I have this one, it is good, but I never had a cheaper one so I can't comment on how it compares. I have had the trigger point roller for a few months and it shows no sign of wear and tear so far.
I'm not sure the ridged pattern on it does much, but it seems durable enough.
Hey Adam, I have no such running plans nor any advice on that score but I am also about to enter the final year of my PhD so I thought I would wish you good luck with both that and the running. I am going to try to keep up regular running through the final year if I can as I find it helps with the stress of it all, but not put pressure on myself to achieve any goals other than complete the thesis.
Sorry your GP wasn't helpful with your running injury. Most GPs are not specialists in running injuries which is probably why their suggestion was one that would alleviate the symptoms but didn't take into account how important running is for you.
I agree with running_chemist that the hardest thing (about being injured) is the frustration of having to stop running. On the plus side ITBS is a common running injury and there are a barrage of approaches suggested to work around it. A good physio will give you suggestions so you can get back to running injury-free as soon as it is safe for you to do so without risking further injury.
Good luck with it all. (Another advantage of going private is being able to get an appointment quickly and at a time to suit you.)
For strengthening exercises you have to allow time for the relevant muscles to develop, I think you are looking at weeks not days.
Are you in the UK? I would have thought that getting a physio referral from a GP for this problem would involve a long wait and is unlikely to result in a referral to a sports physio. For running related injuries I went private and emphasised to the physio that I wanted to self-manage as much as possible (i.e. not have a series of weekly appointments as I can't afford it!) and the physio worked with that.
In short you may be better to find a good sports physio (one with experience in running injuries) and pay for a consultation? (If in UK.)
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