Mixed Results with the Sharper Image Deep Tissue Massager from Costco

I bought the Sharper Image Deep Tissue Massager at Costco to see if it would do any good with the muscle pain that I have been having in my shoulder area.  I had seen a bunch of television ads for massage guns and they looked powerful enough to loosen up just about any muscle knots.

So far my results with the device have been mixed.

Keep reading and I will go over the pros and cons of the massager to see if it could be right for you.

The Kit Contents

The Sharper Image massager comes in an attractive grey case which holds the:

• Massager Body
• Massage Head Attachments and Case
• Charger

The overall presentation of both the outer and inner packaging is attractive and would look nice if you are thinking about getting one as a gift.

The kit comes with a replacement set of orange O Rings in case the attachment mechanism ever needs replacement.  The charger is a standard 120V wall charger that plugs into the base of the massager.

The massager comes with six different shaped heads (nodes) that let you target the force of the machine exactly where you want. The shape of the nodes are:

• Large ball
• Small ball
• Flat disc
• Paddle
• Bullet
• Fork

How to Use

You will need to perform an initial battery charge for the massager when it comes out of the box.  Simply plug the prongs into an electrical outlet and insert the round charging end into the charging port at the base of the massager.

The display on the back of the charger will show what percentage of charge capacity the massager has reached.

It took my massager about two hours to reach a full charge.  Once the device is fully charged you can expect up to four hours of usage.

Once the massager has fully charged you will need to choose which attachment to insert into the body.  I suggest starting with the Large Ball as it is the easiest to use.

You turn the power on for the massager with a switch located at the base of the massager located by the charging port.

Once the power is on you need to select the intensity level.  The intensity level is selected by pressing the orange button on the back of the massager. There are six intensity levels and each time you press the orange button the intensity increases.

Pressing the intensity button after it reaches Level 6 returns the massager to Level 0.

Once the desired intensity level is set, press the massage head directly onto the target muscle area.

This is a percussion style massager so you want to press it firmly against the skin so the impact goes into your muscles.  If you hold the massage head slightly off your skin then it will feel like you are getting punched with a hammer.

Usage Warnings

The massager comes with the warnings to never use the device on your head or any other hard, boney surface.  By “hard boney surface” I assume they mean your shins, the top of your feet, kneecaps, etc.

Is the Massager Any Good?

Let me start by saying that the massager delivers on what it promises.  The device provides a deep tissue massage that can be quite intense if you go all the way to Level 6.  Personally I have not been able to tolerate anything beyond Level 4 so I do consider the device to be quite powerful.

Despite the power of the massage gun, it has not brought any relief to the pain in my shoulder area.  I believe there are two issues that are preventing the massager for helping me which are:

• Attachment Selection
• Shoulder Usage

Attachment Selection

I believe that it is the “fork” attachment that should be used in the shoulder area but it is made of a hard plastic that I find physically painful to use.

I am not talking about the kind of pain that comes from really targeting a sore muscle.  I am talking about no matter where I use any of the hard plastic attachments it hurts in the bad kind of way.

The only two attachments that feel like they are not doing physical damage to my body are the small and large round attachments with the softer heads.  While the round attachments are highly usable they do not offer the targeted precision that you might want.

Shoulder Usage

In order for the massager to have any real effect on my shoulder muscles I need to turn it up to Level 3 or 4.

The problem is that my pain is in the upper shoulder and when I use the massager in that area it literally rattles my head.  My head rattles so much that my vision shakes up and down with each percussive stroke.

I do not like the idea of turning my brain into scrambled eggs so I can’t use the massager at a strength that is effective in my shoulder.

Costco Value

I bought this massager at Costco for $79.99 and it looks like a pretty nice value.

You can buy a similar massager directly from Sharper Image for $129.  This massager has one less attachment and two fewer intensity levels than the one at Costco.

There are lots of versions of this massager online from various brands with the highest rated massagers typically costing about $110.  here are lower priced option available but they appear to have issues with battery life.

Bottom Line

The Sharper Image Power Percussion Deep Tissue Massager is an attractively packaged product that delivers on its promise of a powerful deep tissue massage.

Learning the functions of the different attachments, and how to use properly use the massager in general, takes some time given the power of the device.

The massager is a high quality product and a value when purchased at Costco.