You may recall that nearly three years ago I won a SumoLounge Omni bean bag chair.  At the time, I said “I’ll be sure to let you, o faithful reader of my blog, know what I think of it.”  Well I never did, mainly because I forgot about it.  But a few months ago someone asked me what I thought of the chair, and I wrote a quick review in an e-mail.  And I decided, since I had already written it, I would repost it here and fulfill that three-year-old promise.  I know you’ve all been awaiting this anxiously.

The most surprising thing to me was that it was very light.  Bean bag chairs that I’ve used before were always really heavy, but this thing uses something about as dense as styrofoam.  It’s also pretty much indestructible—I’ve let my dog play on it and her claws never came close to penetrating the material, which feels sort of like the material heavy-duty waterproof backpacks or wintersports/skiing jackets are made from.

On the downside, it’s not very good as a seat for an extended period.  The SumoSacs look a lot bigger, so maybe that wouldn’t be a problem there.  But the Omni doesn’t hold its shape quite well enough when one person is sitting on it.  After a few minutes, you’re basically sitting on the floor.  I’ve never really tried the upright/straddling positions the blonde girl on the website is doing though.  I’ve tried putting it up against a wall so that it is shaped kind of like a couch, but I didn’t find that very comfortable.  I’ve also tried folding it in half and sitting on it, but it felt like it wanted to unfold again.  The thing I’ve found it best for, actually, is if I want to lay on the floor and watch TV.  You can make one side of it into a pretty good pillow so your neck isn’t strained, and the rest stays comfy for a quite while (since your weight isn’t all focused on one spot when you’re laying down).

So, to make a conclusion: in my opinion, I don’t think the Omni is worth the price as a seat for an adult, but I can’t speak to any of the other bigger things they sell.