30 second review
If you are looking for a compact massage gun that is light enough to fit in a backpack or suitcase, the 1kg Pulseroll mini massage gun is the ideal candidate. It has four different power settings, comes with four standard massage heads that work on the common push-fit setting, and its 7.4V battery can keep the gun going for up to three hours (or six if you use the most frugal setting). . A full recharge also takes around three hours.
With a massage delivery that exceeds 3000 bpm (percussions per minute), the Pulseroll Mini Massage Gun does a great job and is just as fast as our current top rated massage gun, the Power Plate Mini+. We also love its bright red and black styling.
Price and Availability
The Pulseroll Mini Massage Gun is on sale now and has a suggested retail price of €129,99 (about £170 / AU$230). You can buy it directly from Pulseroll (opens in a new tab), but it's also available internationally from a wide range of third-party stores, including Amazon.
Although not cheap, it is reasonably priced for this type of compact massage gun. For comparison, the trusty Renpho R3 Mini massage gun costs $139.99 / £119.99 (about AU$190), while the versatile Power Plate Mini+ costs $179.99 / £179.95 (about AU$250).
Integrated
Massage guns follow a fairly common theme in the design department, but the downside of some models is their bulk. Not so with the Pulseroll Mini massage gun, which (as its name suggests) offers all the usual massage capabilities in a more compact form. It's a real bonus if you like to take your massage gun with you on your travels, to sporting events and races, or to the gym, so it's there when you need it most.
The gun comes in a sturdy cardboard box and inside is a zippered vinyl carry case, complete with logo and carry strap. Unzip the package and you will be greeted by a very bright and rather original red interior. The 14cm tall gun sits there with a head already attached, with three other massage tools along with a USB-C charging cable.
There's also a color manual, which is hidden within a mesh in the top half of the case and is difficult to remove. It's almost like it's too big for the size of the net that supports it. In fact, only the first 10 pages are for English-speaking users, while the rest are for other languages. However, the instructions are clear enough and the anatomical color illustrations and massage tips are also very good. A one year warranty card completes the package.
Performance
It may be small, but the Pulseroll Mini Massage Gun packs a punch, boasting a 40-pound stopping force. Its operation is very simple, with a clearly marked power button at the base of the handle. Below is a USB-C charging port.
Press the power button for two seconds and you will see a power/cycle level displayed on the side in small green LEDs. The intensity can be increased by pressing it again. Level one offers 1800 bpm (percussions per minute), level two 2200 rpm, level 3 three 2700 rpm and level four 3000 rpm, equal to most of our top-rated massage guns, including the HoMedics Pro massage gun Physio. This is complemented by battery level indicators on the other side.
The interchangeable head attachments work with the common snap-fit method and we've had success with these, though luckily we didn't get any dropouts mid-massage. We got reliable results using the round head for full body tasks, the pneumatic head for soft tissue areas, while the bifurcated spinal head did a good job of stimulating forehead massage. A familiar-looking ball head proves as effective as ever for muscle massaging sore spots.
The touchscreen-style power/speed button works pretty well, though it can be a bit tricky to get to the right level if you're still getting used to it. Overall though, the design allows for easy and long massage sessions, while the end result is everything you'd expect from such a machine. In fact, it's as good as the bulkier full-size models on the market.
First review April 2022
