Wednesday 26 April 2017

No Thanks For The Memory


Now here is my contender for April's Pointless Gadget Of The Month - I saw one of these a couple of weeks ago in a Dorset Poundshop, and wondered about it's purpose. Now I discover that more august 'home' stores like Dunelm and M&S [and the humbler Wilko] sell them. It is the Memory Foam Bathmat
Don't get me wrong - I love a good bathmat. It is important when I step out of the bath that my feet land on a non slip surface, and I like something both warm and washable. 
But what confuses me is why use memory foam??
As I understand it, this excellent product has many uses, because it is warm, and soft, and retains the shape of that which is pressed into it.
I can see why such a thing is useful in these situations...

  • pillows, to support your head and neck and aid restful sleep
  • mattresses, for helping your spine and limbs to be comfortable
  • wheelchair and armchair cushions, for those with restricted mobility, to prevent pressure sores
  • insoles for your shoes, to help with pressure points, fallen arches etc
  • bra cups, to give comfort and uplift to small or sagging boobs
  • earplugs, which will conform well to the ear-hole and fit efficiently.
I have read the articles  about the amazing properties of this stuff [such as creep and hysteresis] I get all that - but I still don't understand why you want memory foam in a bath mat
  • I am only standing on the mat briefly to dry myself after the bath, not lying on it all night
  • I lift my feet up and down to dry them anyway, and may not replace them in exactly the same position, especially if I turn towards the towel rail, or move to pull out the bath plug
  • my feet are size 5, Bob's are size 11 - do I have to step into his footprints? [like Good King Wenceslaus' Page]
  • I step into the bath facing inwards - but climb out facing outwards - what's the point of the bathmat remembering my footprint?
M&S currently offer 77 different bathroom mats, in 24 colours - and their MF one [white or grey] is three times the cost of their basic range [7 colours] and has no matching pedestal mat for the basin or loo [if you want such things]. 
I just do not understand why you would buy one. 

Am I missing something really obvious here? 
If so, please enlighten me!

6 comments:

  1. I don't get it!! What a bizarre concept!! I don't own anything Memory foam, esp not a pillow as I am a variable sleeper!

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  2. When I was about 20, a friend in her 60s asked me to share a room with her on a proposed trip. I agreed, warning her to bring her earplugs because I snore. Once in our room, I asked if if she had remembered her earplugs. "Oh you don't snore do you?" She grumbled a bit and then settled down and started snoring so loudly that the people next door must have heard her. I asked her to turn on her side or front but no, she couldn't sleep except on her back. It was at this point I tried sleeping on the bathroom floor. Half a dozen memory foam bath mats would have come in very handy!

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  3. I sympathise Attila, snorers do disrupt sleep the sleep of others. Earplugs are very useful!!

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  4. If you had posted this on 1st April, I would have been clearer!

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  5. Actually, my little granddaughter has eczema and the dr. said not to rub her with a towel after a bath, just wrap her up and let her dry on her own. So, she sits on the bathmat and waits to drip dry. We were at Target one day and she found one of these and, of course, I bought it, and she loves to sit on the bathmat and drip. Now, granted, I am not apt to sit on the floor and drip so it has a very specific use here but that is why I have one.

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  6. B-B, that's a great reason to buy one, and I am glad your precious little grand-daughter is finding a genuine benefit. We don't have Target here in the UK. Thanks for the comment

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