Best epilator 2011

When deciding purchase a new Epilator , what is one of the first things most of us do? Well if you are anything like me, apart from trying to find the lowest price , you read as many reviews on the product you intend to buy as possible.

We do this because most people who leave a review are honest and are simply expressing their own opinion on a product they have actually used. Most reviewers tend to highlight problems that some manufactures may gloss over. They generally give a review after they have actually used the product for a reasonable amount of time and above all are not being paid to do so.

So, with this in mind, I decided to read as many reviews as possible on the various makes and models of epilators curently on sale. I have read countless reviews left by people on such sites as Amazon, Argos and Boots. After reading all the reviews, one epilator seemed to stand out from the crowd as the best epilator for 2011. This epilator was the Braun 7681.

This epilator received :

176 five star reviews from readers on Amazon (from 280 reviews)

102 five star reviews from readers on Argos (from a total of 102 reviews)

59 five star reviews from customers on Boots (from a total of 59 reviews)

The 7681 is Braun’s top model and belongs to the the Silk epil series of epilators. This particular model can be used for both wet and dry epilation and comes with several useful attachments that we shall soon take a look at .

What makes the Braun 7681 the best epilator 2011?

TWEEZERS

The head of the Braun Silk epil 7681 consist of forty tweezers that are housed on a rotating cylinder. When the epilator is turned on, the cylinder stars to rotate- this causes the tweezers to open and close trapping and extracting the hair as they rotate. The skin is held flat by the surrounding casing helping to eliminate pinching. Braun claims that these tweezers can remove hair as small as a grain of sand. Although most people seemed quite satisfied with the end results, a small number stated that this was not the case and the hairs were sometimes snapped off rather than being pulled out from the root.

Wet and Dry use.

From the comments left by several reviewers, using an epilator in the bath or shower seems to be a popular way to start your epilating experience. Those who never previously used an epilator said the warm water helped them to relax. Adding shower gel helped the epilator glide smoothly over the skin. The warm water can also help to open up your skin’s pores. Epilating in warm water may also be more beneficial to those of you who have sensitive skin.

However, some people stated there is a slight disadvantage to epilating in water. The soapy water can reduce the tweezers grip on the hair, leading to some hairs being left behind. This may result in having to epilate more frequently, but the benefits they felt from epilating in water more than made up for this shortfall .

Cordless

This model is cordless. This can lead to advantages and some disadvantages. One of the main advantages is freedom of use. You can use this epliator anywhere you like and are not restricted by a cumbersome length of wire. Neither do you have to find a convenient electrical socket. The charging time is approximately one hour, giving a total running time of about 40 minutes. Most people said this gave them plenty of time to epilate both their arms and legs although a few people said that they would have appreciated a slightly longer running time. The main disadvantage of being cordless is that when the battery runs too low, indicated by a red flashing LED, your epilating comes to a stop. One of the main criticisms of this of this model is that you cannot use it while it is being charged, this is due to safety reasons.

Let there be LIGHT

Built into the body just above the speed controller is a small LED. This is activated as soon as you turn the switch to start epilating. Although small, this LED gives out quite a bright light that helps you to spot those small hairs that may be trying to hide away and could otherwise be missed. Does it work? Well, apart from a small handful of people who just could not see the point (they probably had twenty twenty vision) most thought the light was a great idea. If you are epilating in a dimly lit room or have less than perfect eyesight then this light really does seem to come in handy. I guess you could also use it as an emergency torch although it may possibly be a noisy one.

Does speed matter?

Braun in their infinite wisdom have decided to call the dial that controls the speed of this epilator ….Comfort setting. I guess most of us are not very comfortable when having to epilate and using an epilator is not the most comfortable thing you can do. But, you can’t blame Braun for trying can you? Anyway, this is basically a speed dial with two settings: fast and slow. From the reviews comments it appears most people prefer to use the slow setting when first starting out . The slower speed was also used by reviewers to epilated their underarms and other more sensitive areas. The faster speed setting tended to be used by reviewers with a little more experience and on those larger areas of their body such as their arms and legs.

Pivoting head

One feature that was remarked upon by many reviewers was the pivoting head. This works on the same principal as most modern safety razors. The head of the epilator can pivot backwards and forwards enabling it to negotiate your body’s contours. Those who left comments said this was a really handy feature that really came in useful when epilating around their knees, ankles and underarms.

Shaver trimmer adapter

This is an additional cap that has a shaver and trimmer built in. You select between the shaver or trimmer by means of a small sliding switch that is situated on the base of the cap. Comments left suggest that although customers are pleased to have a shaver attachment included, and found it very useful, it was not as efficient as a dedicated electric shaver. The trimmer, on the other hand, was a very popular feature used to trim hair growth to an optimal length prior to epilation.

Massaging cap

This cap has two rows of rollers on either side of the epilator’s head. These are deigned to stimulate and massage your skin. This, according to Braun, will help to sooth you skin and alleviate some of the discomfort of epilation. Customers who reviewed the cap said they found it beneficial to start with. As they became accustomed to the epilator, they tended to use it less often and progressed onto the standard cap.

Facial cap

This fits over the head of the epilator. It is intended to minimize the amount of tweezers that come into contact with you skin. Very few reviewers actually made use of this attachment, but those that did used it on their chin and upper lip, and although they said it did hurt, they were pleased with the results.

Sensitive cap

This does very much the same thing as the facial cap, in that it reduces the amount of tweezers that come into contact with the skin. This reduces the amount of pain and discomfort felt because less hair is being removed at once. It is intended to be used on the bikini line and your under arms.

If you intend to use your epilator to remove hair from these areas, then, from the comments left by reviewers, you would be wise to use this cap at least until you had more epilating experience .

Disadvantages

For some people the fact that this model cannot be used while it is being charged was disappointing.
The noise this epilator made was a issue for some of the reviewers.
For some the battery did not last long enough to epilate all areas.

Advantages

Can be used in the bath or shower.
Light helps to highlight those stray hairs you may otherwise have missed.
The attachments that are provided can be very useful.

Best epilator 2011 Conclusion

The majority of reviewers found this epilator gave them the results they were after: smooth legs and arms for weeks rather than days. Being cordless it gives you the extra luxury of epilating while soaking in a warm bath. The Braun silk epil 7681 comes supplied with extra features and attachments that are of use rather than being mere gimmicks. Of course this epilator will not be able to please all of the people all of the time, but Braun seems to have done a pretty good job with pleasing most. That is why I think the 7681 should be the best epilator 2011.

Some things you may find useful.

Hurts a lot less after the first couple of uses.
People described the pain of epilating as pin pricks but bearable. Others said it just plain hurt.
One reviewer said this epilator paid for itself within a few months.
A few reviewers, who said they had very fine blond hair, mentioned they had to constantly go over the same area again and again only to find some hairs were still being left behind.
The majority of reviewers, who had experience with waxing and who also used this epilator, said the pain of epilating was slightly less than that of waxing and would rather carry on using an epilator than go back to waxing.
Skin can go red after use. But, the redness does recede after a couple of hours. It was pointed out that it if you intend to go out somewhere special then it may be best to epilate the night before.
Make sure you trim your hair prior to epilating.
A few of the reviewers mentioned that the battery in this model died somewhat prematurely. This may be due to the fact that, perhaps these customers received a faulty batch of epilators, or rather had batteries which were not charging correctly.
If you are a first time user then try epilating in the bath or shower first.
The majority of reviewers said they would recommend the Braun 7681 to a friend.
Less hassle than waxing, feel more confident as no in-between days.
Lots of women expressed the importance of ex-foliating after epilating. This can help prevent ingrowing hairs.
You will need to buy an additional two pin plug adapter.

Take a look at our best epilator tips