ByLuke Deszczulka
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Welcome to this hands-on Recovapro Lite review.
By the name, you can tell this is the “lighter” version of the big Recovapro guns. We were impressed by them – Recovapro SE and MAX. If you didn’t know, Recovapro is one of the best-known UK massage gun brands.
We thought since the bigger guns were so good, the Lite version had to be interesting as well. But not everything is great here. It’s not the worst gun we have seen, but it’s far from the best we have reviewed.
Read the full Recovapro Lite review below to find out more. We’ll also recommend alternatives worth your money.
RecovaPro is probably the big kahuna among UK recovery tech companies. Its repertoire is similar to Therabody’s – just look at their store. It’s not just the store that’s reminiscent of Therabody’s thing; they also run sponsorship deals with sports organizations in the UK and other parts of the globe.
For instance:
Again, like Therabody, they started with massage guns but have expanded to include other devices; their recent additions include compression therapy products. Interestingly though, they operate 3 demo stores where you can try the products before buying.
Long story short, this is a respectable company with a proven track record. Their products have been tested and proven.
They have also been through several redesigns and tech iterations. This is better than rivals Pulseroll who haven’t changed the appearance of their devices since the first release.
| Feature | Recovapro Lite Specs |
|---|---|
| Stall Force / Motor | ~15-18 lbs (advertised: 40 lbs) |
| Stroke Length | 11 mm (advertised: 12 mm) |
| Dimensions | 24 cm x 16 cm x 7 cm |
| Weight | 0.67 kg or 1.46 lbs (advertised: 0.7 kg / 1.54 lbs) |
| Noise (decibel) | 50 – 55 dB (advertised: 40 dB) |
| Speeds | 5 speeds |
| Percussion Range | 1300, 1550, 1800, 2050, 2300 ppm (advertised: 1500, 1800, 2100, 2400, 2800 ppm) |
| Battery Capacity / Life Time | 1200 mAh / 180 mins |
| Number of Attachments | 4 |
| Key Pros | Good stroke length Low noise Accessories |
| Key Cons | Low stall force Low max. percussions Small capacity battery Quality not on par with other Recovapro guns |
| Warranty | 2 years |
| MSRP | £119.99 |
| Current Price | Check here |
Some things we found inside the packaging include:
The first thing you notice when you unbox the gun is the massage gun’s design. In fact, we weren’t quite sure whether we had seen anything like it.
The shape and proportions look rather new. However, this is probably the most peculiar gun we’ve seen. We first spotted Merach Evo with a similar design.
That said, this is still a pretty unique design, and we’ll give them that.
However, when we saw “lite,” we thought “tiny,” but that’s not what this gun is; it’s bigger than tiny. It’s not the size of a full-sized gun like the bigger Hypervolts. It’s larger than the Pulseroll Mini and Theragun mini. We’d say it’s about the same size as the Hypervolt Go 2.
Back on the rather perplexing design, the overall appearance is round or oval. There are different fun colors to choose from. We went with the sky blue one. You can decide if you want a similar one or a rose gold, space gray, pure white, or midnight black. Do the colors ring a bell? We’re thinking Apple’s iPhones, no?
That aside, the proportions for this gun are far from familiar. For instance, the bigger chunk of it isn’t the handle – the handle is the short end of the gun. We are used to those being longer. Either way, we’ll discuss why under the ergonomics section. For now, let’s talk about the build quality.
There are two metallic areas on the device – there’s some metal at the front and some at the bottom of the handle. It sure looks like metal from a distance, but is it metal? Not really; it feels like chromed plastic.
We noticed the power button doesn’t look all that great. It’s made of plastic, looks clumsy, and slightly wobbles when you touch it. It also produces rather cheap feedback when clicked.
Our Take
We wouldn’t call this a sleek design; it’s unique, yes, but far from convincing. It lacks the premium feel we saw with the previous Recovapros.
It’s also the opposite of the rivals Pulseroll mini and Theragun mini, both of which are heavily rubberized and not all-plastic. It’s perhaps the black sheep of Recovapro devices – which is surprising.
We are not sure we like the approach Recovapro took here. However, there are positive things worth mentioning.
For starters, despite looking slightly larger than some mini guns out there, it’s rather light; it weighs just 666 grams or 1.46 pounds with the flat head on. Theragun mini has about the same weight. However, Pulseroll mini is lighter than both guns.
Our biggest displeasure is with the ergonomics of this gun. Unlike what we have seen with most massage guns (T-shape with a long handle), this one has what looks like an L shape. It’s not a typical edged L, but curved.
This approach makes the handle rather short. If you want to massage your lower back, this gun might not help at all. We don’t think you’ll be able to massage your upper back either. It’s probably okay for other areas, but not places that are hard to reach.
Also, the gun doesn’t have any rubber on its handle. The rubber helps to keep the grip firm. If you have to use it for longer sessions, holding this gun would be a problem – sweaty hands!
Another thing we didn’t like is the location of the power button (which is also the control button). It’s so easy to accidentally press it when you are using it. Even worse, if you use it at top speed, it goes off upon accidental touch. We experienced this a couple of times.
Out Take
Overall, the device is somewhat sleek, but the ergonomics aren’t that impressive. We are guessing we’ll probably get used to it over time. However, we are sure we’ll have difficulties using it over longer periods.
Unless there is a better iteration in the future, we might be stuck with these problems for a while.
There are 4 attachments included with the device.
They are:
Unique Feature
The attachments can move in different directions when you press the device against your body. This phenomenon, according to Recovapro, is called a “flexible adaptive strike.”
It’s an omnidirectional movement that works to the contours of the body. Apparently, other devices have a bi-directional movement.
Anyway, we didn’t know how it felt and so we decided to test it. At first, we thought the attachment would automatically oscillate, only to find out it’s a free-play that allows you to bend the gun slightly.
The feature sounds cool, but, unless we miss something, it hardly adds any value. It’s probably unique, but in our opinion, not needed.
So, about the attachments: we have to give credit where it’s due. You rarely see a mini device with 4 attachments. They have about the same quality as the ones from Medcursor and Sportneer devices – very basic quality.
Also, they are not as excellent as the ones on both Recovapro SE and MAX. The attaching system is push-n-pull, where you need a bit of force. We love the insert-and-twist approach used on the other two Recovapros.
We hoped they would employ the same system with this gun so the attachments are interchangeable. Other brands do this for their devices (Theragun, Ekrin). There are cases when full-size device attachments can fit on their mini versions.
Also, we didn’t see any super-soft attachments for delicate areas. Pulseroll mini has a pneumatic, air-cushion attachment for this, and Theragun has one you can buy separately.
Our Take
This is another sign of inconsistent design that isn’t typical with good massage gun brands. It’s a bummer that you can’t interchange the attachments for the SE and MAX with the ones for their lite device. The quality of attachments provided here is also basic and not as high-quality as the other two guns.
The controls are simple here. Typical for a device of this nature.
There is a single button to operate the device. Press it for 2 seconds to activate it and quick-press it to change speeds.
There is a minor inconvenience when the device is at top speed; if you press the button again, the device shuts off. You’ll have to restart it.
However, that’s the price you pay for one-button operation devices.
In performance, we measure the three important parameters; amplitude, stall force, and percussions per minute. Let’s find out what Recovapro Lite has.
It’s the distance traveled by the head during percussions.
It’s probably the biggest selling point of the Recovapro Lite percussion massager. Recovapro says it’s 12mm, but we had to make sure.
Our caliper showed 11mm, about a millimeter less than advertised. That’s awesome by mini massage guns standards. Had it been 12mm, it would be the first gun to match the Theragun mini. However, we’ll take 11mm for a mini gun any day.
Just to put it into context, Hypervolt Go 2 (almost similar in size to this Recovapro) has a 10mm stroke length. Other guns include Pulseroll mini with 8mm; surprisingly, the bigger Recovapro SE has a 12mm amplitude. So the Lite isn’t really far behind.
But what does it mean?
Well, on paper, 11mm can deliver punchy hits. It also means that, unlike most mini guns that tend to be vibrational, this Recovapro Lite is actually percussive.
In practice, it feels punchy, but does it have the stall force and fast percussions to back this up?
Stall force is the motor’s ability to withstand pressure.
Recovapro says it’s 40lbs. That would be awesome if true.
However, it’s disappointingly lower than 40lbs. We tested it against over other devices, and we can confidently say it doesn’t have more than 15 lbs. of stall force. Maybe a few pounds more, but not more. This means it stalls very easily.
The only other gun we have seen with a stall force this low is Hypervolt Go 1. Even Hypervolt Go 2 has a similar stall force.
But is this okay for this kind of gun? Yes, it might be enough unless you demand more from it, in which case it will disappoint you.
It feels inferior to Theragun mini even though it has about the same amplitude – there is a 1mm difference. It’s also noticeably weaker than Pulseroll mini.
Low stall force reduces percussions per minute when the slightest pressure is used. This impacts the overall intensity and effectiveness of a device.
Recovapro says it’s 1500-2800RPM with 5 speed gears to go with it. There are LED indicators on the device for speeds. Given the low amplitude, we expected the top speed to rev at about 3000RPM or more.
However, our laser tachometer gave us an even smaller ranger than what is advertised. We measured a range of 1250-2300RPM.
The different speeds are as follows:
The difference between the advertised percussion range and the actual figures is quite significant. You can actually tell when you first turn on the device that it doesn’t rev quite as fast as they say it does.
Our Take on the Performance
We would’ve been delighted if the 2300RPM were accompanied by slightly more stall force.
The device slows down the percussions and stalls pretty quickly when pushed against large muscle groups. Theragun mini has about the same percussion range but performs better due to a better stall force.
But with 11mm amplitude, the device has something to save face. It feels good enough to do the job. However, slightly more percussions and stall force were needed to make it a proper device.
We believe other devices, such as the Pulseroll mini, have a better setup and provide better intensity even though they are smaller.
Recovapro Lite is very quiet during operation. We believe it’s partly because of the few max percussions. It has about 700-900RPM fewer than most mini devices.
The sound is smooth, and there is no crackling or rattling. On our dB meter, we measured 50dB at the lower speed and approximately 55dB at the highest speed – the background noise was about 35dB.
Overall this is great and better than the Theragun mini, which has a rough sound.
We didn’t know what to make of the battery. It has quite a low capacity; just 1200mAh – which is probably the lowest we have seen thus far. This will probably affect how long the battery stays on.
Recovapro says this battery will go for 180 minutes. However, we believe this would work if you only use it at the lowest speed and never apply pressure. Realistically, expect about 80-120 minutes, depending on your use.
Since the device weighs close to 1.5 pounds, we expected a more juiced battery. Just to compare, the Pulseroll mini is 27% lighter but has a battery of 2500mAh.
We also miss a USB-C charger with this device. USB charging has become synonymous with mini massage guns.
Despite the downsides to the battery, there are nice things as well. For instance, there are 4 LED battery-level indicators.
The device also comes with magnetic charging, which is synonymous with Apple’s MagSafe. It’s a nice and practical feature.
There is a charging mat included with the device. Note that the charging mat has nothing to do with the electrical transfer of charges into the device but rather a placing mat for the device as you charge it.
It’s not a cheap device. You will have to choke up £119.99 for it. This isn’t cheap by any means. You can buy it here at Amazon.
The consolation is that you are getting it from a trusted brand. You get a next-day delivery, 90 days return policy, and a 2-year warranty.
That said, we still think the price is too steep for what you are getting. The fact that it doesn’t compliment any of the other 2 Recovapro devices means it’s not a viable upsell if you already have them – unless you adore the brand.
We believe there are far better choices for this price.
Does it make sense to choose Lite over SE?
Similarities
Where Recova Pro Lite beats SE
Where SE beats Lite
Our Verdict
There are two radically different devices, which is to be expected.
However, Recovapro Lite is a significant downgrade in quality. It’s very inconsistent compared to the SE and has nothing in common with the latter other than the logo.
We love the SE; it’s an excellent percussion massager. It’s better, bigger, and heavier. It’s probably not an alternative to the SE, though.
Read More Our hands-on Recovapro SE review.
Theragun mini is a premium, more expensive alternative.
Similarities
Where Recovapro Lite beats Theragun mini
Where Theragun mini beats Recovapro Lite
Both lack
Our Verdict
Recovapro Lite is cheaper than Theragun mini but not necessarily better. Theragun mini performs way better than Recovapro Lite. It’s also the better device in terms of overall quality.
Sure, Recovapro Lite has more equipment. However, Theragun mini is compatible with the bigger Theraguns – the attachments on the bigger guns fit on the mini.
If we had to pick between the two, we would pick Theragun mini twice! If we didn’t have the money for Theragun mini, we’d opt for the Pulseroll mini.
Read More Our in-depth Theragun mini review.
Pulseroll Mini is a cheaper alternative. It made using an entirely different concept, but the execution is top-notch. It doesn’t just differ from Recovapro Lite in price, it’s a totally different proposition.
Similarities
Where Recovapro Lite beats Pulseroll Mini
Where Pulseroll Mini beats RecovaPro Lite
Our Verdict
Both have slightly different features. Pulseroll is the more vibrational gun, while Recovapro Lite is slightly more percussive.
However, Pulseroll has a bit more power in comparison. It has more stall force and a higher percussion range which make up for the shorter amplitude. Also, Pulseroll is the proper mini gun. It’s small, light, and holds better.
Pulseroll is cheaper compared to Recovapro Lite. It costs £129.99, and the MGA10 coupon code takes off 10%, making it £116.99.
We would pick Pulseroll because it’s cheaper and better gun. Get your Pulseroll mini here.
Read More Our in-depth Pulseroll Mini review.
We’ve come to the end of our Recovapro Lite review. Hopefully, now you know what to make of the device.
To sum it up, it’s important to note that this is a decent entry-level gun. A trusted UK brand manufactures it.
However, it doesn’t perform as well as many of its peers. It also lacks consistency with other devices from Recovapro. It’s a downgrade in perceived quality, attachment compatibility, and more.
It’s probably good that it’s well-equipped, but this doesn’t make up for the poor performance and overall low quality.
We believe it’s not worth the expensive price tag. Pulseroll mini offers the best bang for the buck, and choosing Theragun mini may not be a bad idea either.
Summary
Recovapro looks like a mini device, even though it’s slightly bigger. It has the qualities of an entry-level gun, and comes well equipped. However, it lacks power and in many ways it feels like a downgrade to the other (excellent) Recovapro devices.
Here's a quick rundown of all the tweaks and edits we've made to this article to keep it accurate and up-to-date!
Current version.
February 27, 2024 Small internal linking corrections made. (Author: Greg)
Published on:
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Written by:
Luke Deszczulka
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