I wrote this awhile ago- at the end of June. I wanted to add photos but I didn't get around to it. So, I don't have pics of my hairless body but I'll describe it for you. The short of it- the Air 10 is totally worth every penny.
I thought I'd do a little update for those wondering if this thing actually worked/works. I got it almost exactly a year ago so I figured this would be the perfect time. The only thing is- I don't have photos because it's hard to take super close up photos where you can really see but one day I'll try. Maybe when I eventually get a new phone.
If I have to rate it 1-5 stars, with one being terrible, it doesn't work, and five being it's awesome, totally magical, I'm going to give it 4.5 stars. It DOES work. On dark hair. Honestly, I don't know how long my friend with light hair stuck with it, she said she did it obsessively at first but then it wasn't doing much so she stopped. So for her- her review was that it didn't work. For me, who would shave in the morning and have dark stubble by the end of the day- it TOTALLY works. It's saved me so much time and money. And the annoyance of body hair. My rating is 4.5 and I'll get to why I had to knock off a half star as you continue to read.
I'll just recap a little- I got it last end of June. The directions aren't super clear. I thought you just pass over every area you want to do once, every other day, and that's it. Then "maintenance" once or twice a month going forward. That's not EXACTLY how it works. I started reading on Reddit or reviews somewhere and it turns out you need to pass over an area at least two times in a session. That means if you're trying to do a lot of areas, that would be a SIGNIFICANT amount of your time. I learned you have to break it up, and if you really want it to work then, and you don't have hours a day to do this, then you need to then do it daily for the first month, just breaking up where you do. Like with working out. You don't do arms every day, maybe you do them every other. Same principle. Do you full legs one day, armpits and nether regions the next. So on and so forth.
I did not HAVE to shave this winter. I have a Schick Intuition in the shower and when I thought I'd do maintenance, I'd do a few swipes with it on my legs, under the arms, and some in the bikini area. Sometimes I did the maintenance, most of the time I forgot. But the swipes were more because you're supposed to shave before doing it and I had some sparse hairs on my legs, bikini area (I'll go more in depth about this area later) and in the underarms. However- what I had left is NOTHING like what I started with.
The reason you shave prior to use, at least from my own perspective is that if you don't, it HURTS to zap. I know this because I did it on my sixteen year old son who doesn't like body hair. He was lazy about shaving the area he wanted me to do and was like, just try it without shaving. Yeah, no. He won't do that again. The bar where the light zaps has a cooling element in it. But when it's dirty (like if you had lotion/deodorant on which you're not supposed to have on), or if there is hair there, it doesn't get/stay as cold and that zap is HOT. It feels like you're burning. Well, imagine that on your bikini area. I don't like to shave there because apparently I'm "cyst-y". I get ingrown hairs and cysts. I'm legit afraid. I've gotten a full Brazilian wax since I lost a bet in 2002. I've tried zapping without shaving and it's not that the area is super sensitive on it's own, it's doing it with anything more than a bit a stubble. You can't wax instead because you need a root there to kill. Maybe if you waxed then waited a week that would be okay because it would be growing back by then. At least for me it would.
I'll add that some places are definitely more stubborn than others. I feel like my armpits worked way easier than my bikini area. Granted, I probably did them the most because they were the easiest to shave and access. There were times I definitely did two passes, then went in the shower and sometimes did another quick pass over after the shower. I did not lavish the same attention on my nether region because it was time consuming and painful if I didn't shave enough or close enough. But I did do the area a lot in the beginning. It's kind of interesting. I have an extremely long torso so I have a long space between my belly button and the closest area to any openings. I don't know how else to phrase it and I obviously am not adding photos. From the belly button to close to the top of any opening, the hair is almost fully gone. Without even doing maintenance. It's lower that's been the most stubborn. I think you'd have to really be dedicated down there and I just haven't been.
On my legs- the dark hair is almost all gone. What's left is what I call "chicken hair". Like, I'd be fine going to the pool now without shaving. You're not going to be sitting next to me, seeing hair on my legs. I can rub my legs and they feel smooth. But if I am in the sun and look at my knee, I can see wispy light hairs like you'd see on a plucked chicken. That's why I do the occasional swipe - to get rid of the chicken hairs. I don't know if those will ever fully go away. It's not thick or anything. That's why I don't feel it to the touch. It's more just what you can see in sunlight. I still go over my knees extra. Sometimes I'll just do my knees even if I don't do the rest of my legs.
My reasons for knocking it half a star:
-The shape and where the buttons are placed are awkward. I've changed the setting or shut it off by accident just by where I was holding it. Plus, you don't want to cover the fan with your hand and the vents are easily covered depending on how you're holding it.
-It's loud. It has a fan in it because it gets hot. Not hot to the touch where it would be too hot to hold but I guess it needs an internal fan so it doesn't overheat. I'm always afraid of covering the fan and having it overheat and break. Since it isn't inexpensive, I obviously don't want that to happen.
-Some people say they wish the zapping area (I don't know what else to call it), the top, was smaller for more precision on small areas. I guess if you're doing your upper lip or somewhere else on your face. But I wish it was way bigger, or had attachments, so if you're doing your legs, it wouldn't take forever. It's a small zapping area for a whole leg. I can't picture what it would look like if you could switch out attachments or maybe there is a reason you can only do a small area at a time.
-You can't do continuous pulsing if you're using the strongest setting. You have to do it manually. I don't understand why. Obviously the technology is there to have it continuously pulse using the second highest setting, just not the super mode. It doesn't make sense. It takes longer having to do it manually and I want to be able to use the super mode plus have it continuously pulse for saving time.
Overall, I highly recommend it. You do HAVE to be consistent in the beginning. It's NOT going to work if you just half-ass do it. And I'd ditch the directions and do it as much as possible that first month. It'll be a pain to spend the time but it will be worth it in the end. My son has never been consistent with it so his experience is different. I pretty much have to make an appointment with him every other day for it to really work. He just doesn't have the patience.
I will never need to buy another package of Gillette Daisy razors. I have had the same head on my Intuition all year. That's a HUGE change from the past. I used to buy Daisy and heads for the Intuition. I had to buy shaving cream or gel. Now, if I went away for the weekend, even somewhere I was going to be wearing a bathing suit, and didn't bring anything, I'd be totally fine with it. Those things are just unnecessary now. Prior to using the Ulike Air 10, I'd have shaved in the morning, then again after the beach or pool before going out. Now, I'd only bring something just for the mental aspect - because after so many years of being hairy, you just expect to wake up with hair. Even after a year of being mostly hair free.
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