Short answer: the RecoveryTherm Cube is a small strap-on device that delivers heat, cold, or alternating contrast sessions with no ice and no cord, for $159.99. It treats one spot, such as a knee or an elbow. Therabody doesn’t publish the temperatures it reaches.
What does it replace?
An ice pack and a heating pad. The Cube is 4.4” x 2.2” x 3.1” and weighs 345g, about 12 oz. You strap it over the area and it cools or warms the contact plate electrically. There is no melting ice and no trip to the microwave.
Session lengths per charge are listed as 120 minutes for heat, 120 minutes for cold, and 60 minutes for contrast. Contrast mode switches between hot and cold, which uses the battery faster.
How cold does it get?
That is the question the listing doesn’t answer. Our data has no minimum or maximum temperature for either mode. A device this size cools a patch of skin about the size of its plate. It can’t do what a bag of ice does for a whole thigh, and it is nothing like a cold plunge. Ice-Free Cold Therapy Device vs. a Cold Plunge sets out the difference.
Ask Therabody for the temperature range before buying if you have a specific use in mind.
How do you use it safely?
Follow the session times in the manual and check your skin during the first few uses. Don’t use heat or cold on numb skin, and don’t fall asleep with it strapped on. For a new injury with swelling, or pain that lasts, see a doctor or physical therapist.
What does the warranty cover?
A 1-year limited warranty.
You get, you give up
You get three modes in one device and hands-free use. You give up coverage area. One Cube treats one spot at a time.
How it compares
Nothing else in our catalog does targeted heat and cold. For muscle soreness over a wider area, a massage gun like the Theragun Mini at $179.99 works differently, with percussion and no temperature change. Bottom line: useful for a joint that bothers you often. See Travel Recovery Equipment.
