Customer Reviews

HoMedics PA-100 Therapist Select Percussion Massager, Variable Speed

5 star:		(51)
4 star:		(33)
3 star:		(15)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

I brought this massager thinking that there was no way it was going to help the pain I was having in my neck and shoulder. I could barely move and after I used this I could actually turn my neck from side to side. I used the heating element and it felt great. I didn't think it was too heavy at all; especially once you are using it. Since I am a mother of 2 I don't really have time to go to a massage therapist when I have a crick in my neck, this device makes for a great alternative.

If you don't pull your hair up it can get caught up in the massager.

I'm happy I tried it.

Pros
-Durable, I dropped it couple times
-Very long cord
-You can fell the power of its pulses
-Varible Speed
-Many Heads
-Varible Head Length

Cons
-Heavy for lady
-Must use for large body part such as back or legs

In conclusion, it works perfectly. I love it. However, you may also want to check out the model that comes with heat massager. Noted that heat massager comes with fix head length.

My dad has a massager from Brookstone (called the Max I think) with a similar design but the heads travel in and out farther giving a more energetic massage. His cost $200. The Homedics one feels somewhere between a true percussion massage and a vibration massage.

The true test came after I went on a 7 hour hike. My calves were very sore. I did a 5 minute massage on them and next morning felt great. My quads, which weren't as sore and which weren't massaged, were still sore the next day. So I think this massager does what its supposed to do and isn't just a gimmick.

I bought this unit when I was having a flare up of Sciatica, which tends to affect the lower back and upper thigh rather severely. I found this system, although difficult to hold onto for self-use did alleviate the intensity of the severe pain, especially with the heat setting on. Later I found other uses for it such as for stiff necks, shoulders and calves. It was easier to use on myself in those places and I am quite please overall with the purchase. Of course it does seem to be most effective when someone else handles the unit especially when you are sore or stiff.

Issues:
1]-I did have to be careful not to push it[the unit] against bare skin because it did grab me frequently and painfully without warning if I did. Solution, wear a garment over the area you plan on messaging.

2]-It comes with 3 sets of alternative heads which are easily lost if you don't keep track of them because there is no carrying case for them. I suggest keeping them where you plan on using them and you probably won't lose them.

3]-The wire tends to get tangled very easily especially with repeated use. I found I needed to unplug the system between uses and the wire seemed to naturally untangle. Of course if you are going to use it the same day or sooner you will have to untangle the wire manually which is a bit of a nusiance especially if you have a dire need to use the unit.

4]-I tried [1x] to use the unit in my car by plugging it into a power inverter and the system simply stopped working. Fortunately it happened in the Target parking lot where I had just bought it so I returned it and they simply gave me another one. Obviously using a power inverter for "bring it along" convenience is not as good an idea as I thought.

OVERALL:
Although it is not perfect, all in all I have found it to be a very useful, durable and reasonably priced system that I have run for several hundred hours over the past 3 years. In that time I have tried several other brands and types that just did not work well or just broke after very little use.

Although this product works quite well initially, the electrical cord will short out at the base of the unit after a year (or less) of normal use. Scroll through the reviews, and it's obvious that others have experienced this too.

This occurred a few months after the warranty ran out. Thinking it may have been a manufacturing anomaly, I purchased another one.

The exact same problem happened on the second massager, this time literally a few days after the warranty ran out.

I wrote to Homedics, providing receipts for both purchases and explaining the circumstances, and they didn't even have the courtesy to acknowledge the correspondence.

When the warning says "No more then 10 minutes of continuous use" they mean it. We didn't respect that, and the internal mechanisms melted and the thing died a slow horrible death. It's now landfill and it was only 1 year old...

I'm off to find one with an automatic overheat shutoff...

I recently received this product as a gift, and am as happy as a clam. Not only does it help relieve my chronic back pain, it is an excellent relaxation tool. I can literally feel the stress flow out of my body and am a contented noodle after a fifteen minute massage.

--> MIRACLE MASSAGER BUT LOOK-OUT BECAUSE IT CAN PINCH

Every good thing a massager can do, this unit seems to be capable of doing and well.

YES - I DO HAVE A YARN FOR YOU!

About 5 years ago, we purchased this massager when my recurring Sciatica decided to recur. My lower back and upper thigh were rather severely affected and I was unable to walk or move about or sleep. Frequently, like about 2 hours an evening, I used this massager to relieve the pressure on my sciatic nerve. Yes, it was difficult to hold onto for self-use, but it did alleviate the intensity of the severe pain, especially with the heat button turned on. This went on for about 6 weeks, but this system helped with the pain. It did not cure the problem, but pain can be very disabling in itself and for pain this massager worked where none had before.

Later I found other uses for it such as for stiff necks, shoulders and calves. It was easier to use on myself in those places and I am quite pleased overall with the purchase. Of course it does seem to be most effective when someone else handles the unit especially when you are sore or stiff because this is a rather large, cumbersome and heavy massager.

ALTHOUGH THIS IS A GREAT MASSAGER - THERE ARE STILL SOME SHORTCOMINGS

* -----> 1]- IT PINCHES RATHER FREQUENTLY ON BARE SKIN: I always have to be careful NOT to press the heads of the massager against bare skin because it will grab both frequently and painfully without warning. This is not just me, but it also happens to my wife. To prevent this, I suggest wearing a garment over the body part you intend to message.

* -----> 2]- THE POWER-CORD SEEMS TO GET TANGLED ALMOST AUTOMATICALLY ESPECIALLY IF YOU USE IT REPEATEDLY WITHOUT UNPLUGGING THE UNIT. We discovered that we had to unplug the massager after each use to prevent the tangling. If we unplugged it, it seemed to untangle itself as long as it did not get too tangled over repeated uses. If you must untangle the wire manually, it is rather tedious especially if you have to use the messager in a hurry.

*-----> 3]- THE MESSAGER COMES WITH 3 SETS OF HEADS WHICH ARE EASILY LOST BECAUSE THERE IS NO PLACE TO PUT THEM SECURELY OR ANY COMPARTMENT OR CARRYING CASE. To prevent losing them, I recommend keeping the heads where you are going to use them to avoid loss.

*-----> 4]- DON'T CONNECT THIS UNIT TO A POWER INVERTER: Right after I purchased this messager [some years back] I tried to use it in our van by running it off a power inverter. To our chagrin, the system stopped working on the spot. Fortunately, this happened in the parking lot where we had just bought it so we exchanged it on the spot without any problem. We won't be trying this again, despite the possible convenience.

IN THE END -----

This is by no means a perfect unit, but durable units that are also ample are rather rare. Simply stated, this system is quite ample! We have found it to be a very useful, sturdy and fairly priced massager. We have run the unit for many hundreds of hours over the past 4.5 years. Over the past ten years I have tried too many other massagers, most of which have broken and the survivors were just plain inadequate. As long as you remember that wearing a garment will save you from being pinched and never use a power inverter, you and this massager may live together a long time.

I just received this a few days ago and already I'm very *very* IMPRESSED!!

I often have lower back pain and have to go to the chiropractor. And when I do, following the adjustment he uses a very heavy feeling massager (I haven't SEEN it) on me to relax everything again, and it feels SO GREAT! Feels just like tiny hammers beating on you at a super high speed. I asked him where I could buy one like that and he turned me on to a company that sells massagers that feel identical to this for [a large sum of money]!!

When I saw this massager listed here on Amazon, I wasn't sure it was like my doctor uses. But after receiving it and using it, I can tell you it feels IDENTICAL to the machine that my chiropractor paid for[a large sum of money]!!<!! So YOU figure out if this is a good deal or not! It SHOULD be more than OBVIOUS if you've been reading this.

Anyone wanting to complain about the weight of this should use their brain to figure out if you need a really good massage, then you need either someone with lots of strength OR a massager with strength! And how does a massager become strong?? One factor is to make it HEAVY! I MEAN "DUH"!!! :)

We've had our "percussion action massager" for over two years now. The design is nice, because it's very easy to use it on yourself. it's even better if you can get someone else to operate it on you, so that you're not stretching your muscles while trying to relax them--but it's not quite ergonomic to be used that way. I also think the design is difficult to use in many areas other than your back.

I still find that manual "hands-on" massages are more effective, but this is great for getting a lot of the preliminary tensions out.

I'm glad to have it.