Mini Chillow Original Personal Portable Cooling Mat and Cool Relief Pad, 21" by 14" by 0.5", Blue

Never heard of the product until running across an article on lifehacker.com on how to sleep during the heat. The chillow was the first on the beat the heat list. Looking for a way to sleep in the hot and dry weather of Colorado I was willing to give it, scratch that, give anything a try. I've had the mini chillow a little over a week and here are my thoughts on the product.Positive:1. The quality and construction is really good. It looks like it will hold up for many years.2. Small enough to put in my sobakawa pillow and under laptops.3. Once chilled in the fridge(DO NOT PUT IN FREEZER, YOU VOID THE WARRANTY AND DAMAGE THE PRODUCT) it really is nice and cool to the touch.Negatives:1. Took a lot longer than expected to fill up the chillow with water ie. at least 10 minutes. Take your time as you will overflow the pillow as you approach the 5th - 6th cup of water.2. The medicinal smell of the pillow was strong at first but has now subsided drastically but still lingers.3. When you let the air out of the mini, there's good chance you will spill. I had to do it several times on different days to let out most of the trapped air.4. The mini's chill is only short-term. I'm putting it around 30 minutes to an hour tops.5. If you want your mini feeling chilly, IT IS MANDATORY, to put it in the fridge for 30 minutes to maximize the product.6. You have to keep the mini in a cool place with limited sun exposure and heat to maximize it's use in and out of the fridge.7. It's just not cool to the touch without any fridge time.The mini overall is okay. The reviews I have read for both the larger and mini are a bit too overly optimistic. I still like the product and will continue to use it. Just like it said on the mini paper instructions. Some people will feel differently with the product than others on terms of coolness. I am one of those users that must have their mini cooled in the fridge to feel any coolness at all. It doesn't not feel cool or chill without putting it into the fridge, it just doesn't. There have been a few nights where I have awoken just hours after sleeping and the mini was more pillow than chillow. So make sure to fall fast asleep asap and if you can't get some ear plugs and eye covers.

I have been using the mini chillow pillow for several years now. I always keep an extra one so that when one wears out, I have a replacement.I sleep with it next to my pillow. When I get hot at night I will slide it under my neck or place my wrist on it where there are a lot of blood vessels.It cools me down so that I can go back to sleep. I have found that it is critical that the directions be followed. Hot water must be used to fill it.Over time when it gets bunched up, refer to the direction sheet and it will tell you how to correct it.I have given it as a gift to friends that have to have a hysterectomy. They love it and are so appreciative. Some even carry it to work with themso they can grab it and apply it to their face when experiencing a hot flash.It was delivered on time.

Hot flashes were making me miserable at night. I bought the mini Chillow thinking how could a little pillow help. It did and I love it. It does have a strong plastic smell but it is so cool that it makes up for any odor. The only downside is that it may be a little hard to keep clean again I will deal with cleaning it as long as I get to sleep thru the night. I also order a big cooling pad but I am going to return because the mini chillow works so well.

The felted backing seems a good idea so it doesn't slide off your pillow, but I prefer the old smooth-backed version, as I used to slide it under my desk when not in use. Plus so much water spills out when trying to smooth the air out; you can't simply wipe it away now, as it absorbs into the felted backing and has to air dry.But I couldn't sleep without one; my face is almost always hot, & chillow feels so good on it!

I sleep incredibly warm and I absolutely love this product. I bought 2 so when one gets warm, I can switch to the cool one and back and forth. The only complaint I have is the foam filler inside one of the pillows has gotten bunched up, and it's hard to get it flat again, but it still works and it isn't uncomfortable. Best cooling pad I have ever used!

This works pretty much as advertised, but what it doesn't tell you is that it will start to smell like mildew. I ended up draining the thing, drying it out and then adding new water with a little bleach. I used distilled water like it recommended but it still didn't stop the smell.

Great help for middle of the night hot flashes. I should get another so I can swap them out for long hot flashes. I keep it by my bedside so that minimal effort is needed to reach for it and put it under my body. It is well worth the price.

This is the second one that I have ordered, the other one is misplaced. It also does not have the same backside: The first one had a softer, warming like fabric,The second one is very smooth, remains chilled does not feel as nice. The second one is definitely smaller. The first one is an all around better product. Yes they were from two different companies also.