Work out those knots in that back! Updated...

My husband bought me this Homedics model  200H Shiatsu Massage Cushion and I have to tell you I think he is in love with it. I give it a good 6/10 stars-wise and will go over the good, the great, and the bad regarding this cushion.

First off, it is a black cushion that you set onto a chair or couch and then comes with a 120V plug as well that you plug into the wall. The cord stretches a good 3 feet, so it will reach a plug near a chair pretty well. It also has a velcro elastic strap through the back of the cushion so you can strap it onto an office chair if you need to. The downside to doing that would be that I just don't see how it could be comfortable to have it in the office chair at all times, but it's a good feature if you need it (it keeps the back attached to the chair so it won't flop down when you get up).

It also has a little holder made with its faux leather to hold the remote control. The remote control is attached to a cord about a foot and a half long on the right hand side. There are 4 different buttons you can use for massage and there is a heat button (which I love to use, for some reason heat always makes it more pleasant when it comes to relaxing). One button is for DEMO, I think that is made mostly for the in-store demos and sort of just goes through the whole functionality of the piece but in all honesty, not needed. The other buttons are for full back, upper back and lower back. The remote is contoured and easy to hold, the buttons are also pretty easy to push and light up when pushed. In a dark room, it's difficult to see or find the buttons (they are not raised much). The cushion turns off after 15 minutes of use automatically.

So what's different about Shiatsu compared to say the other massage cushions out there? Well, I also own an older version and the old versions use vibration as a means to massage.

So here's the good:
I love the heat function, it's very relaxing and heats up right away (compared to other cushions I have tried which take 10 minutes or longer to heat up).
It kneads and works out tension and knots very well.
It's nicely made and looks sturdy.
The cushion (under the rear) is more comfortable than other cushions I've tried.

The bad:
It can be costly. It's 100$ but I've seen it on sale on Amazon for as low as $69.99 (so get it on sale!). The upside of that is, think about how much a live massage is an hour and it pays for itself within an hour and a half of use.
It can be REALLY harsh on the back. I would say that people who are sensitive to touch like some family members with Fibromyalgia, it would be very painful. So it's not for people who like light massages at all!
There is no way to control how HARD or light you get massaged, it is always rough. I would like to control the intensity.
There is no way to control the width of it, it is always just outside the right and left of your spine. Width control would be cool.
It does not seem to get your should area, which would be nice. It goes up to the shoulder blade area and then back down again.
It does not go low enough. When I push lower back, it hits my mid/lower back and doesn't quite get low enough (I wish it went up and down a bit higher and lower).
The lower and upper back and full back functions don't make much sense. They are almost ALL the same. I push lower back and it goes all the way up to my upper/mid back and turns back around (that's not my lower back unless I'm 7" tall!). On the upper back button, it goes all the way down to my mid/lower back and then turns back around...it's got way too broad of a perspective on what's just upper or lower. So the easiest function to use is full back.

AND here's the absolutely MOST irritating thing about this cushion...it will get to the shoulder area (close) and then immediately go back down. It does not have any functions to STAY PUT in one area. So It'll just barely hit the area and I want to tell the machine to stay there a minute, but the buttons do not let you. A serious downside and flaw to their design. Same thing with the lower back, it goes all the way down, hits and massages a nice spot in the hip/lower back area and then immediately turns around and goes back up when I wish it would stay for 10 seconds even! But it's like 1/10 of a second, a total tease!

With all that said, it sounds like I hate the massager. I don't, it just has some design flaws, and I'm sort of a business-minded and creative person so if I were designing it and for that price, I'd make it perfect (as described). I cannot compare to the other Homedics Shiatsu models like the Quad Roller one, but I would've loved to try them out (but this was a gift from my husband).

With that said...I would recommend 15 minutes of use at a time without overdoing it the first week. I was in terrible pain (and I'm young and not fragile) for two days after using it for over an hour on the first day. My upper back felt bruised. So be careful! And you would never want to have it in a chair at all times (so find storage for it), the shiatsu rollers would poke your back (ouch). I would never lay on it and I'm not sure if a recliner would be such a good idea. The more weight you lay back on it, the more intense it will dig into your back. Please take caution after taking it out of the box and remove the screw (they give you a little tool to do it with) with the tags on the back of the cushion. I didn't do this and turned it on and heard grinding and realized that a screw was stopping it from working (I don't like to read directions). I'm sure many people have messed theirs up by not taking out that one little screw.

Update: After less than a year and very little use: it gave out. It started a clicking sound and just wouldn't move. I heard this is a problem with many people. I don't have the box anymore or reciept, so returning to Sears would be a big pain. It will have to be thrown out (although I may give one last effort in contacting the company over it).