Our readers are constantly asking about this machine or that machine in our message boards so we will be starting a review section that explores the highlights and lowlights of the different platforms on the market. The review section will place various platforms into the following categories;

High Energy Lineal

This will mainly be found in commercial vibration training studios and gyms. These are expensive to build so private ownership unlikely but not impossible. Can give fast and ongoing results, but safety is always of high importance due to the energy involved.

Premium Speed Pivotal

These machines go all the way up to up to 27hz. This rating is required for everything from physio work at lower speeds up to a “premium” speed for proper workout, but are limited not to go much beyond that point for safety reasons. The construction that allows for premium speeds to be meet makes them semi-expensive, but not out of the range of an educated buyer looking for a quality purchase. Commercial units can be purchased for Gyms or Studios but do your homework. Important note: The above units are where the ” 10 mins=1hr gym workout” slogan came from.

Medium Energy Lineal

Based on the Higher Energy platforms, but lighter and are usually made of plastic or tin so they give slower, less consistent results. This would make up a majority of Lineal units produced and range in size from no larger than your foot to 3 feet wide. Size may be no indication of quality and force so a test drive is essential. These tend to be the favorite “confusing ground” for marketers and lots of broken promises and machines are what’s left behind. These machines will work to a degree, but depending on the quality go from good to useless, especially if you think you have purchased something greater than it is. Do your homework, home use OK, but business use a big NO. Note: The vibration is meant to be Lineal, which means straight up and down, but some may actually wobble which they sometimes promote as “3D” . This just means low quality/uncontrolled.

Low Speed Pivotal

These make up about 98% of the Pivotal machines on the market and are almost always accompanied by fake specs which is a shame because they do have fantastic uses, but mainly in positive “therapy” benefits, just not weight loss and fitness which they are usually sold as to the unsuspecting public. These units seldom go over 12hz in tests but are sold at much higher speeds and values. Cheap to build with some very popular units being sold in China for as little as $80 and passed on as premium devices.

Low Energy / Low Amplitude Lineal

These units have no real amplitude and are basically stable platforms that can be used for everything from Osteoporosis treatment, weight lifting to Pilates/Yoga type movements. They will range in size from a bathroom scale to the size of a small bed. Usually low profile and almost silent due to small motors needed to drive such a device (smaller than a coke can). Some medical devices fit into this category so they may be more expensive due to controlled electronics, but usually are cheap to build.

Low Energy/High amplitude Lineal

These are often called “sonic” units” which just means they are driven by a speaker coil (no they do not create sound), but some are mechanical. They are often sold in a confusing manner to the public as a mixture of everything above, but in fact belong to their own group of “holistic” units. The speaker technology makes for heavy expensive machines, but do not confuse this for power. The mechanical versions are cheaper to build and are sometimes very large. Some machines due to their design can actually fit into more than one category, but now the basic functions are split up as any review process has a starting point.

Review categories and descriptions written by Lloyd Shaw