This is my only experience with an ionic hair dryer, so I have nothing with which to compare this one. However, I bought it because I had several expections about its features. Here is how each feature measured up:
Quicker? NO. It may even take a little longer than a standard 1875-watt dryer. The reason is that the fan does not blow very hard. The "high" setting blows about like the "low" setting on a standard dryer.
Reduced frizz/flyaways/static? YES. These are significantly reduced.
Increased shine? YES. My hair is visibly shinier.
Quieter? YES, but qualified. The only reason it is quieter is because it doesn't blow air as hard as a regular dryer.
Freshens hair? YES.
Another drawback: This dryer is very heavy. It took me several days to get used to how heavy it is.
This dryer delivers almost all of what ionic hairdryers promise, but I was mostly hoping for a dryer to speed drying time. If you have thin hair or hair that dries quickly or have plenty of time to dry your hair, then I would highly recommend this dryer. My hair looks shinier and healthier.
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As a child of the Sixties, I still wear my hair long and I blow it dry every morning. When my old Hartman Protech 1600 hair dryer hit the bathroom floor, things weren't the same. Eventually, in a spectacular pyrotechnic display, it breathed its last.
Since I had paid 20 bucks for it way back when, I was ready to spend that much on a replacement. Much to my surprise, in the 10 or so years I'd owned that dryer, a lot had changed, and now the same money buys a lot more hair dryer, so with some dough to spare, I bought one of these.
Many complain that it doesn't pack the same wallop as other dryers but that's a case of perception versus reality. The Conair's barrel has a larger diameter than most dryers and its fan is quieter, so while the perceptible breeze isn't as blustery, it's still moving plenty of air. I know because I use an egg timer to count off 3 minutes while I dry my hair and the Conair never leaves my hair damp (a barber told me that after 3 minutes of blow drying, you're just toasting your hair and not helping it). If you MUST have that scalp-scorching pinpoint blast, Conair includes a concentrator.
Ions are all the rage in hair dryer technology right now. Purportedly, a stream of ions directed at your hair will neutralize static electricity and smooth out frizzy hair. Ions are also claimed to flatten out scaly hair shafts, resulting in more shine. I'm waiting for our good friends at Consumer Reports to weigh in on the benefits (or lack thereof) of "dual ion ports", but after a week of daily use with the ion switch ON, I've noticed that my hair doesn't fight me as much when I brush it into place. Even when the static-charged Santa Ana winds are howling through sunny SoCal, my hair doesn't stick out like porcupine quills. And, yes, if I turn my head from side to side, there's a noticeable shimmer that either wasn't there before or I had never noticed it.
A minor flaw is that the power and ion switches respond to a very light push, but after a couple uses you learn to position your hand accordingly after switching on the dryer. The dryer offers low and high air-speed/heat settings and has a "cool shot" button that cuts off the heater while cranking the fan up to its fastest speed. "Cool shot" is another feature that is said to set a style in place by cooling down the hair quickly.
So, whether ions really do or don't make a difference, the overall performance of the Conair Ion Shine is worth the price.
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Just got mine recently and wanted to share my experience on the product. First of all, there is two version of Conair's Ion Shine 1875 blower, 146ZR and 146ZDFR. The difference is where the attachment "pipe" is located. On the 146ZR, the "pipe" is located below the blow hole. On the 146ZDFR, the "pipes" are located to the right and left of the hole.
Ok. In terms of the complaints about the buttons being at a bad place, I didn't find that a problem at all. Now, my hands are pretty big (gloves size Large/X-Large). Unless you completely grip around the handle, I don't see how you can accidentally touch the buttons. I usually grip my dryer like a handeshake/golf club. So my thumb is usually in parallel with the handle. As such, none of my fingers goes anywhere near the buttons.
Another complain is about the weight. Now, this blower is not a "compact" blower, so I didn't find it to be that heavy (I would say it is slight heavier that the hotel dryers, but those are just plain awful). I've tested a few blow dryers at Bed Bath and Beyond (including the 18765 Vidal Sassons and Revlons) and found this to be about the same weight as the others.
In terms of air throughput, some people may be misled to think this doesn't blow hard. In actuality, this thing does push quite a bit of air through. Compared to my old Conair and Vidal Sasson (triangle looking one), this bad boy pushes quite a bit of air. The difference is the old blowers are blowing a narrower, but faster stream of air; Whereas this Conair pushes a slightly wider channel of air and not as "fast". So if you blow this at your hand, you'll feel the same "push" as any other blower, except it is not as concentrated. During my hair drying process, I do notice my hair dries a lot faster.
Another reason people might think this dryer blows less air is because it is pretty darn quiet. I've compared this to the Vidal Sassoon 1875 and thought the VS was quieter, but moved less air.
I have not noticed a great difference in hair shininess, but there was a noticeable difference in static. Oh, and my unit DOES come with a Concentrator and a Diffuser (mine is marked as 146ZDFR).
Overall, I am VERY happy with this blower.
Other models I tried at the BB&B store includes:
Vidal Sassoon VS781
Conair 094WBR
Conair 156/157
Revlon 1875....not sure the model number
Honest reviews on Conair 1875 Watt Turbo Styler with Ionic Conditioning
When I read reviews about this dryer stating that it takes longer to dry hair, I was a bit apprehensive about buying it as I have thick hair. However, given that it was not too expensive for a dryer promising features like shinier hair and lesser frizz, I decided to give it a shot anyway.
I have now owned the dryer for about a month and I love it! It is pretty quiet and when I dry my hair in sections, it takes just as long as (or slightly lesser than) a regular dryer. I also have noticed that there is lesser frizz and shinier hair (both more noticeable a day *after* I did the actual drying).
The one star I have docked off is for the position of the ionizer switch. Initially, I turned it off accidentally once or twice while drying my hair. But now I am used to it and it really isn't a problem any more.
I would certainly recommend this dryer.
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I have very thick, curly hair and recently got a new, short style that I wanted to blow straight. I had an older dryer that just didn't cut it so I did some research and purchased this one. I absolutely love it. It blows my hair straight very fast and all the frizz is gone too.
