Pride Mobility Jazzy Air 2 Power Wheelchair Review 2023

* Note regarding Brand Reliability: This metric is a measure of the strength and longevity of the brand, which by extension, is a measure of the level of support you can expect. 

Do you suffer from some type of mobility issue that sees you spending at least part of each day in a wheelchair? Are you in the market for a battery-powered mobility aid that can help get you where you want to go, is light enough to take on the road with you, and can help you reach high places that normal wheelchairs simply can’t?

If you answered yes to the questions above, then the Jazzy Air 2 might be the best and coolest chair you’ve ever read about.

We’ll be quick to admit here in our Jazzy Air 2 review that it’s got a few issues and limitations, and as such, it won’t be for everyone. It is an incredibly capable chair, however. In the sections that follow, we’ll tell you everything it has to offer, and we won’t shy away from describing its limitations either. That way, you’ll be able to decide for yourself if this is the one you’ve been looking for.

If that sounds good to you, read on, and let’s have a closer look.

An Overview of the Pride Mobility Jazzy Air 2

The first thing to say about this model is that this is the Air 2, not the original Jazzy Air design.

While the original design was quite good and still possible to find it for sale on the web, that model has been discontinued for this one and will eventually vanish.

Aesthetically, this model looks a lot like the rest of the Jazzy product line, though perhaps a bit smaller than most. Don’t let the first impression fool you, though. Although the chair looks similar, it’s got capabilities that no other chair in the Jazzy product line has.

It’s also offered in a surprisingly wide range of colors, which is a departure from the norm where the Jazzy product line is concerned. Normally, you get to pick from two color options. Here, you can choose from any of the following:

Before we talk in this section of our Pride Jazzy Air 2 review about the signature feature and the other things this chair has to offer, let’s take a look at this model by the numbers. Here are the basics:

There’s a lot to talk about where these numbers are good. While many of these numbers are quite good, there are a few that we’re not impressed with.

First and foremost, this is an average-sized powered wheelchair on par with most of the other models Pride sells.

One thing we really love, though, is the fact that the company offers so many different seat size configurations. While we’re skeptical that the larger seat size options will see much use, given that the chair only supports up to 300 pounds of weight, we love the fact that so many options are available.

Normally, we’d make fun of the chair’s low top speed, but given this chair’s lift function, we totally understand why they offered the model with a relatively low top speed.

The range is on the high side of average. It’s not bad, but we’d love to see more here. Even though the range leaves us a little underwhelmed, the turning radius is pure awesome! This thing can’t quite turn on a dime, but it can turn on a quarter, and that’s not bad.

At 20.75,” the Air 2 has one of the tightest turning radii in Pride’s entire product line.

It’s great because it means that you can navigate through really tight spaces with relative ease. If you live in a smaller home or apartment or are visiting someone who does, you won’t have any trouble at all.

Unfortunately, the ground clearance is almost shockingly bad. The company clearly intended for the chair to be used in urban environments, sidewalks, parking lots, shopping centers, stores, and, of course, inside your home.

With a scant 1” ground clearance, there’s almost no way you can use this model outdoors. Say, if you wanted to ride over to the apple tree and use the lift feature to grab an apple. Nope. The first root you encounter will probably hang you up, and that’s a pity.

The last thing to talk about here where these numbers are concerned is the weight, and here, we’re back to being impressed. For an electric wheelchair, this is a surprisingly light model, and that means it’s relatively travel-friendly, which is awesome. We’ll have more to say about that a bit later on, though.

Adjustability and Comfort of Pride Jazzy Air

This is a surprisingly adjustable chair.

You can also set the angle of the seatback for optimal comfort, but note that this is not one of the swivel-seat designs. This seat is also equipped with a height-adjustable headrest, which gives you yet another comfort option.

Even better, the seat here is also depth adjustable by up to 2.” If you do have shorter legs, this might be enough to allow you to use the chair comfortably.

Finally, the padded armrests flip up to make transfers into and out of the chair easier, and they can be width- and angle-adjusted. Again, while that’s not quite as many options as you find on other Pride models, it does give you quite a lot of flexibility, and we like that very much.

Comfort-wise, we’d rate the Air 2 as being slightly above average overall. The block foam padding in the seat and the vinyl upholstery are both fairly standard, with the armrests and seatback angle adjustments making the difference here.

We have to say a few words about the vinyl upholstery, though. Vinyl has its uses, to be sure, we’re just not convinced of its use here. Unfortunately, Pride uses vinyl on every chair they sell.

It’s cheap, it looks pretty good, and it’s low-maintenance, so we understand why the decision was made.

Having said that, it has two serious drawbacks. First, it’s not breathable. The more time you spend sitting in the chair, the hotter you’re going to get. That will happen sooner if you live in a hot climate, but even if you don’t, after about 4 hours, it will still happen.

Second, vinyl doesn’t age well. After about 18 months of everyday use, you can expect the upholstery on the seat to start peeling and cracking. Bear in mind that the frame of the Air 2 has a five-year warranty, so you’re virtually guaranteed to have to re-cover the seat at least once while you own this one, and probably more often than that.

Even if you get one of the larger seat sizes, there’s not a ton of upholstery to worry about. So, having the seat re-covered won’t be a major expense. Even so, it’s one you can count on having to make at some point.

If you want to extend the life of the upholstery and enhance your comfort at the same time, invest in a seat and seatback pad. That gets you up off of the vinyl, so you’re not wearing it as badly, and you’re sitting on a cushion that’s more breathable to boot.

Extras and Options of Jazzy Air

It doesn’t raise you high enough to get something off the top shelf at a department store, but even people who are nearly seven feet tall struggle to do that. Twelve inches of lift is incredibly handy, though, in a variety of everyday situations, and we think you’ll love this feature!

In addition to the main selling point of this chair though, Pride offers a number of high-value extras you can

We think that’s mostly a good thing because it keeps you from paying for a built-in extra that you may not want, need, or ever use. The flip side, of course, is that you’ll have to buy all your accessories separately.

Pride offers a number of good ones. These include:

A couple of notes here: This chair does come with a standard in-line joystick controller. The extra we’re talking about here is a mount that makes the joystick swing away, which some people will find transfers into and out of the chair easier and more convenient.

In general, we love these options and accessories. Our one disappointment stems from the fact that the lap belt is considered optional equipment. We feel that lap belts should be standard features on all wheelchairs and scooters sold. Given the presence of the lift feature here, it seems especially important. So, we were disappointed not to see it included with the base model.

Portability & Ease of Use

Early on, we mentioned that the Jazzy Air 2 Pride is a relatively travel-friendly chair. With a total weight of 202 pounds, you may not think so, but Pride has designed this model so that it can be easily disassembled. Once in pieces, you’ll find it easy to store and travel with.

Of course, you may not want to have to take the time of dismantling and re-assembling your chair every time you travel. While it doesn’t take a ton of time, it does slow the process down a bit. If you want to get around that, there are two viable options for doing so.

The first is to invest in a ramp. This works if you’re driving a truck or a van. Deploy the ramp and then just drive your Air 2 onto the truck bed or into the van.

Secure it, and you’re ready to hit the road. Then, when you get where you’re going, just drive it back down the ramp, and you won’t be bothered by the hassle of taking the thing apart and putting it back together.

If that doesn’t work for you, the other option is to invest in a lift. Lifts work on most types of vehicles and allow you to simply carry your Air 2 behind whatever you’re driving. Unfortunately, lifts are relatively expensive, and this isn’t a cheap chair to begin with, so an Air 2 plus a lift might be budget-busting for some people.

Before we move on to ease of use, we should say a few words about air travel. Although this chair is surprisingly friendly to over-the-road travel, it’s just too heavy to make it a good option to take with you on an airplane.

Consider: A good manual travel wheelchair weighs less than 40 pounds. That’s one-fifth of the total weight of the Air 2, and airlines charge by the pound.

It’s just ruinously expensive to try.

If you really want to, then our recommendation would be to call the airline you’re planning on flying with and ask about their policies. Each airline sets its own policies so you may get flatly told no, or you may get quoted a hefty rate to do it. Either way, you’ll know what to expect before you get to the airport with your ticket in your hand!

In terms of ease of use, Pride has had plenty of time to refine its control system over the years, and the simple joystick controller offered here is about as easy to use as it gets. Given the super-tight turning radius here, you’re unlikely to get stuck someplace, and you’ll master the basic controls in mere minutes.

Pros & Cons of Jazzy Air 2 Power Chair

There’s a lot we like about this design, and we flat-out love the lift feature! Even so, there are two points of weakness in the design that could be dealbreakers for you.

The first and most serious of these is the price. This is an expensive machine! That’s understandable, but the simple truth is that if you’re on a budget, this one may be out of your reach.

Second, there’s the fact that this chair only has a 1” ground clearance. That’s awful. That’s pathetic. Clearly, the designers of this chair intended that it be used almost exclusively on pavement or other hard, flat, even surfaces. Try to use it anywhere else, and you’re likely to get yourself hung up on something.

For some people, this second shortcoming might not be a big deal, but we love the great outdoors, and if you do too, then that piddly little 1” ground clearance is going to be a major issue for you.

Pride Jazzy Air 2 Review Conclusion

Given the two limitations we mentioned in the previous section here in our Jazzy Air 2 review and as cool as the lift features are, it’s just not something that everyone is going to want or need. This chair is almost entirely self-selecting. You’re either going to read about it and think to yourself, “I didn’t realize how badly I needed one of these!”

Or you’re going to think, “Meh – It doesn’t do what I need it to do, and I don’t care that much about the lift feature.”

If you fall into the first group, you’re going to love this machine. If you fall into the second group, you’re going to be unimpressed and certainly won’t want to spend thousands of dollars on it.

We feel pretty sure that the second group will wind up being significantly larger than the first group. On that basis, we can only give this one a provisional recommendation. We will say, though, that if you get one, you’ll probably love it.

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Official Manufacturer Support

References & Resources:

• Pride Mobility, Official Brand Website
• Pride Mobility Jazzy Air 2 User Manual
• Tips For Travelling With a Disability, Scope
• Concurrent Design Strategy For Improving Public Wheelchairs For People With Disabilities, Knowledge E
• Flying With a Wheelchair: What Disabled Travellers Need to Know, The Irish Times