress the chair a bit to get it through, but to its credit, it popped right back into shape afterward. Set up was as simple as putting in back on the floor, and I’m happy to say it is now my de facto, go-to piece of furniture. I’d even sleep on it if it were a tiny bit larger!
Me checking twitter before writing this very article!
All in all, I have to give the Sway Couple a pretty big thumbs up. It’s comfortable, I feel like I get enough back support, and it’s simply cool to be sitting an a bean bag chair designed for adults. While the price ($279 for microsuede and $299 for Corduroy) may be a bit daunting, the quality of the chair and the fact that it’s more like a ‘real’ piece of furniture makes it something you should definitely consider.
Sumo can be contacted at sumolounge.com for their line of chairs, and at http://www.sumoapartments.com/ for their quite interesting take on vacation lodging! The chair was sent to me by Sumo for review purposes.