The very lovely people at Squeezy have agreed to lend me one of their jackets for a few weeks so I can see if it works for me and to write a review.
I have had it a couple of days, and I wanted to get my first impressions down while they were fresh.
I plan to do a full review in time.
Before I dive into the first impression I just want too note the rather splendid timing. At the moment I don’t have much speech and am about to move home after my support situation got a bit complicated. The timing is good for the review.
I contacted squeeze to enquire about a review unit on Tuesday and it arrived Thursday. So far they have been very quick to reply to questions and very kind. A good first impression on the company.
I haven’t used their online store but I did use their online contact form.
One thing which frustrated me was the lack of a published email address. Having to copy and paste my message into a form is annoying.
The form is a box and I can’t control things like the typeface and the size. It’s a really terrible place for me to the write stuff.
While the form was annoying the support itself was great. A squeeze for me to try arrived less than 48 hours after the first equiry.
The jacked arrived in a nondescript box. Handily it said what it was on the visible packing slip. The box was much lighter than I expected. (I guess that’s because I am use to ordering heavy things like computers!).
My friend used a scalpel to open the box and the jacket was wrapped in paper and plastic with a little manual.
My friend read the manual and I popped the jacket on.
First impressions are good. The jacket feels really high quality. All the tubes looks high end and the seals and other parts visible looks very professional.
The mechanism for removing and adding the hand pump looks like something I would see in a hospital. This is a good thing and a bad thing. The tubing does not look friendly but it does look high quality.
The jacket itself feels like high end sports wear. When I first saw it for real it made me think of the cooling jackets Jenson Button (F1 driver!) wears in hot places. It looks high tech. Feels a bit like it’s part of a space suit which is cool.
I inflated it up which seemed to take a lot more presses that expected and it felt nice but a bit weak. My friend then did up the straps and it sudden felt much stronger.
For usage impressions are good. It feels a bit like some compression straps I have only the pressure is over a wider area.
I like having it tight and then breathing in deeply. As I do I can feel my insides come together and I get a good feel for my shape. No more floaty feelings.
The last two days have been stressful. Getting ready to move house as well as having no speech and trying to get work done.
The jackets been used pretty heavily. I slept in it both nights (so far so good!) and I have also used it while working too.
Interestingly, I went into B&Q with a friend yesterday and about half way around I found myself thinking ‘I wish I had my Squease’. A bit like my ear defenders after I got those.
It’s only been a few days and the first impression is promising. It’s going to be a few weeks before I know if it can make a long term difference.
One final note is the pricing. My friend helping with the setup could not get over the cost. While he felt it was well made he felt £250 was way to expensive for what you get. It’s the cost of an iPad after all.
I’m going too try and ignore the price for now. They are lending me one for free to give it a try, I will decide if it’s something I want to purchase in a few weeks time.
