In January I was contacted by Sumo Lounge to see if I’d want to review one of their products for their 15 year anniversary. I’ve reviewed the modernist Omni beanbag and the delectably comfortable Sumo Sway Couple back in 2007 and 2010. While I liked these products quite a bit (particularly the Sway Couple), they are rather too large for my small condominium and I had to give them away. This time I looked through the Sumo Lounge catalog and asked to try out their Sumo Cordoroy Otto, which is their smallest beanbag chair. It’s 21 inches in diameter and 16 inches high, filled with 8 pounds of their special foam. I had been thinking that I’d like some kind of foot rest to go with my LoveSac Sactional S5 modular couch, and the Otto in red seemed like a good choice.

I unboxed the Otto on my daily livestream for February 1, and have been living with it for a few weeks now. It’s an attractive shape and size, reminding me a bit of a plush corduroy cupcake. It works pretty well as a foot support, though since it is designed for kids there is not enough foam in it for a someone as heavy as me (200+ pounds) to sit on it without sinking all the way to the ground. I’m curious if adding more foam would make it a bit more supportive (Sumo sells additional bags of foam in 16 pound sizes for $100), but since the chair doesn’t have internal structure in the base it might just flop over.

In the weeks I’ve been using the Otto, I’ve come to think of it as a very attractive free standing accent cushion that compresses into a pillow. It’s been nice to use when I’ve had to get under my computer desk and sit for a while, as it still offers padding for my bony ass. It would be great in a kids bedroom or play space.

The ultimate application of the Otto, as far as my experience has gone, is as the world’s best cat pillow. My cat LOVES the Otto. It elevates him off the cold hardwood floor to give him a good view, and it’s supremely comfortable. For people-sized cat comfort, Sumo Lounge sells the mighty Maximus Bean Bag, which looks like a giant Otto EIGHT FEET in diameter. I wish I had the space for it; even the slightly smaller Gigantor Bean Bag is six feet wide. Anyway, my 15 year-old cat lurvs the Otto and is sleeping away his senior years on top of it…I am so jealous.

» Sumo Lounge Otto Bean Bag Chair
At the time of this writing, Sumo Lounge is having a sale!

This review unit was provided by Sumo Lounge for their 15th anniversary! Thanks guys for sending one out to me to try out!