OTC HealthmateForever Muscle Simulator

UPDATE 7/22/19 Do not trust the inadequate, too short, too widely spaced out, belt clip. All it does is lead you into a false sense of security. I had my tens unit hanging on the front of my bra, (hey, it's been in the mid to upper 90's don't judge me lol, ) when I was walking around the house trying to stay cool and darned if it didn't fall off and land on the floor and bend the tip of the electrode lead. Thank goodness it did not seem to do any damage to the metal prong inside the tens unit itself. Unless you are wearing something with a super thick waistband, that can fill that gap since the shoddy, short belt clip acts more like a hook than an actual belt clip, I would treat it like the belt clip isn't even on there because it really isn't that effective. The device is quite long, the belt clip should have either been twice the length it is now, or they should have made it so it actually clamps whatever you hang it off of. I'd either hang it on the inside of a pocket only, or treat it like it's not there and securely shove the unit somewhere on you where it can not fall out so easily. Review: First off let me just say that I have been dealing with lower back pain due to a series of work place injuries for the past 12 years now. Yeah, a series, that's the medical field for you. Anyway, over the past 12 years I have tried many different things. PT, medication, rf ablations, medication, steroid injections, more medication, weight loss, though that doesn't last when it hurts to be active, ice/heatpacks, back massage devices, heck I've even tried reiki massage on several occasions and while that does seem to help, it's not cheap. So I got online to find out about other options that did not include more medication or even the remote thought of surgery and I discovered tens units. I had never heard of such a thing and oddly enough, none of the PTs that I had been to had mentioned them. Then again, my last pt visit was probably 6 or 7 years ago, so maybe they were not as frequently used? Either way, up until a few weeks ago, I knew nothing of such glorious devices. So, I have to say that this HealthmateForever is not my first tens unit. I actually purchased the TruMedic model that looks very similar to this. I had to use my FSA card to pay for it at the time and I could purchase the TruMedic model with the card, but could not purchase the HealthmateForever model, It's not eligible. Anywho, I did receive my TruMedic tens unit and I had been using it a good bit since I got it but the problem with the TruMedic model is that it has a timer of 15 minutes. You know, I knew that when I purchased it but I needed to use that card and honestly I didn't think it would matter, after all, it's not like the device wouldn't be close by. I could just restart it, plus it has that repeat button right? Well, and here is one of the ways these two similar looking devices differ. The TruMedic Model has a max time of 15 minutes at which point, the program ends and you have to turn the dial until it clicks off, then turn the dial until it clicks back on, pick your program again and reset your intensity level again. You have to do this every.15. minutes. Oh but what about the repeat button? Well low and behold, it doesn't work. Atleast on my device it does absolutely nothing regardless of if I push it after a program has completely stopped or is on the verge of ending. That flip on, flip off business got old real quick and honestly, after the first 3 days I got it, I stopped using the tens unit because that 15 minute timer thing is a headache, coupled with the fact that the controller is the size of a large tv remote from the 80's, thus it did not fit well in my pocket and it has no belt clip or lanyard hoop or any other means of carrying it around on you of any kind. None built in and none aftermarket, so while I was at work, which is where I predominantly was using the device, I had no choice but to stick it in my bra. Can you imagine fishing for your tens device that is the size of a tv remote and is glaringly white out of your bra?Every 15 minutes? Not fun, I'm just saying. The good thing about the Healthmateforever model is that it DOES have a built in belt clip on the back and while I wish the clip were a little longer, it does have one and it does work better than no belt clip at all. Yeah, I'm talkin' to you TruMedic. Another great thing about the Healthmateforever model, and another thing that sets it apart from it's TruMedic sibling is the timer length. You get a whopping, glorious 80 minutes of nonstop treatment vs the mediocre 15 minutes you get with the TruMedic version. Now with that said, bare in mind that once you start the 80 minutes, that is the amount of time you have before the tens unit stops the program that is running at the time. Even if you choose a different program in the middle of that 80 minutes, all that does is stop the unit. Stop, not power off. When you pick a new program in the middle of a current one, you have to click the + intensity buttons on the side, to resume the program with the time remaining from the previous program. It will not restart the 80 minutes. To turn the Healthmateforever device on, you have an on/off switch on the left side of the device. The TruMedic version has no on/off switch, instead it uses the intensity dials on the left and right sides of the device, to turn on the channels on either the left or right side. Once you flip the device on using the off/on switch, the Healthmateforever uses side buttons marked with a plus and a minus to control the intensity, and there are buttons on both sides to control the channels. One side controls two channels and the buttons on the other side controls two channels. The TruMedic version uses turn dials. Truth be told, I actually prefer the turn dials, simply because I feel the intensity increases in smaller increments. I feel like on the HealthmateForever model, the difference between level one and two intensity is not that significant, but the difference between level 2 and 3 and 3 and 4 is more significant. I feel like the dials on the TruMedic version give me more control over the intensity more gradually. Speaking of intensity when changing it on the Healthmateforever device there is an onscreen indicator. When you look at the screen there are small blinking squares that appear as you increase the intensity but you have to be careful here because when you first turn the device on, pick your program and click the plus button once to increase the intensity, a box does appear. When you click plus intensity again, a second box appears after two clicks but when you click the intensity button a third time, the blinking box does not appear on the screen a third time, BUT you can feel the intensity increase! So the screen indicates you are at level two but really you are at level 3. When you click the button 4 times, you can feel the intensity shoot up but you only see a third box appear onscreen. After testing this out several times on various setting, I determined that three clicks is about as high as I can go, though the blinking boxes on screen will suggest you're on level 2 intensity when you're really on level 3 intensity so that is something to be aware of. So the looks of these devices. The entire reason I went with these models and their large clunky sizes, instead of one of those tiny, sleek little high tech looking models is because these two units are such a no brainers to use that there is absolutely no way to mess it up. I mean you can just look at them and know exactly what to do, no instruction manual required. Well that is after you learn the layout of the buttons. Unfortunately neither device has back lit buttons. It's not that big a deal with the TruMedic because it doesn't have as many buttons but you'd think Healthmateforever would have included backlit buttons on their tens unit, after all, they did include a backlit display, something that is lacking on the TruMedic version. As far as the modes themselves go, the Healthmateforever model may have more modes, but really they are just more combinations of the same modes that the TruMedic version has and they call them different things For example "scraping" on the Healthmateforever model, feels just like "knead" does on the TruMedic version. What IS different between the two is the power!! Holy shiatsu massage Batman, the Healthmateforever blows the TruMedic version out of the water with its power!! I actually jumped the first time I turned the intensity on on the Healthmateforever model. I have been using the "back" mode a lot on the TruMedic model so I figured I would start with that and when I hit that intensity button for the first time, it literally made me jump! Not because it hurt, it did not, but because I wasn't expecting to feel it that much. I mean level one on the TruMedic model feels like barely anything, where as level one on the Healthmateforever Model can be FELT and not just on top of the skin, I mean you can feel it down in the muscle, well well well below the surface of the skin. I wasn't expecting that! Which brings us to the next difference between the two models. Bare in mind I did not use the batteries that came with either device. Instead I took the advice of other multiple reviewers and purchased lithium batteries. I went with non rechargeable batteries of a well known brand name, the same ones in each device. What is different is that the TruMedic model uses 4 of those batteries to function, while the Healthmateforever model only requires 3. What I wanna know is how the heck is it so much more powerful than the TruMedic version that uses 4 batteries?? I just can't get over how much more powerful it is, it's AMAZING!! As far as the actual intensity levels go, I know for sure that the TruMedic model has a total of 10 levels, you can feel them gradually increase as you up the dial and the highest number on the dial is 10. I honestly have no idea how many intensity levels the Healthmateforever model has because it uses the plus and minus buttons and there is no way I could ever possibly stand to push the button enough times to find out and that information does not appear to be included in the paperwork, all I can tell you for sure is that it has more than enough intensity levels to do you! Finally, don't worry, I'm almost finished lol, let's talk about the channels real quick. Here is another thing that differs between the two. The TruMedic has only two channels, which means you can use up to 4 electrodes at a time. The device comes with 2 leads with 2 electrodes per lead. Well, once again, the Healthmateforever beats out the TruMedic version by including a whopping 4 channels, that means you can use 8 electrodes at a time. The device comes with 4 leads, each lead has 2 electrodes for a total of 8 electrodes at once. Seriously though, I can't imagine that. I mean the device is so ridiculously powerful that I don't know how anyone can handle 8 electrodes at once but bless your heart if you are in so much pain that you would feel the need to try. Neither device has individual isolated channels. That is to say that no matter how many channels you use, you can not run more than one program at a time. You can, however, control the intensity levels on each side. With the Healthmateforever model, two channels share the same intensity level. Oh, and did I mention that the Healthmateforever model comes with a little hard plastic ovalish shaped disc that you can stick your used electrodes onto, to to help keep them fresher longer. Granted the plastic piece is only big enough to stick one electrode to it on each side, but it was a nice touch that was lacking from the TruMedic model. Speaking of the electrodes, even those seem better on the Healthmateforever model. While the electrodes that come with the TruMedic model are ok, I have reused them maybe 20 times and, while they are still hanging in there, I already took the liberty of reordering new ones. The Healthmateforever electrodes look the same as the TruMedic ones but they are soooooo much more sticky! I mean I actually got a little bit of the gel on two of my fingers when I first took them off the clear film to try the device for the first time. While I can not attest to how long they will last, I have no doubt it will be more than 20 or 30 uses and if it's less than that, I'll let you know. Well folks FINALLY, my review has come to an end and this tale of two devices has concluded. The TruMedic model is ok, but that 15 minute timer is a let down. At the same price point, the Healthmateforever model is better choice in every single way and I seriously can not recommend it enough! Thanks for reading my review I hope it helps you make a better, more informed purchasing decision.