Electric Shavers

[PeteC]

They seem to be out of favour with men these days...at least IMO. Philips seem to have a corner on the market here from what I've seen available. Anyone use one and most importantly, is the quality of shave better than it used to be and closer to a blade shave? Pete

[Roel]

I purchased an electric shaver recently after the doctor told me that a mild rash that came up every now and then was caused by wet shaving. He was right. I bought a Remington with a rectangular blade (cannot remember exactly but it cost around 3,500 Baht). Performance was okay but after maybe a month a small piece broke off the plastic part that holds the blade. This made the whole thing useless. Needless to say that the one year warranty did not apply to this part. They could order the shitty plastic thing for 750 Baht. Could take a few weeks. I kindly refused and I pledged to hate Remington for the rest of my life.

I went to Tesco and bought the cheapest Philips (around 350 Baht!) with two round blades, just to experiment. Been using it for a few weeks now and it works a treat. Not because I hate Remington but it really gives a better result.

But the Remington you could plug in (or charge overnight) whereas the cheap Philips only works on batteries. So I will buy a more expensive Philips with the plug in option and three rotating round blades soon. Can recommend Philips.

[J.J.B.]

I moved to electric shavers around seven years ago and have not looked back. I'd tried a Philips shaver a couple of times but the rotary blades used to rip more hairs out than they cut. Then I got a Braun foil shaver, which is still going strong and recently bought another one that is even better and certainly comparable with a wet shave.

Many people get a rash with an electric shaver but this should go away after a couple of weeks, once your skin has got used to it. As well as getting one of the shavers with a 'cleaning station' that charges and refreshes the shaver after each use, I change the cutter block and foil every year-or-so. I've also found that not letting my beard get to more than three of four days helps avoid unpleasant plucking of long hairs.

The cost of blades these days and the trend for ever-more of them in a single cartridge is just ridiculous so that's why I switched. Ironically Braun and Gillette are both owned by Proctor and Gamble so either way I appear to be enslaved to 'the man' but I think he's at least getting both firms to share what they know about a damn good shave!

[richard]

So where in Hua Hin do they have a variety of shavers and which razor is the best to buy. I ask because I wet shave but a) blades are now bloody expensive and b) my doctor recommends an electric as I am on warfarin and a minor cut can be complicated

[Roel]

which razor is the best to buy

Hard to tell Richard. As told here I switched from foil to rotary and like it better. With the foil blade I had to push too hard and had to go over the same area too many times (irritating) to get good results. The rotary blades are good for me. J.J.B. reports exactly the opposite which made me Google 'rotary vs foil razor'. Man there is some discussion out there but in the end it all comes down to personal taste and type of beard and skin I guess.

No idea where to buy in Hua Hin. I bought my Philips at Tesco. Limited choice must say. In Phuket they do not display them in the electrical appliances section. I found them next to the shaving foam etc. in the personal hygiene section.

[PeteC]

Good input, thanks. Here's a Thailand on-line shopping site. Some are quite expensive. Pete

http://www.invadeit.co.th/category/shav ... s/philips/

[sargeant]

my brother in law left me a braun foil shaver last time he was over its great i still wet shave once or twice a week probably because i am old fashioned but i am well happy with my Braun

[richard]

my brother in law left me a braun foil shaver last time he was over its great i still wet shave once or twice a week probably because i am old fashioned but i am well happy with my Braun

That's what I used to do Sarge and to be quite honest if I do get an electric shaver every now and again I'll have a wet one

Never seen Braun here in HH though and based on previous usage they would be my preferred option

[Terry]

Had one of these for two years now - simply brilliant

http://www.usa.philips.com/c/mens-shavi ... 41/prd/en/

Bought it in - of all places - HOMEPRO

[PeteC]

Seems these shavers qualify for the Buks "expensive electronics" thread. Terry's link shows the AT810 for $69.99. The Thai on-line website shows the AT750 (assume earlier model) for Baht 5,050 = $168.33 (@30) Pete

[J.J.B.]

I bought my second Braun at a UK website - http://www.shavers.co.uk and everything is pretty much half price although I acknowledge that getting it over here might be more tricky...

[pitsch]

I bought a Braun shaver in Hua Hin for more than 3000 Baht and it was quite useless. The same was in amazon for about 1000 Baht. Then I bought a Phillips with Amzon for about 2000 Baht and my brother took it to Thailand for me and this is very good.

[Terry]

I particularly like the Philips AT models because due to their being waterproof, you can wet or dry shave with them and then wash them out afterwards.

My version does not have the trimmer and I recall it costing me THB 3,000 - two years ago.

[Gregjam]

I agree with J.J.B. that it is very much a personal choice. I only wet shave when I want a good shave that will last. My own preference is a Braun foil shaver. I have a more expensive rechargable one with twin foils and a longer hair cutter between them plus a pop out trimmer piece. In addition, and the one I use most of the time is the cheap Braun battery travel shaver with just a single foil. The cheap one seems to work better and quicker than the far more expensive model. New heads for the expensive one are more than it costs for a new cheap one (which you cannot buy the foil/heads for anyway).
Availability is probably the biggest problem here and sorry, I travel enough to get mine abroad all the time.
Even with wet shavers I am sure it is dependent upon the person using it which is best. In this aspect I find the Gillette 3 blade razor with the vibrating handle the most comfortable and effective (to save suggestive comments, no, it is only used for shaving facial hair).
Electric shavers will never give the same close shave as a wet shave but give a satisfactory one for many. I get a better electric shave when in an air conditioned environment as I find moisture/sweat reduces the efficiency of an electric shave.
The age and texture of a particlar persons beard will also affect which razor is best. Soft 'bum fluff' types will respond differently to harder bristle types.
Don't buy an expensive one if a cheap but similar type is available so you can try it first. Good luck with finding anything at a reasonable price here. If you find something cheap that works for you then that is great.

[caller]

Well I can't use soap on my face so I've only ever used electric shavers.

Which one is obviously a personal choice and I've alternated between Braun & Philips before staying permanently with the latter. The reason is that I found the Braun foil too fragile and it can split. The cutter actually cuts through the foil and when it had split and before I had realised, I had scratches all over my face! Once, it was so bad, I looked as if I'd been attacked!!

Also, I find the size of the shaving area is much larger on Philips so I physically find it quicker to shave with, also it has the contour feature which helps. I don't know what its like in Thailand, but there are numerous models in the UK, but they are variations on a theme of battery, electric cable, portable electric rechargeable and wetshave. I use the rechargeable and each charge is quick and it lasts a couple of weeks at least.

The con is with the cost of the relacement shaving head, which they recommend changing every two years. I don't bother. I just use it until I think its had its day (usually the time taken to shave determines that) then I bin it and buy a new one. There's really not too much difference in the price.

A few years back, I arrived in LOS and realised I'd left my charger back in the UK. I was up in Korat and couldn't get a replacement charger anywhere, so I bought a basic Panasonic (electric) model. Its great and I still use it as a stand-by. Don't really see those in the UK!