In this Gillette heated razor review we question whether this new innovation is a gamechanger or just an excessive waste of your money.
Introduction
Introduced in 2019, the Gillette Labs heated razor uses a bar that almost instantly heats to either 113 or 122 degrees, supposedly the optimum temperatures for Gillette’s global audience, and holds that heat steady while you shave.
Gillette claims this recreates the feeling of a hot-towel shave without the faff.
Heat softens the beard and expands the pores to make shaving a smooth and cleansing ritual. Plus it feels great as a luxurious start to the day. Softening the beard with heat – whether from a heated razor or a hot towel – helps prevent razor burn and ingrown hairs.
That works through a heated bar that sits normally where you expect to find the lubricating strip on a razor head cartridge. It attaches to a stylish charging dock with a magnet. Patents suggest Gillette has been trying to make a heated razor for a very long time.
Gillette Heated Razor Review
It’s amazing to think the Gillette heated razor was actually crowdfunded on Indiegogo. We’ve seen lots of small-scale safety razor brands emerge from Kickstarter like Rockwell razors and the Supply single edge razor but Gillette is owned by Proctor and Gamble.
Perhaps this was a marketing ploy to add more of a limited edition edge to this razor. However, it was certainly popular.
Many praise how the heated razor by GilletteLabs sits on a wireless magnetic charging stand, that gets you up to six shaving sessions per charge. Again, not impressive compared to a safety razor but a definite upgrade on electric razors with wires that get in the way.
The overall shaving experience is much more pleasurable. You may be used to running water until it heats up before you can start shaving, if you even have water hot enough. That can be avoided with a heated razor. The heat is also targeted to exactly where you are shaving so you don’t have to worry about parts of the face and stubble getting cold and stiff while you’re shaving elsewhere.
That said you do miss out on the sense of a nicely warmed face. The heat is totally focused within the bounds of the head. It’s nothing compared to a face covered in a thick layer of shaving soap lather.
Some of that extra convenience from saving a hot towel is lost however by the fact that many shavers find they have to shave slowly to get the effect of the heated bar.
The heated razor also requires expensive replacement cartridges that can be difficult to find.
Overall for this Gillette heated razor review we have tride hard to be unbiased and focus on the positives. If you’re used to a cartridge razor then there’s no doubt you’ll be impressed by this sci-fi approach to shaving that might save you a couple of minutes per day.
But if you want to truly unlock the luxury of shaving for a more enjoyable start to the day, consider reading some other guides to the amazing world of shaving with a safety razor.
The Best Replacement For a Hot Towel Shave?
Now at Artisan Shaving we’re always going to be biased in favour of a classic safety razor, and with good reason.
A good safety razor can easily cost less than $50 and offer a superior shave, with replacement blades costing mere spare change. Plus they are usually recyclable.
We truly believe the best way to enjoy a hot towel shave is to just have a hot towel shave. You can even save the inconvenience by throwing a moist towel in the microwave to heat up quickly. Then you can enjoy other luxuries of traditional shaving like the best shaving brush with fine shaving soap.
Luxury Razors We Prefer
If you fancy frills then maybe consider a safety razor upgraded with modern technology like the Merkur Futur or the Supply single edge razor.
If you really want to indulge, the OneBlade razor is a modern razor developed by a team of engineers on a quest to bring real innovation to the shaving industry with an award-winning single blade razor. This has all the benefits of shaving with a safety razor but is stylishly upgraded for the future.
The flagship OneBlade Genesis razor competes with the Gillette heated razor on price and features an all stainless steel design, is individually numbered, hand polished and is available in precious metal finishes including 24 Karat Gold and 18 Karat Rose Gold.
