Yahoo Finance Is the Dyson supersonic hair dryer worth its £300 price tag?
No hair dryer is as iconic as the Dyson supersonic. Launched in 2016, the brand’s first adventure in beauty was the result of $71 million worth of research as they set out to create a totally new drying experience.
“New” was definitely the right word for it. The Dyson supersonic looks different to any other hair dryer on the market. With an internal motor, the design alone sets it apart from its competitors – it looks like something plucked from the future.
But Dyson’s position at the top of the hair hierarchy isn’t down to aesthetics alone. The supersonic’s main selling point is its use of ionic technology, which is renowned for smoothing hair and giving it a healthier finish thanks to its ability to neutralise positive ions (thus reducing frizz).
This was high-tech stuff back in 2016, but plenty of other brands have forayed into the world of ionic drying since.
With our dryer at the ready, we got to work styling our hair to see how the Dyson supersonic holds up today.
Read more:
You can trust our independent reviews. We may earn commission from some of the retailers, but we never allow this to influence selections. This revenue helps us to fund journalism across The Independent.
Dyson supersonic hair dryer
Buy now £299.99, Dyson.co.uk
Type: Ionic
Attachments: Four (styling concentrator, smoothing nozzle, diffuser and gentle air attachment)
Motor: 1600W
Weight: 659g
Design
The first impression of the Dyson supersonic will always be the design. It’s so futuristic it borders on bizarre – it’s as if someone has hollowed out the barrel of a dryer and reallocated the machinery to the handle.
This of course means that the weight is distributed to the base of the dryer rather than the top. What sounds relatively minor makes all the difference; it’s much easier to manoeuvre, and there’s no achiness in your arms when you’re styling long or thick hair.
Despite the complex design, the settings are all incredibly straightforward. There are three heat settings - 100C, 80C, 60C, as well as a cool shot option of 28C - and three speeds, and it’s easy to toggle between them all. Not only is there none of the extreme heat you usually associate with fast-drying, but it also features intelligent heat control, regulating the temperature up to 20 times per second to put your mind at ease over any potential heat damage.
Performance
All of the attachments are magnetic, so click in and out of place without any hassle. We found it easiest to initially rough blow dry our hair without any attachments before adding whichever one suited our styling needs best.
The diffuser did a stellar job of drying and defining our tester’s curls, reaching deeper into the hair than similar attachments from other brands. To aid big, bouncy blow dries we opted for the styling concentrator, while the smoothing nozzle was our go-to for sleek, straight looks.
Read more: 11 best hair vitamins for stronger, healthier and glossier locks
The most unusual – but welcome – attachment is the gentle hair attachment, Dyson’s latest addition to the collection. Engineered for styling on fine hair and scalps, it creates a gentler airflow that still gets the job done fast, and left our scalp irritation-free. You can also purchase an additional wide tooth comb attachment.
Most notable was the speed of our drying experience. The supersonic uses air multiplier technology which produces a high-velocity, high-pressure jet of air that feels way more powerful than any other dryer we’ve used. While it’s common for any device that emits negative ions to dry hair quicker, our tester has never achieved results this rapid on her thick, wavy hair.
It also left it shinier, softer and considerably more manageable throughout the day, even when just roughly blow-dried. Our tester uses a hairdryer on a near-daily basis, and also noted how much healthier her hair felt after using the supersonic for a month.
There are a few other technical quirks that set the supersonic above its competitors. It’s much quieter than your average dryer, sounding more like white noise than the usual dryer drone. You can easily unscrew the filter to keep it clean, and it has a generous cord length of 2.8m.
It also comes with a handy non-slip heat mat and is available in three colour combinations – iron and fuchsia, black and nickel, and black and purple.
Buy now £299.99, Dyson.co.uk
The verdict: Dyson supersonic hair dryer
There’s no getting around the fact the Dyson supersonic is expensive. Even five years after it first launched, it’ll set you back a cool £299.99. But behind the price tag is years of engineering expertise that’s created a truly one-of-a-kind styling tool.
Powerful and versatile, it drastically decreases the amount of time spent drying your hair and leaves it far shinier and healthier than the majority of hair dryers. While it can be used on hair of all lengths and thickness, those with thicker or longer hair will reap the benefits the most.
Ultimately, the supersonic is an investment, and probably one only really necessary for those styling hair on a regular basis. However, we would recommend it to anyone looking to treat their strands to a more luxurious drying experience.
Voucher codes
For the latest discounts on hair tools and other beauty offers, try the links below:
Hair feeling a little lacklustre? Try our best hair masks for hydrating dry and damaged locks
