Customer Reviews

Homedics SBM-500H Therapist Select Shiatsu One Massaging Cushion with Heat

5 star:		(105)
4 star:		(53)
3 star:		(27)
2 star:		(14)
1 star:		(15)

 

 

Length:: 2:30 Mins

This is my first attempt at doing an Amazon video review for a product I have purchased. Today I will be reviewing a total of 3 Homedics massage products. This one in particular is the Homedics SBM-500H Therapist Select Shiatsu One Massaging Cushion w/ Heat.

I particularyly enjoy this product because it covers both back and shoulder areas and the rollers for me go all the way down my lower back and the shoulder rollers hit my traps just right (after lowering it to the max)

Pros: Everything about this product I love!

Cons: Shoulder rollers have to be adjusted all the way down for me to use it (I'm 5'6" in height).

Every few months I wake up with a really stiff, burning muscle in my lower neck or shoulders. I have found that, if I can enlist someone to do so, a strong kneading of the affected area brings immediate and often lasting relief. But -- here's the rub -- my significant other travels a lot so I am sometimes left to my own devices. On more than one occasion I have driven to the mall to sit in one of the $2,000 Sharper Image massage chairs for relief (seems I can never book a short-notice "real" massage). So, this weekend, when I woke up with a stiff, burning muscle in my right shoulder blade, I started researching more affordable massage cushions (I already have an easy chair) which led me to buy the SBM-500H. After my first hour of use I'm ready to say it was worth the money. Most cushions do not go high enough to massage your shoulders but this model has a seperate upper pad for that area. Those rollers can be raised or lowered via the remote control (but not widened or narrowed, which would be nice too). Because the back of the pad is rather tall (even for my 6'1" frame) my head hits it which makes it harder to press my sholders into the upper massage rollers. But I managed to do so. The lower rollers do a good job on the main back area. Both upper and lower have seperate heat functions, which work well. While not as good as the expensive chairs, at one-tenth the price it did the trick (no more neck ache!). As for price I am a HUGE Amazon fan but did buy this model at Linen's & Things (Bed, Bath & Beyond has them too) using one of their ubiquitous discount coupons.

This is the third massage item I bought with the Homedics brand. Impressive! As a very serious exercise enthusiast this machine has the unusual power to calm and restore even the most fatigued muscles. Now two months with the product, I found my recovery time has dramatically improved as well.

The massager works the back and shoulders and their various pressure points with a "deep tissue" style. This is serious massage- and excellent at that!!

Strong 5 stars.

I have evaluated a couple of Homedics Massaging cusions and feel this one is the best. Being tall, the shoulder massage section gets right into my shoulder blades and above. The friction alone gives off heat and is very soothing. Earlier massagers tended to be a littl harsh since they did not give much if you had a smaller cushion or hard back chair you were sitting in. This massager has balls that flex a little when pressure is added, so, there is much less of a tendency to feel a little like you may get some bruising.

Homedics really did its homework with this little gem. A great gift for those you know who need more than an occassional massage or just a great gift to give yourself. I recommend this to my friends. Great job Homedics.

I have now bought this for me and 3 others. This massage chair pays for itself in 2 days. Quite honestly, how do they produce a shiatsu massage with so much amazing power and so much like the real thing? The heating element is just right. It is not too hot but you can feel it. The options are perfect. You can do a lighter rolling massage or the deep tissue shiatsu and you can stop the massage in an area that really needs extra help and then go back to full back, upper back or lower back. The shoulder option is really for taller people and that needs to be addressed at some point by the manufacturer, but this chair is by far and away the best purchase I have made in a long time and I have a new Mac, Wii, Powershot and assorted goodies that do not come close to this in terms of letting the tension go and feeling de-stressed after 15 minutes to half an hour. I would not get this for my 90 year old dad, but if you are 20-70 and not in terrible shape, then go for it.

I was able to sit on this in a local store and found that -- while the shoulder massage feature is nice and not even available on other massage cushions -- there is a gap between the mechanism for the shoulders and the mechanism for the back. In other words, this product does not massage the upper back between the shoulder blades, which was a deal-breaker for us. See the two grey patches on the upholstery? The zone that this cushion does not massage is the region between them. So, on the one hand, this focuses on the shoulders which no other cushion seems to do. On the other hand, it misses that upper back area between the shoulder blades which is a pretty important zone if you have shoulder tension. After sitting on this and two other cushions, I chose a different one: "HoMedics Therapist Select Quad-Roller Massaging Cushion with Heat." That cushion has adjustable width and reaches between the shoulder blades -- though it doesn't go as high as I'd like. That's the price we pay for buying a cushion to do a massage therapist's job. Happy cushion hunting, everyone!

I originally purchased the SBM-305 (as near as I can tell, the Costco version of the SBM-300) for my Gram who has chronic degenerative low back pain. She loves it so much that I decided to get a chair massager for my mother, who has always had pain/knots/tension in her neck, shoulders and 'under' the edges of her shoulder blades. She also has chronic low back pain from an auto accident. I thought this massager would be the perfect antidote for her neck & low back pain. I went to Bed, Bath & Beyond fully expecting to buy this model. After I sat in I realized that the other reviewers are correct - even with the neck rollers adjusted all the way down and the back rollers all the way up, there is a sizeable gap.

The back rollers stop just under my shoulder blades (I'm 5' 7") and the neck rollers stop just at the top of my shoulder blades.

I did find the PERFECT solution though: I purchased another SBM-305 (the rollers go all the way to the top of my shoulder blades) AND the heated shiatsu neck pillow (model SP-10). Wowsers. Those two together are amazing! The neck massager is very powerful and deep(you could hurt yourself with it). Plus it has the added benefit of being movable (neck, shoulders - even legs) and portable. She took it with her on a business trip and it was "a God-send".

I don't write too many reviews, but dealing with chronic pain is so important and so hard to do that I wanted to lend my $.02.

This chair is EXCELLENT - covers the whole back, and one person here posted they tried it in the store and it didnt get the area between the shoulder blades. Clearly they didnt realize that the rollers are height adjustable with just a push of the remote, they go from below the shoulder blade to the neck area in adjustment. So it really does get every area. the kneading motion is very very effective, this is a top massage product from all the ones I tested.

I purchased the SBM-500H because I thought at last there was a "massage technology" with heat that I could afford. I liked the idea that it had two massage centres- the back and the shoulders, and was the latest model of massage cushion from Charlescraft. I took this model home for 2 weeks to try it out, but found the position of the back on the cushion to be a little pushed forward. I felt this caused a little distance between the lower back and the cushion.

I returned the cushion after two weeks for the following reason:
-disliked the back position
-felt the massage to be a little rough
-shoulder massage does not move automatically up and down on the shoulders, but remains instead in one position- position can be changed by user.

In exchange I purchased Charlescraft's earlier model, the SBM-300H for half the price.

I truly think this model has been perfected for the following reasons:
-the massage, although not soft, is not overly rough and seems "perfect"
-does not try to do everything, some of them badly
-enough choices including spot control

Conclusion:
I believe that SBM-500H was rushed to market, whereas SBM-300H, in my opinion, is the cushion that Charlescraft perfected. I think what Charlescraft should make next is the exact same mechanism and software as SBM-300H that goes higher- perhaps up to the shoulders, plus a neck massage extension that moves as high as the top of the back of the head. The neck massage balls should also be automatically programmed and offer spot treatment. The cushion design should allow placement on a chair, just as easily as it can be lain on the floor.

If these features were all included and perfected, I would upgrade my SBM-300H to it.

Just make sure you try the Massaging Cushions before you buy them.I tried out 2 at Kohls,one of them killed my back,and this one worked great.When I got up from the chair,I had so much more energy.
When you unpack the cushion,you have to take out 2 screws,with the wrench included to espose the electrical cord.Its no big job,and there's a strap with velcro to keep the cushion tight around your chair.
The one thing I like best about this Massaging cushion is you can work on your shoulders and back at the same time.It feels so great you don't want to stop.Just make sure if you spot massage with heat,don't use the heat for more than 3 mins.It tells you in the papers you get with the product.(while I'm adding more information to my review,I'm using this fantastic Massaging cushion that my Sister bought me for CHRISTmas.I've been using it for 3 days,3times a day,and my back feels so much better)