Virtually everyone knows what you mean when you say you are "Gellin'"... Dr. Scholl's has become known for their gel filled comfort insoles. I just had the opportunity to try them out through Bzz Agent. I thought I would give them a great all-day workout, since I have a standing workstation at work and sometimes spend 9-10 hours at my desk, mostly on my feet.
I inserted the Massaging Gel Insoles in a pair of admittedly flimsy canvas tennis shoes. These are not athletic shoes in any real sense of the word - rather picture the canvas "tennies" that kids used to wear in gym class back in the dark ages before Nikes and Air Jordans. No one in their right mind would wear these shoes for any kind of sports! Rather, they are a cute summery fashion statement with old fashioned rubber soles. I was wondering if the insoles would really improve the performance of these shoes and if they would stay IN the shoes - they are a backless slip-on style.
Well, yes and yes!
The first thing I noticed about the insoles was the color. They are a wonderful turquoise blue. They have the cooling appeal of a swimming pool. I personally think it might be nice to have a more colorless version available in case the insoles peek out of your shoes a bit. They might not be as noticeable. That being said, I think these insoles are really designed to be worn in shoes where they will not likely be seen.
The next thing I noted was how easy they were to trim to the size of your shoe. The insoles are clearly marked with easy to follow lines at the various shoe sizes the inserts would fit. Simply trim to your shoe size and voila! - perfectly sized insoles. Well, assuming your shoe is a true size. Shoes do tend to be a bit more consistent as far as sizing - the women's clothing world contains wildly fluctuating sizes. One brand's size 8 is another brand's size 6 or even 4. My shoes seem to be pretty much a consistent size, though the instructions do note that you should try the insoles in the shoes before trimming. Good advice, since I think it makes it easier to estimate how much, if any, of the insoles should be trimmed off. Anyway, it worked well for me, and I was grateful for the markings. I like the flocked surface of the insoles so they wouldn't feel "sticky" if you weren't wearing socks.
The insoles proved to be comfortable, if a bit unnerving at first. There is a squishy movement to them that took a little getting used to for me. They did stay in my shoes very well, though, and they do provide an extra layer of cushioning between you and the hard surfaces of the floor. I think the Dr. Scholl's Massaging Gel Insoles are great for shoes without a lot of cushion or support. Good work, Dr. Scholl's!
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
R.I.P. Bose Ear-buds
My Bose in-ear headphones failed yesterday. They had given me three years of faithful service, but at $100 price point, I was SO disappointed that they didn’t last longer. My retired Mom bought them for me as a birthday gift and I don’t even want to let her know that they are already dead. I have replaced cheaper headphones in the past, but I really thought that the Bose name meant a higher quality product, not just great sound.
The ear buds did have a good quality sound, but I freely admit that perhaps I am not enough of a connoisseur to notice a huge difference between Bose and the aforementioned cheaper headphones. I found the ear buds to be comfortable, and I used them at work at a desk all day. I gently wound them and placed them into their little soft sided case at night so I believe I took good care of them. I guess sometimes things just fail, as I did not have an “event” like dropping, crushing, slamming in a drawer, etc, that would explain the sudden loss of sound in one ear-bud. One day it worked, the next day it did not.
I was planning to send them to Bose to have them fixed. On their website, I got the mistaken impression that they performed repairs on failed equipment. Apparently this plan does not extend to headphones. Of course, if they fail during the one year warranty period Bose will replace them, but everyone knows that products always fail AFTER the warranty period runs out. I was prepared to pay for them to be repaired - I just had a Levelor blind fixed and UPS’d back to me for $25 -so I was unprepared to hear that their solution to my problem was to sell me another pair of the ear buds that just failed (albeit at a discount). For some reason, it felt like a slap in the face. After all, I am already feeling like my product was of poor quality and here they are trying to sell me the same thing.
I am sure many people have had experiences with headphones that fail - as I began to browse around on-line, I noted many people saying their Bose headphones didn’t even last a year ( let alone three) so perhaps I should be grateful for the time I did get. I do think that the $30+ dollars a year the Bose headphones cost to use is not an acceptable level of expense for me. Perhaps it is for others and it may be that I am not discerning enough to be able to detect the huge quality difference in the Bose sound that might warrant the cost. I am going back to the “cheap seats” - I will not be purchasing anything from Bose again, because in my opinion they did not live up to their excellent reputation. In fact, when I mentioned to a friend that the left ear-bud had stopped working suddenly, she said “Oh doesn’t Bose fix or replace those?” ... I am going to have to tell her she was misinformed and spread the word.
The ear buds did have a good quality sound, but I freely admit that perhaps I am not enough of a connoisseur to notice a huge difference between Bose and the aforementioned cheaper headphones. I found the ear buds to be comfortable, and I used them at work at a desk all day. I gently wound them and placed them into their little soft sided case at night so I believe I took good care of them. I guess sometimes things just fail, as I did not have an “event” like dropping, crushing, slamming in a drawer, etc, that would explain the sudden loss of sound in one ear-bud. One day it worked, the next day it did not.
I was planning to send them to Bose to have them fixed. On their website, I got the mistaken impression that they performed repairs on failed equipment. Apparently this plan does not extend to headphones. Of course, if they fail during the one year warranty period Bose will replace them, but everyone knows that products always fail AFTER the warranty period runs out. I was prepared to pay for them to be repaired - I just had a Levelor blind fixed and UPS’d back to me for $25 -so I was unprepared to hear that their solution to my problem was to sell me another pair of the ear buds that just failed (albeit at a discount). For some reason, it felt like a slap in the face. After all, I am already feeling like my product was of poor quality and here they are trying to sell me the same thing.
I am sure many people have had experiences with headphones that fail - as I began to browse around on-line, I noted many people saying their Bose headphones didn’t even last a year ( let alone three) so perhaps I should be grateful for the time I did get. I do think that the $30+ dollars a year the Bose headphones cost to use is not an acceptable level of expense for me. Perhaps it is for others and it may be that I am not discerning enough to be able to detect the huge quality difference in the Bose sound that might warrant the cost. I am going back to the “cheap seats” - I will not be purchasing anything from Bose again, because in my opinion they did not live up to their excellent reputation. In fact, when I mentioned to a friend that the left ear-bud had stopped working suddenly, she said “Oh doesn’t Bose fix or replace those?” ... I am going to have to tell her she was misinformed and spread the word.
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