Note that a blade and lather will pretty easily out-shave even the Panasonic – Arc 5, but it’s much closer than we thought it would be. We looked at “travel” razors, but so far as we can tell the only reason to buy them is if you absolutely cannot plug in your charger for a month. Even the power-hungry Panasonic Arc5 should give you at least two weeks of shaving on a charge, and the power adapters for our philips electric shaver winners are dual-voltage for international compatibility with a simple plug adapter. Andis is a brand better known to barbers than to most of us, and the Profoil shaver has a long history cleaning up fades and necklines in some of the best barbershops in the country. For $100 this might be a worthwhile upgrade in closeness over the 4500, but for closer to $200 street price we’re just not convinced.
So, testing how well they stand up against casual abuse when you’re shaving at the office, gym, or traveling were explored, too. During testing, the Pro-Foil had no trouble removing hair of any philips electric razor hair type. And, its lightweight, easy-to-hold design made shaving feel almost effortless. Its hair-catch (located under the blades) can be removed for cleaning with the press of a button.
A more ergonomic egg-shaped single-head model was introduced in 1948 and was designed by US industrial designer Raymond Loewy. Global sales increased markedly after a double-head model was introduced in 1951. In 1952, production of shavers shifted from Eindhoven to a new production facility in Drachten, the Netherlands. A triple-head model was test marketed in Australia and New Zealand in 1956, but would not be introduced globally until 1966. In 1980, Philips introduced the Lift & Cut Philishave shaver with lifters which pull whiskers slightly before cutting, allowing for closer shaves.
Shavers for men tend to be more expensive than those aimed at women, though, and the pop-up trimmers and accessories are designed for different jobs. We hope this information about brands, features and designs will help guide your purchase, whatever type of shaver you’re looking for. The Remington – PF-7600 is a new philips razor design from this well-established brand, but it’s pretty much the worst shaver we tried. It won’t get any closer than the Braun – Series 3, whatever your hair type. One of our testers (yes, the Braun fan-boy) insisted that he felt so much pain from the rotary shavers that they can’t possibly be working properly.
Elsewhere, we’ve looked at a combination of user reviews, specs, and features – combined with those years of grooming expertise – to pick the cream of the electric shaver crop. If you’re more worried about irritation than the closest possible shave, Braun’s Series 7 is the system to beat. With amazing battery life and a convenient (if redundant) cleaning stand, this is a prestige piece that works hard to earn its steeper price tag. The Arc5’s extra foils did help mow down the heavy growth, though, and if you’re going from fuzz to clean-shaven every week this model would save you some time. There are two common approaches to making a small motor into a hair-shaving machine. Each design is a transformation of the tried-and-true hair clipper mechanism.
If you’re in need of a quick shave and forgot to charge it, a five-minute charge provides just enough runtime for a single shave. The shavers that work best with this method are from Panasonic, and they were one of the first manufacturers to push waterproofness as a feature so it’s little surprise. The difference between shavers is not so much in closeness (each shaver gets slightly closer when your hair is dry and standing up as straight as possible), but in how they handle the foam. We picked their new PF-7600 as a model that’s price-comparable to the entry-level models from the other brands. We set out specifically to find the best electric razor for men, and our testers were men shaving their faces.