The showerhead is probably a better choice as it has fewer moving parts and is installed in many of the larger hotels (MGM Grand in Las Vegas for instance).

The good points:
- when it works, the pressure of the water is really good
- does leave you feeling energized
- looks sleek and 'luxurious' with no visible plastic stuff

The bad points:
- defective handheld units - hold on to your receipts!
- bad customer service and warranty
- poorly designed plastic tubing inside the unit - prone to failure and leaks

74 of 76 found the following review helpful:

Worth the price  Apr 02, 2006
By Becky Young "R K Young"
I was looking for a replacement for my old "Shower Massage" that would consume less water. The old model sucked up 7.5 gallons per minute. This one uses a maximum of 2.5 gpm. For standard, non-hose variety shower heads, I found lots of alternatives. This one was one of the few that has a hose extension, which I prefer to help me clean the shower stall.

Teflon tape was included in the package, which made installation much easier--I didn't have to go out and buy a pack of that. Put it together without any trouble, though I do confess to reading the directions. What was not included was a full description of the flow regulator, which can turn the water completely off while you lather up, should you so desire. When I first turned on the water to check my installation, the flow regulator was in the "off" position of the twist. This was a little alarming. Was forced to use grey cells to figure out what the problem was.
Now, having used this product, I would recommend it to anyone and fully intend to purchase it for my parents and sister. Absolutely a GREAT shower.

58 of 59 found the following review helpful:

Great water pressure  Jan 02, 2007
By S. Clark
I got this showerhead because my boyfriend complained about lack of water pressure and I had seen it reviewed in a catalog that features higher end products.

I found the reviews here helpful but wanted to add a little information to the mix.

It really does increase the water pressure. Particularly at the top of the spray. This is great for shampoo rinsing. The spray fans out significantly and I find that I have to use the hand-held feature to adequately rinse soap from the lower half of my body. This is not a problem if you opt for the model with a hose. The design of the showerhead makes it very comfortable to hold.

Shower times also seem to be reduced since we began using it.

When I turned the shower off after the first use, I noticed that I really was running less than 1/2 the water volume as compared with my old showerhead. I was actually surprised at the reduction in water use.

For some reason, unkonwn to me, it seems to have a lag time when I adjust the water temperature during the shower. I didn't think a 60 inch hose could account for that much lag. But, maybe it does.

The only significant down side I found is the noise level. I know that sounds odd but, all the air mixing apparently makes noise. In this respect, it does remind me of a hotel showerhead. They always seem loud to me.

Since the spray pattern fans out so much, it wets down most of the shower surfaces. This makes spraying the shower with mildew/cleaner more effective. More water on the surfaces to distribute the cleaner. So, that automatic sprayer gadget I bought is really wonderful now.

I hope this information is helpful to anyone considering this purchase. It's not perfect but definitely solves water pressure issues and is easy to install and use. I would definitely purchase it again.

17 of 17 found the following review helpful:

A must have for low water pressure homes  Feb 26, 2007
By Amazon shopper
I have thick hair, and low water pressure, put those 2 things together and its a recipe for nothing but bad hair days. I've bought so many shower sprays with the hope that they would get the shampoo out of my hair, and of course none did what they said it would. They all promise to give a high pressure shower, but there I stood trying to remove the soap from my hair. I saw this on Amazon and thought I what the heck, it can't be any worse than the others that now sit in my drawer of mistakes. I had my husband install it (An easy install) and was wowed, totally wowed! The pressure that came out of the head was unbelievable, I washed my hair and within seconds, the soap was out of my hair, for the first time in years my hair actually felt and was clean. The only suggestion I would have sent to Oxygenics is to put a shut off valve on the unit. There is a flow restricter to slow down the water to a trickle, but a shut off would have made this great product perfect.

16 of 16 found the following review helpful:

Great Showerhead!  Feb 25, 2008
By Paul S. Taylor
Recently, I needed a new showerhead. After some research (and considering the experience of numerous Showerheads purchased in the past), I bought this one, even though it looks like something out of the movie Alien. I read the company website and think the whole "Oxygen" thing is complete marketing-speak, but could see how adding air to the process could result in a more forceful shower, perhaps overcoming some low water pressure issues. When I talked about it to my wife, she likened it to a showerhead that "spits" at you. I don't imagine she'll ever work in their marketing department. :)

Anyhow, I pulled the trigger earlier this week and it arrived on Saturday. It came in a surprisingly small box. Further, I was very suprised to see the high quality of this particular unit, especially since some of the reviewers indicated that it looked like it was made of cheap plastic. Apparently, those reviewers were not reviewing the same model I ordered. The hose is completely made of metal (at least, the part you can see) and the handheld portion of the unit looks to be of very high quality. Both ends of the hose had plastic coverings on the outside of the fittings to protect them during shipping. It even included a small amount of teflon tape and very clear instructions for installation. Installation was about the easiest plumbing job I've done in a while.

The force of the shower was significantly improved. At the base of the handheld portion is an adjustment they call the "Comfort Control". Simply rotating it changes the feeling of the shower. After feeling it at the initial setting, I actually turned it down so it wasn't as forceful. Some reviewers said that it produced so much air that they had problems with their shower curtains not staying down. Hogwash, I say! I believe one reviewer even said it was loud. Again, hogwash!

So far, I'm very impressed with this unit. It seems to have the advantage of higher pressure with none of the disadvantages that other reviewers seemed to see. The brushed nickel finish looks very nice too.

See all 275 customer reviews on Amazon.com