My wife and I each ordered one of these neck braces at different times in the last three months. We got the same brand of Trtl Pillow neck brace. But the two braces are of different structure and therefore different characteristics. In the photos, see that they look nearly identical on the surface, with slightly different fabrics evident. Yet on the inside, the plastic spines are different. The spine is the most important part of the brace, as it is what holds your head up while you sleep. The brace on the right, that has the more full bodied side structure (the 3 fingers) is more stiff, and is a better support to your head. This is a very clear difference when you wear them. The version on the left is not stiff enough to support my head, and I feel discomfort is allowing my head to lean sideways. With the stiffer spine on the right, my head is much better held up, and my neck is not strained. My wife also can clearly feel the difference. Perhaps the two different spines were designed at different times. Hopefully, the stiffer one is the more recent design, so that future users will be supported well. If the weaker spine is the more recent, then someone may have decided to save a bit of money, using less plastic. This would be a mistake, as sleeping with your head leaning into a brace is a matter of health and safety. I've not attempted to sleep with this while on a plane yet. We'll do that within a month, and I'll come back and add to this review. But I will say for now, that the stiffer version is very comfortable for me, and provides more support than my usual inflatable neck pillow. This brace will take up much more room in my carry-on, than the inflatable pillow, so I do hope it also works better.
I’ve purchased 2 of these this year and the products were completely different. One amazing the other horrible. Double check they sent you the correct item! The one on the right actually works... the one on the left is garbage.
I originally purchased this to travel to Singapore and Tokyo, Japan during November. My entire flight, including round trip, totaled about 40 hours (and 6 flights). I was wary of the Trtl at first, but now I am so glad I bought this. I have absolutely no regret! It is possibly the best purchase I have ever made for traveling. I can't even imagine ever traveling without it again. THAT was how great this Trtl turned out to be!
SUMMARY PROs AND CONs (if you don’t want to read the whole review):
PROS:
- Nice colors (never embarrassed to wear it)
- Nice cloth texture
- Velcro only sticks to limited materials
- Light-weight
- Keeps your posture upright
- Prevents neck pains, crinks, strains, stress, aches
- Keeps you from nodding off onto your neighbors
- Puts you to sleep a lot quicker
- KEEPS YOU ASLEEP, making long flights seem a lot shorter, and hastens recovery from jet lag
- Cozy and comfortable
- One size fits all (well, we are 5’1 and 5’5)
- Cloth is machine-washable
- Pet fur DOESN’T stick to it, and if it does, very easy to clean off with a few pats
- Helps to mask the smell of smelly airplanes or smelly neighbor on the plane
- Can use Trtl to cover up your mouth
CONS:
- Doesn’t fold flat
- Gets too hot (definitely not suitable for hot summers, unless AC is blasting)
- Can’t quite fit ear phones and ear buds comfortably
- Velcro sticks to some materials
NEITHER PRO OR CON:
- Price (on the costly side, but so worth the purchase for me)
- Doesn’t have a carry case – I actually prefer not to have a carry case. I don't like to take my time carefully placing things back into its packaging (nor taking it out of the package), but I always feel obligated to if one is included. I have a system of my own that works for me, and that’s to make life as simple as possible, including just stuffing the Trtl into the front slot of my backpack and move along.
- Plastic neck-support is quite springy – while it was just the right amount of springy for me, a head that’s heavier may end up tilting a little too much for comfort (I’m not going to weigh my head for you guys…). Then again, you just need to wrap the cloth tighter to keep your head-tilt higher.
- If you have short hair (to neck length), you may look weird with the Trtl or you may look awesome.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS:
The cost was okay, to be honest. I felt that this was on the costlier side, but then I remember one year when I didn't bring any neck pillow and was forced to buy one at the airport that costed $30... Yeah. It wasn't even that great of a pillow, sadly. With that in mind, I was willing to dish out the money for something that did work. So, I gave the Trtl a try, seeing how it had my number 1 concern addressed, which was whether it would give my neck any crinks, pain, or aches. The other feature I liked was that it was like a scarf. It didn't look ridiculous like a plushy toilet seat, if you know what I mean (imagine what extraterrestrials would think of us when they see a fat toilet seat wrapped around our neck!). Looks aside, I only cared about the comfort, that is, whether it would keep my neck from pain.
When I received this, I noticed how touchably soft the fleece-like cloth was. Next thing was how flimsy the plastic inside felt. It's hard to imagine it could support the weight of anyone's head. Finally, I was a little concerned about the velcro. Having a dog, I know velcros tend to wear out really fast as it latches on to just about everything and wear the velcro down. The Trtl velcro, however, only latches on to certain types of fabric - which is really good! I tried latching it on to my jacket, my hair, my pet, and some of my clothes. I'm happy to say that it only latched on to one of my extremely cottony shirt that I don't even wear. Everything else (including the Trtl fabric) was NOT affected at all. Super plus there!
It is also machine-washable. Right out of the bag, this thing really stunk of factory-plastic. I washed it immediately (after taking out the plastic, of course). On a side note about washing the Trtl, it’s best to test the Velcro on the clothes you will wash it with. If the Velcro doesn’t stick to the clothes, you can wash the Trtl with those clothes. Otherwise, wash it separately just to be safe. The last thing you want is to wear the Trtl’s Velcro down to unusable condition. Of course, remember to take the plastic out before washing the Trtl, because the plastic is not machine-washable and you will damage it.
At first, putting on the Trtl was awkward. It was springy, like my head was going to snap the plastic head-support. The shoulder-support was uncomfortable. However, after a few tries, I finally got it at the right tightness around my neck, at the right position to support my head, and at the right placement on my shoulder. I’m not saying that it’s really difficult to get it JUST RIGHT, but you will still have to sort of move it around and adjust it to get it comfortable enough for you. It’s a totally workable situation since everybody’s head-tilt comfort is a little different.
Also, my hair is short-ish. It goes down to the middle of my neck. There was no way to fix my hair to make it look right. I either looked like a pinhead with my hair tucked underneath the Trtl wrap, or I look like a wild mushroom with my hair on top of the Trtl. Eventually, after moving around, my hair naturally fell around the Trtl like it would with a scarf. Relieved. Lol.
PUTTING IT TO THE TEST ON THE FLIGHTS:
I took a sleeping pill the first thing I got on. I slept for 10 hours straight on the first flight with the Trtl on the entire time. I woke up in the middle of the flight to switch the neck-holder from one side to the other. I noticed no pain at all! I was too tired at that point to be amazed, but I remember thinking groggily how thankful I was that I got the Trtl. The Trtl put me right back to sleep. Sleeping the entire flight was a surprise for me. Even on sleeping pills, I get maybe 6 hours max out of it. Then I’d be up watching movies the rest of the time. Eating meals in between, of course. With the Trtl, I was so comfortable, it was like I was sleeping in my own bed. So, imagine waking up and you are at your destination like you were instantly transported there. Ah, no feeling like it…
While my plane wasn't smelly (this time), I had some smelly people (strong B/O) riding with me on the plane. So it was really good that I can choose to cover my mouth and even my nose with the Trtl. You don't have to, but you could if you wanted to. It's great as a drool-guard too. Just saying lol!
The Trtl truly does the work that it says it does. It holds up my head just right, relieving stress, strain, and pain to my spine and muscles in my body. I also don’t have to worry about nodding off side to side, which I absolutely hate. I didn’t even notice the shoulder support resting on my shoulder eventually. The shoulder support just snuggly sits and supports my head.
One thing I didn’t like was that it was very uncomfortable to place ear buds in (forget about earphones). I can only fit one ear bud into the opposite ear that didn’t have the Trtl neck-holder in place.
The Trtl does make you so dang hot and toasty though. It wasn’t completely the Trtl fault, because our airplane was really hot. I saw people fanning themselves and taking their socks off! Usually, it’s the other way around on long-distance flights; people usually have to put an extra pair of clothes and socks on because the plane gets so cold. At one point on one of my return flight, it got so hot, I just couldn’t bare the Trtl on any longer and took it off. For the next 2 hours, I stared in agony because I could not sleep. That was when I realized just how fast the Trtl has been putting me to sleep AND keeping me asleep. The sleeping pill may have done 50% of the job, but the other 50% was the Trtl! So as soon as my body cooled down, I put the Trtl back on and instantly fell back asleep.
Whenever it was time to get off the plane, I took the Trtl off, stuffed it very roughly into my stuffed backpack and hauled my ass out of the plane in a real hurry to beat the rush. It wasn’t until I was walking in the connectors that I realized that I didn’t have any shoulder or neck cramps at all. Not even a hint of it. Even my butt didn’t hurt from sitting the entire 10-14 hours, which is surprising. I remember when I flew to China, my whole family would be complaining of aches and pain everywhere, including our butts. Well, I still can’t explain the lack of butt pain this time, but after 6 flights, I truly believe the Trtl helped with that. Maybe the difference is really just posture, and Trtl does help keep your body’s posture in quite a good position to keep you from experiencing strain to your body.
The Trtl is small and light-weight, but it doesn’t fold flat. I was really rough with the Trtl when I stuff it in my backpack, but it’s been fine this whole time. So, while it doesn’t fold flat, I feel like it’s really durable even though it isn’t very convenient to carry around.
One surprising side effect of staying asleep on long flights was that it shortened my recovery time from jet lag by a whole lot! Literally, I was sleeping and waking up the very next day in Singapore like I had already been there for 3 days. Well, I wish I could say there was absolutely no jet lag. There was, but it was really shortened.
During this trip, I flew 40 total hours and sat on 6 planes. Each time, I’ve become more and more reliant on the Trtl. During one of the flights, there were open seats, so people were taking them to sit or lie down more comfortably. Me – I was absolutely comfortable where I was, squished between 2 other people. I didn’t want to move at all. Why? Because with the Trtl, I felt like I was in the perfect seat already. Comfort means everything to me. So, while other times, I would have jumped at the chance of bigger seats or seat upgrades, I didn’t want any of that this time. I actually felt so proud of my Trtl purchase at one point because it made me feel like a million bucks. I am serious. When you have to fly this much, comfort is EVERYTHING, and the Trtl gave exactly that to me.
PUTTING IT TO THE TEST ON THE BUS RIDES:
Tokyo, Japan in November is really cold. I thought I was going to freeze, so it was perfect to carry the Trtl with me for the long tour bus ride to Mt. Fuji. It kept me real nice and warm, especially since it can cover my mouth and nose if I wanted it to. Coupled with sunglasses, you couldn't even see who I was. lol. I loved it.
SINGAPORE:
If you’ve ever been to a country like Singapore, you know they only have one season: hot and humid. I won’t even call it summer, because that’s just an insult. Singapore is not the place to wear a Trtl. It is way too hot for that.
MY FINAL THOUGHTS:
The Trtl could be my best purchase I’ve made for travel. Was it necessary? The answer before I ever met a Trtl was a big NO. Now, it’s a humongous YES, especially on long flights. If there is one thing I learned in my life from years of experience, it’s to be good to yourself and your body. This Trtl had kept my body from the aches and strains that used to always accompany long flights.
I really want to get another one as a gift for someone else, just to share how amazing this product is. However, at the price, I can’t say that I will get this for anyone else unless it’s absolutely necessary.
Due to how this Trtl keeps me asleep, I am really excited to plan my next long flight. I used to dread traveling because of how long the flight can be as well as how awful the jet lag can be, but now I feel like I had Star Trek moments where instant travel is possible.
Also, because the Trtl can get quite hot, I may be choosing an airline with better AC. Singapore Airlines is GREAT at everything, but I was really disappointed with the temperature on board. I had flown Singapore Airlines for 4 flights on this trip alone. They kept the plane so hot on all but 1 flight! Even my flying companions said they’ve never been so hot on the plane, and this was coming from one person who had flown Singapore Airlines for the last 15 years. I’m really quite wary of flying with them again if I ever want to use my Trtl again. That is how much I am willing to work around my Trtl. Lol.
While the Trtl is not perfect, it’s damn close. Awesome product! My only hope is that this company will come out with a summer version or something, because it just blows my mind how steamy the Trtl can get.
This thing is the greatest thing invented since chicken and biscuits. It's like a nice scarf with just enough support to keep your neck just in the right position. I highly recommend it. Works great with big headphones too.
Just used this flying to Vietnam and back (3 days of travel time). From a 5'9" guy's point of view who has what I think is a normal length neck and not perfectly broad shoulders.
I wanted to give this a three star but gave it four because I will use it again as well as my wife, all of the other product alternatives are so terrible, and with 10 of us on this last trip I have tried nearly all of the top sellers except the j pillow.
Pro's: small, very light, soft, washable!, keeps mouth from hanging open, doesn't push your head forward like a horseshoe/memory foam/micro bead pillow (no matter how thin they claim to be they still do), doesn't slowly deflate/compress like a horseshoe/memory foam/micro bead pillow, not hot on an airplane but still warm, good in in side and front positions with tweak.
Con's: It needs to be tweaked... simply took the folded airplane blanket and placed it between my shoulder and Trtl to give it more height for my neck. Without this adjustment my neck was borderline leaning further then I was comfortable, worked better for my wife who's 5'5". I personally think this would be an unmatched product if it came in different sizes AND they bend was made to be a little straighter then 90 degrees. When my shoulder slopes down and it compresses slightly it is uncomfortable until I raise it up with a blanket. Out of the box I believe this is made for someone 5'5" or smaller.
Other people's findings: Some people put the scarf across their nose and mouth to block outside germs... I found this to be uncomfortable with all that hot breath and my nose is already built to filter since this held my mouth shut. Some were upset that they can't perfectly wear their large noise canceling headphones... I have them and no it wasn't perfect but worked and it would practically impossible to get enough support to hold your head up if the device didn't come up higher on the side by your ear.
Bottom line is the tweak was minor and I'd buy it again because it the best option out there even with it's issues. It could greatly benefit from coming in different sizes.
Feature Product
- The TRTL PILLOW is a SCIENTIFICALLY PROVEN travel pillow to keep your head in a BETTER POSITION when sleeping upright by holding your head in an ergonomic position during rest. No more nodding heads!
- SUPER SOFT fleece combined with a unique hidden internal SUPPORT, plus some EXTRA COSY CUSHIONING creates a comfortable resting place for your head and neck. Available in RED, GREY, CORAL and BLACK so you can find a colour that suits your style.
- Our UNIQUE PATENTED DESIGN is your ticket to an awesome night's sleep, wherever you are. Designed to look like a SCARF, the Trtl Pillow can be easily adjusted to your comfort.
- The Trtl Pillow is EASY TO ATTACH to the handle of your backpack or outside of your luggage, and it only WEIGHS HALF A POUND (148 grams)! Say goodbye to bulky neck pillows taking up precious space in your carry on, or weighing you down at duty free.
- ALWAYS FRESH and ready to go, The Trtl Pillow is also MACHINE WASHABLE!
Description
Trtl Pillow - Scientifically Proven Super Soft Neck Support Travel Pillow – Machine Washable Grey
I just returned from an overseas trip that involved a total of more than 26 hours of flying. I have used neck pillows for years, and have a very expensive heavy-duty one that works fine but is to big to pack in my carry-on and so is a pain in the neck (pun intended) to carry through the airport, long layovers, etc. The Trtl appeared to be easier to pack and I decided to try out this new design. I found the Trtl to be, as expected, convenient to travel with as well as quite comfortable. The important thing is to secure it tight enough so that it supports your neck upright and to place the curved end of the internal structure correctly on the curve of your shoulder. My only criticism is that the plush fabric is very warm (thus only 4 stars). This proved to be a bit of a problem on one leg of the journey when the temperature in the plane was a bit warm. I had to take it off. However, it was a benefit on another leg when the plane was kept unusually cold -- for 7 hours!! I recommend that the manufacturers experiment with a cooler fabric or the gel material they now use in pillows. Nonetheless an improvement over the standard neck pillows which are also warm.
I've had 3 neck surgeries and this is the first travel pillow that helps me! I've spent $$$ on other gadgets. But this one works! It even worked for my 5 yr old.
I used the Trtl Pillow on a 10 hour plane ride to London and it works lots better than the horseshoe neck pillows and the ones like Simptech Inflatable Travel Pillow. I was sad when I lost my Trtl Pillow on a subway train and couldn't use it on my way back, but it was a good pillow--easy to use and doesn't take up too much room. I would buy it again if I had another long trip to contemplate.
UPDATE 7/12/17: Trtl contacted me after I left my review, offering to replace my lost beloved Trtl Pillow free of charge. Yesterday, it came -- a brand, spiffing new pillow! Not only a good product, but an outstanding company standing behind it. You can bet I'll be buying more for the travelers in my family now.
I received the Coral TRTL and am very happy with it. Yes, they should use a cooler fabric... but I am always cold on a plane so I don't image it will bother me too much..
The main thing I want people to know is that this device will hold your head almost completely straight up, with only possibly a 1/2" lean to the side. For those of us that did a lot of homework before buying, we watched tons of reviews and videos. Most people didn't wear it properly so as to support their neck. Most put the plastic device way back so their ear was even with the middle of the plastic device. This causes your head to droop severely to the side, which then made us wonder if it really even was worth buying
Instead, you simply place the plastic end portion almost right at the corner of your mouth. This puts the bottom portion of the device at the highest part of your shoulder and thus keeps your head almost completely straight up. I'm serious that your head is only barely leaning an imperceptible 1/2" to the side. When worn correctly, you can't even tell that your head is leaning at all. Laughably, the blonde in the picture isn't wearing hers correctly as her head is leaning way too much to the side. She'll certainly have a sore neck when she arrives at her destination! Or, maybe she is very tall and has a long neck. I am 5'3" and have a normal slender neck. I think the larger or the shorter you are, the more straight it will hold your head. Most people, even tall ones, have a proportionate neck to shoulder height ratio. Unless you have an unusually long neck, then this should work for you. Again, for the people who said their heads were too heavy and that it allowed their heads to fall to the side.... they weren't wearing it right. I can wear it with the end piece closer to my ear than my mouth and it lets my head fall completely to the side......but that's not the way to wear it.
I do love that it covers my mouth to hide my mouth from falling open. You will get a warm humid blowback as you breathe, unless you simply pull it loosely away from your mouth in a sort of cupping shape. That way your breath can dissipate instead of warming your entire face.
Finally, you don't have to wrap the scarf tightly at all. I put mine on loosely and it's great.
PS, the Coral color is a deeper color than in the pictures. Not as saturated and bright as one of TRTL's advertising pictures, but it is definitely a medium hued dusty coral. Not pink; not peach, but in between.
Lucky for some, the gray one is on sale for $10 off right now. Wish I could have gotten that deal. The gray would be nice for men, or as a neutral color for women. I got coral because I will be using it on a summer trip. The red looks quite Christmas-y and Wintery so I didn't get that one.
This puppy is perfect, except for the fleece material. Would be nice if each one came with a summer and a winter scarf to change out.
Best small-footprint pillow device I've found. When folded, it's about 8" x 6" and 1" thick. It can easily be wrapped around a purse or luggage handle, or packed around in a bag. In the winter, you could literally just wear it around your neck as a scarf as you board the plane. The plastic inner device is not noticeable.))
They say a picture's worth a thousand words. I think this one says it all.
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