It's a nice touch at this price point. What's REALLY nice though is the flexible hose, because what usually happens when you're using a ball pump with the needle rigidly mounted to the pump? You're holding the ball in your lap and trying to stabilize the pump, when the ball rolls forward, snapping or bending your needle. The hose does away with all that: set the ball on a table or something, hold the pump with one hand and pump with the other, and let the hose absorb the slight motions of the pump in your hands. Feels like good quality too; I even bought a second one for my wife's work group that plays volleyball when the bar they play at didn't have one. Everyone likes it so far.