This was a great purchase! I snowboard and I don't perspire very much, like some of the reviewers, but, nevertheless, my boot liners do need to be dried after a day on the slopes. That's fine if I just went up for a day. I just pull the liners out and let the boots & liners air dry. But when I go for several days at a time, that can be a hassle, or you wind up worried that air-drying wasn't enough. And you've also got gloves and a helmut and other stuff that needs drying. This is the solution to the problem. It's small enough that it's portable. You can throw it into the car if you're going up to the mountains for a few days (I kept the box for this purpose). Note that this MAY be smaller or more delicately-built than you might expect it to be; it's not the sturdiest thing in the world. So, it may need to be a little more careful with this than with some products. You certainly can't throw it into the trunk with the boots and boards and stuff. Needs to be in a box where it won't rattle around or get creamed by some other gear. The cord wraps around the bottom, which is nice for storage. Doesn't retract or anything, tho. The controls are easy to use, and the timer's nice so that it turns off automatically. If you have a big family, you might want to get two. Things dry fairly fast, but for a family of four, say, you'd have to be pretty religious about timing the first person's gear, taking it off when done, putting the second person's gear on, taking it off when done, etc.