| Braun Silk-épil Xpressive Pro 7681 Rechargeable Wet & Dry Epilator |
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Overall Rating: |
| Retail Price: £129.99 |
| Amazon Price: £76.99 |
| Braun Silk-épil Xpressive Pro 7381 Wet & Dry Body System Rechargeable Epilator |
 |
Overall Rating: |
| Retail Price: £109.99 |
| Amazon Price: £69.99 |
The Best epilator 2010 award should, so far this year, go to the Braun 7682 and the Braun 7381, both belonging to the Braun silk epil range. The only difference between these two epilators is that the Braun 7681 comes with a shaver Cap for which you will pay approximately £10 pounds extra. Apart from that, these two epilators are exactly the same. I will go through and explain the main features of these two epilators.
Smart Light.
This is a quite intense bright white light that is very useful for highlighting those small fine hairs or those stray hairs that can easily be overlooked. The light also helps prevent shadows from the epilator obscuring your view while you epilate. In my opinion, it really is such a useful feature that, you will wonder how you managed to live without it. I can also this see being emulated by others.
Pivoting Head.
Most women, unlike the super models you see in the glossy magazines, do not have a perfect body. We all have the odd lump or bump here or there. To combat this, Braun have designed the head of this epilator to pivot. If you have used a modern razor then you should have a good idea of how it works. By being able to follow the contours of your body, you are able to remove those hairs that are otherwise hard to get at, without having to go over the same bit of skin several times. This pivoting head is great when epilating your underarms and around your knees.
Massaging Rollers.
Do you really want a massage while you epilate? This really does sound like one of those features added on by manufactures that sound great but ends up being nothing more than a gimmick. I am happy to say this is not so in this particular case. These high frequency rollers are designed to stimulate your skin while you epilate and so relieving some of the discomfort felt. Does it work? From what I can gather, yes it does. Obviously, some women will derive more benefit from this than others but at least it’s a step in the right direction to reduce epilator discomfort.
Comfort Setting.
We can all do with a little comfort now and again, but the comfort setting on this Braun silk epil is really a fancy name for the speed setting. There are, in effect, two settings, Braun likes to call these: “fast” and “soft” or extra gentle and extra efficient. I just call them fast and slow. But they do come in useful. If, for example, you have just started epilating, then I would user the “soft” option. This setting can also be used when epilating your under arms or bikini line. When you are more comfortable with using your epilator, or when you want to epilate larger areas, then use the “fast” setting.
Softlift Tips.
This can be a bit of a tongue twister. These are basically little nodules on the head of the epilator. Their job is to lift up any flat lying hairs and guide them into the path of the tweezers. Without these tips, the epilator would just glide over most flat lying hairs, leaving you with lots of hairs that you would probably have to spend more time on removing individually.
Close Grip Technology.
This helps the Braun silk epil to remove hairs equivalent in size to a grain of sand. Braun achieves this by keeping the tweezers of the epilator in very close contact with the skin. Unlike waxing, you will not have to wait until the hairs are too noticeable before you can start to remove them or reach for that razor to remove those little hairs other epilators just cannot remove.
Cordless.
Both the Braun silk epil 7681 and the Braun silk epil 7381 are cordless. They both take one hour to fully charge. This charge will give you an epilating time of about 40 minutes, that according to Braun, is nearly twice as long as other epilators currently on the market. Unlike some of the cheaper epilators, the Braun silk epil range have a good quality battery that is powerful enough to actually be of use. The epilator is excellent at holding its charge which is helpful as you cannot use the epilator while it is charging. Being cordless gives you freedom from those tangled wires running out of batteries or having to find a socket close enough to were you want to epilate.
40 Tweezers.
Braun equip both the 7681 and the 7381 with 40 “winglet” tweezers. Other manufacturers have epilators with more tweezers but Braun say theirs can remove more hair in a single stoke than any other epilator. Maybe this is down to quality over quantity. But Brauns claims really do seem to stand up.
Wet & Dry.
Both these epilators can be safely used while completely immersed in water. Using your epilator while taking a bath can help to reduce discomfort. Relaxing in a warm bath does seem to help. 63% of women said epilating in this way was kinder to their skin. If you don’t fancy the idea of epilating in the bath, then you could try using these epilators while having a shower.
Disadvantages
The only real disadvantage I can see with the Braun 7681 and the Braun 7381 is that you cannot use them while they are being charged. So, if you forget to charge them and are in a hurry, you will have to wait for about an hour until they re-charge.
Conclusion.
Both of these epilators are more than capable of doing a great job of removing your unwanted hair. With products like these it’s all too easy to add extra features that are never used or just do not work and then charge a premium for them. Braun, on the other hand, seem to have worked hard to incorporate some great features that, combined together, make a great epilator.
What’s In The Box?
Charger.
this is what you use to keep your epilator running. These Braun epilators cannot be used while they are being charged.
Olay pre-epilation wipes.
Use these wipes before you start to epilate to help prepare your skin.
Facial cap.
Use this cap when epilating your upper lip or other hair on your face. Your face is more sensitive than most other parts of your body. This cap reduces the amount of tweezers when used with the lower speed can help reduce discomfort.
Shaver head Trimmer Cap
only available with the Braun 7681. You can use this cap to trim your hair before you epilate. You can also use it to shave/trim your bikini area.
Under Arm Cap
Use this cap when you want to epilate your underarms or your bikini line. This cap is especially shaped to fit these areas so making epilating a little more easier.
Efficiency Pro Cap
This is the main cap and is best used on those larger areas such as your legs and arms.
Bag
great for keeping your epilator clean and tidy or if you need to take it on holiday.
Great, but don't expect miracles
