I was ready to be wowed – my life would be changed, my hair would look shiny and bouncy and healthy, angels would sing etc. Alas, it wasn’t meant to be – in the end, I’m just wowed about Dyson’s incredible marketing campaign. But let me explain.

My hair-drying needs

Did I mention recently that I’m an idiot when it come to hair? No? But I am. Properly blow-drying my hair with a round brush, actually styling my hair? Totally above me. Usually I dry my hair with a hairdryer during the colder months only and let it air-dry during the warmer ones. I run around with either a ponytail or bun on a daily basis, so you could argue that a high-technology hair tool is maybe not the thing for me. And yes, I totally agree. But then, my SO wanted to give his beauty-crazed other half something nice for Christmas, and here we are.

 

The Dyson Supersonic Hair Dryer review

Dyson Supersonic Hairdryer in-depth review
So pretty!

I’ll give you that, it looks super cool. The material feels great, like a cross between metal and plastic, absolutely no comparison to my old hairdryers. The attachments aren’t supposed to heat up, and they don’t. The head gets a bit hot, but not burning hot. It has three magnetic attachments, a smoothing nozzle, one nozzle for precise styling, and a diffusor that click into place. Cool.

Then, there’s a lot of cool-sounding technology inside. It’s supposed to measure the heat internally (“intelligent heat control”) and that prevents your hair from being scorched. Different to other dryers, it’s not as much as the heat that does the drying, but the airflow (and that is really, really powerful). Speaking of the motor, they build that inside the handle. In other dryers, the motor sits in the head. Dyson says that it makes their hairdryer easier to wield because it’s not top-heavy. It also comes with supersonic technology to reduce the typical hairdryer noise. First, there’re obviously no propellers, which reduces noise, and second they supposedly pushed sound frequency around so some frequencies are above the ability of humans to hear.

 

From the outside

Dyson Hairdryer test
The magnetic front – that’s where the attachments go.

All that tech is impressive. But the thing is, does the Dyson better than my old Braun Satin Hair 7? The Dyson comes with six settings, three for temperature, and three for air flow, and a cold shot button. All are set on the back of the handle, which let to me blasting myself in the face with hot air because I’m used to the controls on the side on the nozzle, couldn’t find them and turned the thing around to have a look. Ahem.

I also weighed both my devices, because, you know, “up to three times lighter” than conventional dryers is a statement that begs for proof. (Allure said it, so it must be true, right?!) Well, the Dyson (with cord, without nozzle) is 636gr, while my Braun is 670gr (with cord, without nozzle). Oh, speaking of the cord: That thing is super solid and quite hefty, BUT it doesn’t tangle. That’s neat!

Is it more quiet? Yeah, I guess, but I find the high tone of air whistling through the head really, really annoying and something that took getting used to. For people in the room next door, though, the noise is much more palatable than that of an ordinary hair dryer, though, and also not as loud.

 

In motion

Dyson Supersonic Hairdryer non-sponsored review
Hey look, you can see through it!

While my Braun doesn’t have a swanky heat control, it comes with ion technology to smooth the hair. So, can I detect any difference in the smoothness and shine while using the Dyson? No, I can’t. After approximately one month of use, can I detect any improvement to its condition? No, I can’t. My hair has suffered some damage, because I dye it purple and it has to be bleached for that. (Nothing a hair mask used once or twice a month can’t improve.) Is it less damaged because I use the Dyson instead of the Braun? I can’t see it.

When I usually rough-dry my hair, my strands flying around sometimes end in up sucked into the filter. That of course can’t happen with the Dyson, because it’s backless, doesn’t have any blades, and the filter sits in the handle. I’m happy with that. There won’t be as much any hair and dust gathering in the net of the filter as well, because, as I said, the filter is hidden in the handle.

And then, the most advertised statement – it’s supposed to dramatically reduce the drying time of your hair. Does it? I guess that depends on your hair type and how you dry your hair usually. For me, who literally just points the nozzle at my hair and wave it around until its dry, no. The Dyson does it quicker by a few minutes, though. I even timed it – while I need 6:40min with my Braun, I need between 4:40 and 5.20mins with the Dyson. I’ve to admit that the Dyson dries my hair more evenly than the Braun.

If I don’t tousle through my hair with my hands from time to time while blowdrying though, something weird happens – strands of hair stick together, making it a bit uncomfortable to brush through after drying.

 

Worth it?

Dyson Supersonic Hair dryer comparison
Comparison with my old Braun Satin Hair 7.

No, not for my needs, especially for the insane price (399€). But can I get some applause for Dyson’s brilliant marketing and PR? Everyone and their kitchen sink wanted it for Christmas, because every magazine review I read beforehand was glowing, although nobody gave factual proof how it was better. And why is that? Because it looks cool. It looks expensive. It looks like a hairdryer from space, or something from Apple.

If that’s what you need, or if you always style your hair, or have very long or thick hair that takes a lot of time to dry, then this could be a real improvement for you.

Buy it here (Sephora US) or here (Douglas) or here (Selfridges UK).