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I am skeptical of quasi-scientific claims in advertising. Blessed with plentiful **fine** hair, I decided to give this a try.
I bought a used one. The ionizer works as advertised, gives the hair shine and a resilience, without frazzling the hair. Will look for one, next time.
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This dryer is very gentle and efficient. Mine lasted 4 years before it stopped heating properly. The last time it worked, I smelled something burning, besides hairs that were trapped in the fan and heating element (which probably caused the problem). The next time I used it, it didn't produce much heat. I discovered that a small black electronic component covered with a copper element had "failed" open (thermocouple with shutoff?). After prodding it, checked it again and continuity was restored. I didn't reassemble the dryer and plug it back in to retest it, because I couldn't be absolutely sure that I had eliminated the cause of overheating by removing the hairs and I couldn't be sure that the overheating shutoff switch would work again. Perhaps this info could be helpful to someone who has a better understanding of the electronics. Also suggests that if you smell hair burning, the unit should be disassembled and cleaned to avoid overheating.Best Deals on Conair Ion Shine 1875 Watt Hair Dryer 146RX
Conair Ion Shine 1875 Watt Hair Dryer 146RXThis is the second Conair 1875 hair dryer, Model 146RX that my daughter has gotten in the past 6 months. Her first one stopped working within a few months after purchase. As time passed, the fan kept running slower and slower. Eventually during one use, the fan stopped. The dryer immediately overheated and caught fire. Fortunately, the fire was contained within the dryer and my daughter was able to extinguish it easily.She returned the hair dryer and got a replacement under warranty. Within a month or two, the fan on this one also slowed down. On the high speed setting, the fan was running at about half of the slow speed setting. She was concerned that it would have the same problem as her old one and also catch fire. So, she stopped using it.
My daughter knows that I'm a die-hard DIYer and asked me to take a look at it while I'm here visiting.
I know that running at such low fan speeds will eventually cause the hair dryer to overheat and fail.
The instructions did not show how to remove the filter screen to access the fan blades. So, I took the dryer apart to see what the problem was. The first thing that I noticed was that the filter screen holes are too large. Thus, hair and lint can easily slip thru it and cause problem. Plus, this appeared to be a turbo type hair dryer which has higher suction than other models. My assessment was confirmed when I removed the filter screen. The fan blades were clogged with hair and lint. Hairs had wrapped around the blades and motor housing and kept the fan from spinning fully.
Once, I removed and cleaned off the hairs and dust and reassembled the dryer, the fan ran at full speed.
I told my daughter that I'd fixed her hair dryer and that she can continue to use it again. I cautioned her to keep the intake end away from her hair, which she normally does anyways.
She used shortly after I'd repaired it. While she was drying her hair, she called out to me urgently. She wanted to show me that the hair dryer was sucking in her hair. Even though she was holding the hair dryer away from her head and hair, as she flipped her hair and turned the hair dryer back-and-forth in the normal drying process, the hair dryer would suck in her hair. As noted early, this model has far more suction that normal. The fan blades started to wrap hairs around itself again. She had to turn it off and pull her hair out.
We tried holding the hair dryer further away. However, holding the hair dryer at arms length (arms extended) is un-natural and difficult. Plus, at that distance, the hot air cools down a lot before reaching the hair and does not dry it efficiently.
When her previous hair dryer failed, the symptoms were the same. As it sucked in more hairs, the fan would run slower and slower and eventually stop. That hair dryer actually caught fire while she was using it. I have no doubt that this one would have done the same had I not taken it apart to clean the fan blades.
This problem is serious and caused by a design flaw. This problem is not acceptable and Conair should deal with it ASAP. I've already complained to Conair but have not heard back. I'm considering reporting this problem to the CSPC.
I want my daughter to return this hair dryer under warranty again. However, getting another one does not solve the problem. Another dryer of the same model would have exactly the same problem. We've had this problem twice on two different dryers of this model.
We do not recommend this model hair dryer for anyone who has long hair.
Honest reviews on Conair Ion Shine 1875 Watt Hair Dryer 146RX
I had a ConAir Pro Style 1275 Watt dryer for so long I don't recall how long I owned it, over 10 years easily and it finally died, having such good luck I replaced it with another ConAirPro, in this case the 146P, BlackBird Pro 1875 Watts.Now as for my review title, the new one is no match for the old one in air flow and even though the wattage is a lot higher, the air is not as hot, so if you are used to the older ones this one will be a let down, enough different that I found an older model (BB075W) on here and bought it (this one I picked up at Target since I needed one right away), the ConairPro BB075W is a 2000 Watt unit that has, from feel, the same air flow and heat as my old one did.
As for this one, the cold shot is very nice, I don't use it to set my hair per se, just to cool it after a quick dry, I noticed no differnce in the "quality" of the drying job from the old one that was not ionic, but perhaps the effect does not show in short thin hair. The two heat settings are good but if you are used to 4 I found the temp too hot or too cool, I think the 4 hear settings model lets you get closer to the temp you like. I took off one star for these things.
The air flow is where I took another star off, for the weight and noise level it should be a lot stronger, this was very noticable, it took longer to dry my air and when I combed it after thinking it was dry the first time I noticed it was still a bit damp under the top layer, it had not blasted though, so I had to hit it again for another minute or so.
The controls are on the front of the hand grip making it easier to accidently change settings but making it more comfortable to use in either hand then side handle switches.
Fan Style -This uses an in-line fan, like a little window fan and these are rarely as effecient or move the same amount of air for their size as a squirrel cage fan (fan looks more like a paddle wheel), in-line fans have a size advantage and are what you always find in travel blow dryers as it allows them to be more compact, I really see no adavantage in a unit not meant for travel to have this fan style other than "style", it allows for a sleaker look.
Compared to my old one this one would be a 2 Star, but on its own I gave it a 3, I like the "heft"/weight, and it has a very solid, balanced, quality feel, good speed and temp settings, and as noted, the cold shot button is a nice plus. It is ConAir quality so even "average" is good.
