Sandberg USB Massage Pillow – Accessory Review
Over the last few years we have discovered that Sandberg is a bit of a jack-of-all-trades when it comes to their assortment of products. We have mainly invested a lot of time exploring their eSports equipment, which proves to be very qualitative for its rather low asking price. During this pandemic, we also took a look at some webcams, especially for those now streaming to their friends in lockdown, or simply for office-related reasons. This time we take a look at Sandberg’s USB Massage Pillow, which is part of the eSports line of products, but can of course be used by everyone who could use a bit of extra back support.
Design
Upon opening the box, we are greeted by a nice-looking pillow that looks a bit like the pillows that sometimes come with high-priced gaming chairs. Nonetheless, the black finish looks decent, the embroidered Sandberg name and logo look qualitative, but after that, we noticed a few things that were less impressive. Upon further inspection, we saw a white cable dangle out of the pillow, which was of course the USB cable. We have no clue why the designers chose a white cable, as the rest of the package is in dark tones, or just black. When we then noticed the control box, which feels as if it was stolen from an 80s table lamp factory, we don’t know what went wrong here. Nonetheless, it is functional, but it does take back from the entire sleek and cool-looking pillow itself.
Comfort
The pillow comes with two straps, which are built for a gaming chair that has two holes in its backrest. You can then use these holes to guide the straps through and secure the pillow into place. The straps can not be lengthened or shortened, so we don’t really understand why they went with double straps on each side. You could have easily done with a single one, with the clip still in the middle, allowing you to open it up. For usage in a sofa or car, the straps will not really serve any purpose, as these chairs are often not built for this type of ‘suspension’. Of course, for its intended purpose, it works perfectly.
Specs
- USB-A connector
- USB cable length: 1.4 meters
- Switch: Slow, Fast, Off
- Rated voltage: 5V
- Rated speed: 4500 rpm
- Rated power: 1W
- Rated current: 0.2A
Overview
Connecting the USB Massage Pillow is quite easy, as you just plug in the USB and you’re good to go. You then have the small controller box, which allows you to put the device into three different states, be it off, the mild setting and the powerful setting. We do feel that the symbols have been swapped, as the double lines are the lowest setting and the single line symbol is the highest setting. Nonetheless, things are easy to control and it basically works on any item that gives power via USB, be it a desktop PC, a laptop, or even a powerbank. Truth be told, the inner workings of this device aren’t that complex, as it’s basically the inside rotor of a controller that generates the vibration effect, somewhat magnified, to evoke a relaxing experience for your back.
We do suggest doing it in short bursts though, as for some it may start to annoy after a while, or even have a counterproductive effect. That being said, the overall feeling is pleasant, albeit subtle, and can help people relax. You will clearly hear the vibrating sound when not properly sitting against it. This means if you lean forward, you might hear the small rotor working quite hard. We also want to note that this is a nicely shaped pillow that can also give proper back support, even when the massage function is turned off.
There’s one issue with hooking this device up to, for example, your desktop PC. If you have your PC on your left, and the way to leave your desk is also on the left, you’ll always have to unplug the device, before actually being able to leave. While this is a minor inconvenience, it can become bothersome if your setup is like the aforementioned example. Nonetheless, if you have a wall outlet and a USB adapter, you can also just plug it in there. Then you might encounter the problem that the cable isn’t really that long.
Conclusion
While the USB Massage Pillow will not cure whatever ails you, it can provide some needed back support and some pleasant relief. While this product will not win any awards any time soon, it is still very nice that the eSports designers at Sandberg actually think highly of comfort and want to prevent stress from sitting down too long. We found the product convenient (depending on your setup), functional and made out of decent material. We only disliked the design of the cable and its controller box. The straps attached to the pillow are best to be used with a proper gaming chair as well. We advise trying out a similar product in a store to know if something like this can suit your needs.
Sandberg USB Massage Pillow - Accessory Review,
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