I originally bought this odd beast for a long redeye flight I didn't ending up taking. It has, however, become a permanent feature in my bed and on my couch, as well as on long car rides, as a much needed support for my neck, shoulders, wrists and elbows. On to the bullet points!
Pros:
1) It's surprisingly well designed. I mean, it's a pillow, right? A tube of fabric, a little stuffing - how hard could it be? I sew and craft a little and am really impressed with how much thought was put into it. The pillow is an oblong, not a cylinder, and so is the stuffing; it's got a bit of firmness to it and keeps its shape nicely. The fabric is smooth without being slick. This all means you can actually wrap it around your neck without feeling like you're going to choke to death. Seriously - I can actually loop this twice around my head, stick an arm in the bottom loop so it's pulled snug, and as soon as you let go, it immediately loosens back up. If you had a grabby fabric, a loose stuffing that piled up at one end, or a true cylinder, you'd just have tied a noose around your own neck, so kudos to them on a great choice of materials.
2) You really can use it a variety of ways. Maybe not the millions they promise, but I regularly use several. Since my neck and shoulders are hypermobile (the ligaments aren't tight enough to hold them in place) my muscles get really overworked throughout the day. Looped double around the neck (as shown in the picture) supports my neck and sort of shoves my shoulders up into their joints, which is more relieving than it sounds. Wrapped twice around the neck is nice support if you're leaning back again a couch. Wrapped around the low back and neck, with your arms tucked through, is a bit of rest for a bunch of joints. I've also wrapped and looped it to help me rest against the car window without the amazing pop-out-and-behind-the-seat pillow trick. And as a person who *can not* figure out what to do with their arms while trying to sleep on a plane (I've recently realized a lot of the pain and numbness is my shoulders trying to come partially out of socket), being able to shove my arms into a secure, tucked position while upright is *amazing*.
Cons:
1) It's a bit bulky. I don't see how it could be other than it is, but it does take up more room than a little inflatable thing.
2) It doesn't come with a bag. It comes with a weird little tie strap that you will never be able to put on again. Buy or make a bag because this thing will try and pop out of your luggage like a joke-shop snake from a can.
3) It probably won't hold my head up enough to sleep upright on a plane. To be clear, I have a really jacked up neck, and since it's unstable it can really get messed up if I sleep unsupported. I can adequately support my neck with this while watching tv on the couch, but I definately tend to flop my head over when I fall asleep. The pillow alone just isn't enough for me, personally. Having said that, I fully intend to take this and an inflatable neck brace on my next flight. I'll use the pillow for most of the flight, just to prevent discomfort, and then add a neck brace while trying to sleep.
So if you're looking for a little extra neck and arm support at home or in the air (or just like to feel tightly cuddled) this just might be for you. It's definitely for me. :-)
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