Beauty
Hair tools and the everyday products around them, judged on what they do rather than how they photograph. We are conservative about claims and specific about results.
Shark FlexStyle Air Styling & Drying System, HD430
The sensible multi-styler
The catch: The auto-wrap curls drop faster than curls from a hot iron, and the whole thing is louder than a normal dryer. It is a very good styler with a good dryer attached, not a miracle.
Best-of guides
Comparisons
Dyson Supersonic vs. Revlon One-Step Volumizer
Choose the Dyson if you dry long, thick hair daily and can catch it discounted. Choose the Revlon for a one-handed blowout at a fraction of the cost.
Shark FlexStyle vs. Dyson Airwrap
Choose the Shark if you want one tool that genuinely dries and styles, and you can live with plastic attachments and a louder motor. Choose the Dyson if you style most days, want the curlers to grab with no effort, and will use it enough to stop thinking about what it cost.
Recent reviews in Beauty
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Products to avoid
Native Deodorant, Coconut & Vanilla, 2.65 oz
Why we passed: Two of three testers needed to reapply by mid-afternoon on ordinary days and the stick marked dark shirts, which is not what we want from a daily deodorant.
Revlon Oil-Absorbing Volcanic Face Roller
Why we passed: It did not do noticeably more than a blotting paper, and the need to wash a stone ball after every roll meant nobody kept using it.
Buying advice
Price and performance are weakly correlated in this category. Look for replaceable parts and removable filters on tools, and ignore any claim that cannot be explained in a plain sentence.
How we test beauty
We look at heat control, weight, noise, attachment design and long-term reliability, and we attribute every health or hair-damage claim to whoever made it. Our own conclusions are about usability and value. Full methodology.
Investigations
What “clean beauty” does—and does not—mean
There is no legal definition. Here is what the label usually signals, and what it never guarantees.
Are premium hair dryers better or just faster?
Faster and quieter, in our bathroom. Better for your hair, according to the manufacturers — and unmeasured by us.