Dyson Supersonic - Thoughts From Someone Terrible With Hair

A $400 hairdryer. Of course it's a Dyson - with that design and price tag, who else would make it? I received the Dyson Supersonic hairdryer this past Christmas. It had been on my wishlist as sort of a  "stretch" gift, and I'm really happy that I received it. (My old $30 dryer was on its way out.) However, it's still a luxury item, and I wanted to talk about my feelings regarding it.

The Dyson Supersonic

Before we get started, I must admit - I am awful when it comes to haircare. I heat style, almost daily. I'm constantly putting six thousand products in my hair. I constantly have my hair contained in hair ties of some type. Worst of all, I shampoo almost daily - and when I do, I use sulfates. Hair is not my strong suit, and thankfully it hasn't all fallen out of my head by now. I have very fine, straight hair almost to the middle of my back, which is color treated. I do try to remember to deep condition on occasion, and thankfully my stylist hasn't told me that my hair is trash. (Yet.)

Now that we know a little about me and my hair habits, onto the dryer! The dryer itself has a crazy Dyson design - there's no specific nozzle like on other dryer, it's just a cylinder, with one end slightly tapered. The tapered end is for the attachments, the other end has the speed and heat toggles and indicators.

There are four heat settings and three speed settings. The speed settings are:

• holy shit wind tunnel
• low grade hurricane force winds
• moderate

Not really, but the speeds are a little intense! Personally, I like it! I like blasting the crap out of my hair and getting it dry as soon as possible. As for the heat, Dyson states that the dryer tests temperature 20 times a second. How, I have no idea, since a second isn't that long. But that's what the dryer does. There are four heat settings:

• 212 F, for those who don't give a shit about their hair (me)
• 176 F, or "regular"
• 140 F, "gentle drying"
• constant cold, aka "why even bother?" (I think I read cold is good for shine? I don't really know.)

I must say, combining the highest heat and the highest speed is pretty ridiculous. I'm super pleased with it.

The Supersonic comes with three magnetic attachments - a diffuser, a concentrator, and a smoothing nozzle. To me, the smoothing nozzle and concentrator look super alike, one is just a little wider than the other. The diffuser gets the most use from me. Unfortunately, the diffuser is really good at it's job, and using it on the highest speed and heat settings isn't "enough" for me sometimes. (I told you, I abuse my hair!) I will usually diffuse my hair until it's mostly dry, and then full blast it a bit with no attachment until it's time to use the concentrator for styling. I haven't had any issues with the attachments popping off when combined with brushes, which is good.

According to Dyson, the dryer was designed to have the weight evenly distributed through the handle, instead of the head of the dryer being more weighty. The dryer itself is light, but the cord and power adapter attached to it are kind of clunky. The cord is on the thicker side, and it is not easily wrapped around the handle of the dryer, nor is there any retraction mechanism like you find on some dryers. My dryer also with a fancy carrying case, but it's bulky and would take up a lot of room in a carry on suitcase. I've dragged the dryer with me to the gym for use after a shower, and although it's bulky, it's really great for a quick dry.

The Dyson website claims that it has the "fastest digital motor," and the dryer is "designed for fast drying." I honestly know nothing about motors, digital or otherwise, so I'll have to take their word for it. But fast drying is something I can comment on. I'm able to dry my entire head of hair from barely towel dried to nice and crisp (kidding!) in a little over five minutes! Personally, I HATE having wet hair, so being able to get my hair dry quickly is something I really look for in a dryer.

I had mentioned to my hair stylist that I had gotten the Dyson for Christmas, and she said that it's really nice, but it's definitely not something she'd use as a professional. She mentioned that the way it needs to be held isn't conducive to drying a client's hair. However, she said that's a super nice dryer, and I must agree.

Dryer Pros:

• Sleek design
• Easily controlled heat/speed settings
• Magnetic attachments
• Quick overall drying time

Dryer Cons:

• It's $400.
• Two of the attachments are basically the same
• People are going to say "you spent $400 on what?" and then roll their eyes when you say it's a Dyson*
• Dryer & cord is bulky when trying to travel with it

* - this happened to me at work. Multiple times.

After all that, is this hairdryer worth it? I personally like using it, but I don't think it warrants spending $400. I'm happy I received it as a gift, I couldn't see myself going out and spending $400. I do wish they had a travel size, as this would be pretty hard to travel with, and I wouldn't trust it in any sort of checked luggage. The dryer itself may be worth $400 in the tech it uses (that digital motor!) but I think you may be able to get something comparable at a lower price tag.

Unless you really love beating the crap out of your hair to make sure your hair is wet for the least amount of time, like me. If that's the case...it's pretty worth it.