Table of Contents
Ergotec ET-100 Mercury Massage Chair Review
Pros
- Unlike Many Entry Level Massage Chairs, This One Comes With Foot Rollers!
- Auto Modes May Be Limited, But There's Lots Of Flexibility In Manual Mode!
- Operation Is About As Easy It Gets!
Cons
- 15'' Clearance Means This Thing Is A Nightmare To Place!
Ergotec ET-100 Mercury: A Simple Budget Massage Chair & Nothing More!
Happy holidays to all of you! With 2020 coming to a close, I hope you and your family are staying safe and maintaining social distance protocols amid the pandemic. It’s been a crazy year with tons of challenges and obstacles, but all that matters in the end is that we do our best to ensure everyone has a chance to live.
To me this is the best Christmas present we can ever give anyone. That is, the gift to live!
That being said, you can still do your Christmas and boxing day shopping as there’s tons of awesome deals online. Massage chairs are no different, lots of good deals this time of the year. Also, lots of new chairs being released as well. I’ve never reviewed Ergotech massage chairs before so this would be the first time.
What stands out to me about the ET-100 Mercury is 2 things: one the attractive price point, and two the simplicity in operation.
If you’re on a tight budget, then the ET-100 Mercury might just be up your alley. More on this later though, as I plan on doing a side by side comparison of the ET-100 Mercury to other similar chairs. For now however, let’s look at some interesting features of the ET-100 Mercury!
4 Key Features: Ergotec ET-100 Mercury Massage Chair
#1 2D S-Track Back Rollers
There are 3 types of rollers you can typically expect to find on a massage chair: 2D, 3D, and 4D. 4D is the most advanced, 2D is the least advanced, 3D is in between.
Least advanced does not mean useless, outdated, or ineffective! It’s very important to understand this before buying a massage chair!
I’ve seen many people flock to 3D/4D chairs because someone told them they should never ever look at a 2D chair. This is wrong. Yes 2D rollers are less advanced than the other 2, but they’re still incredibly effective, and more importantly, massage chair manufacturers have tons of experience designing and integrating 2D rollers effectively. This should not be forgotten.
Okay, ranting aside, the Ergotec ET-100 Mercury comes equipped with 2D (AKA 2-dimensional) rollers mounted on an S-Track. 2D rollers move in 2-dimensions: up/down along the vertical and side to side along the horizontal.
The biggest shortcoming with 2D rollers is that the intensity they offer is capped. That is, they cannot perform massage at deep tissue intensities. However, all things considered, 2D rollers can still perform a solid massage!
A little bit about roller track….we talk about S-Track and L-Track but what’s the difference? L-Track offers extended massage coverage because of the longer track distance. However, S-Track offers a better stretch routine than L-Tracks because they are shorter and therefore able to fully stretch out during recline.
So which one should you pick, S-Track or L-Track?
Truth be told, it depends. If you want more massage coverage, definitely an L-Track. If coverage is not as important to you, and emphasis is on back massage, then an S-Track would be more suitable.
Note: The S-Track on the Ergotec ET-100 Mercury massage chair is 30” starting from the neck spanning all the way right down to the lower back, tailbone area.
#2 4 Auto Modes To Pick From
Auto modes equate to user experience. The more the auto modes, the better. More importantly, how well designed the auto modes are makes a world of difference. 4 auto modes are definitely on the lower side, but considering the price of this chair, I can’t really complain. You can’t have everything!
The 4 auto modes are:
- Vigorous—A high intensity mode in which the chair employs both the rollers and airbags. A great routine to perform after strenuous exercise.
- Gentle—Low to medium intensity full body routine that works really well before bedtime, and just after waking up. If you like mild routines, this one will be right up your alley!
- Relax—Similar to the gentle mode in many ways, but slightly less intense. Also great before bedtime!
- Demo—A quick routine that illustrates all of the chair’s features in about 5 minutes. I wouldn’t count this as an actual massage routine.
In my opinion the “Demo” mode isn’t really an auto mode per say. It’s more a demonstration, so really the ET-100 Mercury has 3 auto modes if you ask me. All the auto modes can be activated directly from the remote control.
#3 10 Airbags Facilitate Lower Body Massage!
Since the rollers can only extend so far, airbags are needed to massage the lower extremities of the body.
Airbags are inflatable pouches that inflate/deflate with compressed air thereby resulting in a compression, squeeze style massage on adjacent muscle and tissue.
The ET-100 Mercury comes loaded with a total of 10 airbags. As mentioned earlier, the 10 airbags are located on the lower parts of the chair to provide massage to the calves, feet, hips, and buttocks.
Airbag intensity can be altered from weak to strong with 3 levels of intensity.
Note: The ET-100 Mercury also comes equipped with spinning foot rollers. The rollers work in tandem with the airbags to provide a relaxing, effective foot massage.
#4 It Can Perform A Total Of 5 Massage Techniques!
These are kneading, tapping, rolling, clapping, and a combo of kneading and tapping. All things considered, not too shabby for a chair of this price!
It’s important to understand the distinction between massage techniques and auto massage modes. Massage modes are pre-programmed routines that a user can select and enjoy. Massage techniques are the actual massage strokes a chair’s rollers and airbags are able to perform. Many massage techniques may be employed in an auto massage mode.
The number of massage techniques, as well as massage modes are incredibly important considerations when buying a massage chair!
Ergotec ET-100 Mercury Massage Chair Specifications
- Ergotec ET-100 Mercury Massage Chair Specs
- Roller Type: S-Track
- Roller Length: 30 Inches
- Total Airbags: 10
- Upright Dimensions: 48.4”L x 30.3"W x 45.3"H
- Recline Dimensions: 67.7”L x 30.3”W x 35"H
- Chair Material: Synthetic Leather
- Height Range: 5'0" - 6'3" ft.
- Maximum Recommended Weight: 320 lbs
Ergotec ET-100 Mercury Massage Chair Pros & Cons!
- Pretty Good Flexibility When Operating In Manual Mode!—For a budget chair, you sure do get a lot of flexibility when operating this thing in manual mode. For example, you can adjust intensity, roller width, massage techniques employed, and even narrow down to a spot/partial massage if you have specific trouble points!
- Foot Rollers—Usually this would not be a pro since it’s pretty common to see foot rollers on most massage chairs. However, on a massage chair with this price tag? I’ve seen equivalent chairs at a similar price tag which do not offer both foot/calf massage, so kudos to Ergotec for making this possible on the ET-100 Mercury.
- Recline Capabilities—Being able to recline is often a pleasure taken for granted. Similar to foot rollers, it’s something you grow to expect on most massage chairs. It’s nice to have the ability to recline to a completely flat posture on the ET-100 Mercury!
- 15” Clearance!?—I was looking through the spec table and noticed that you need 15” of clearance from backrest to the closest wall. This is absolutely insane for any chair, let alone a chair with limited features. I get that there won’t be any space saving technology, and that’s reasonable, but 15” of clearance is a bit too much I think. What do you think? Drop a comment down below!
How Does The Ergotec ET-100 Mercury Compare To Other Massage Chairs?
Since the Ergotec ET-100 Mercury is very much an entry level massage chair, we’ll be comparing it against other entry level units. While they may be entry level, the Synca Wellness CirC and the Infinity Riage CS are absolute beasts! Don’t believe me? Check out the reviews on them and see what people have to say. So we will be comparing the ET-100 to these 2 chairs…
- Infinity Riage CS
- 5’0 – 6’4 ft & 264 lbs.
User Height/Weight - $
Price - L-Track
Roller Track - 0
Airbags - 4
Auto Modes - Yes
Ability To Recline - 3
Massage Techniques
- Synca Wellness CirC
- 4'9 - 6'2 ft & 250 lbs.
User Height/Weight - $$
Price - L-Track
Roller Track - 10
Airbags - 5
Auto Modes - No
Ability To Recline - 4
Massage Techniques
- Ergotec ET-100 Mercury
- 5'0 - 6'3 ft & 320 lbs.
User Height/Weight - $$$
Price - S-Track
Roller Track - 10
Airbags - 3
Auto Modes - Yes
Ability To Recline - 5
Massage Techniques
What do you figure? It’s a hard one to call right? There’s a few ways to look at it. Let me try to make it simple:
In the end, all 3 are decent chairs and none will leave you disappointed. It boils down to what you personally feel is important. If foot massage is a must, then your decision should be to go with the ET-100 Mercury. If portability, maybe the Riage CS or the CirC, and so on so forth. Don’t pull the trigger but actually spend some time thinking this all through!
Leave Your Burning Questions Down Below!
I hope you enjoyed reading and got some value out of today’s review. If you did, please consider sharing this post on the social channels, as it really does go a long way in helping support our site. Last but not least, please get in touch by dropping a comment below should you have any queries about this or any other massage chair.
2020 has come to a swift close after what has been a tumultuous, challenging year for all! Will 2021 be different? Time will certainly tell, but we can only hope so. With that I bid you farewell! Stay healthy, stay happy, and most importantly stay safe! See you in 2021!
Thanks for this review. I just saw this item at NFM 50% of at $1000 and thought it looked like a good deal. I wonder, could I use this as a recliner for normal use? Can it be put into a reclining position without the massage going? Would the rollers or knobs stick into my back?
Hi Sean, awesome to hear from you. Hope all is well. To answer your question about being able to fully recline without massage, I think it’s possible but I can’t confirm with 100% certainty. However, I will confirm with Ergotec and come back to update this comment once I know for sure. Thanks in advance for your patience!