A hair dryer is just a hairdryer isn’t it? Not when it’s a Dyson Supersonic hair dryer it’s not. Well, that’s the claim. Since its launch in 2016, Dyson has introduced a couple of extra haircare products, including the Corrale cordless straighteners, the brilliant Airwrap styler device and the Airstrait, which takes hair from wet to dry without the need for a separate hairdryer at all.
It’s also launched a couple of extra attachments for the Supersonic hair dryer though, one of which is excellent. I’ve been using the Supersonic hair dryer since it first arrived all those years ago to change the haircare market and I continue to use it daily. If you’re wondering if it really is worth its $400/£300 asking price, you’re in the right place. Here’s my review.
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Dyson Supersonic hair dryer
Editor’s Choice
The Dyson Supersonic hair dryer is everything you would expect from a hair dryer if the brief in creating one was limitless. It looks great, dries your hair in double-quick time, and has the design ethos of a Mercedes and BMW combined.
- Great design
- Heat and speed settings
- Easy to change heads
- Excellent attachments
Innovative design
Unlike any hair dryer you’ve seen before, Dyson ditched traditional design for the Supersonic and created a hair dryer than works in a similar way to the company’s bladeless fan range.
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The motor, which can run at speeds up to 110,000rpm and a variant of which is found in its robotic vacuum cleaner, is found in the handle. This not only rebalances the weight and shape of the hair dryer, but creates a cleaner looking design overall. Like the bladeless fan range, air is sucked in through the bottom of the handle, before being pushed out through a circular hole at the top where the attachments connect to – more on those in a minute – increasing the volume of air in the process.
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On the back of the hair dryer are heating and fan power buttons all within a thumb’s reach for easy control. There’s a power on switch, a cooling shot button, four heat settings changed via a button on the head and three fan settings, also changed via a button on the head – more on those in a minute. The Supersonic was initially offered in two colours – grey and fuchsia, or black and nickel – and it is typically Dyson in its design and approach. This is a device that looks stylish on your dressing table, especially in some of the excellent limited edition colours Dyson has introduced since those first models.
An incredibly long power cable also means you’ve got plenty of freedom of movement regardless of where your plug socket happens to be.
Excellent attachments
There are five magnetic attachments included with the Supersonic to help further direct the flow of air. These attachments are made of plastic, but double skinned so they don’t get too hot during use, although you probably wouldn’t want to hold them too soon after styling.
The five included are the Gentle Air Attachment, Styling Concentrator, Diffuser, Wide-Tooth Comb and the Flyaway. The Gentle Air Attachment is designed for fine hair and sensitive scalps, diffusing the air and creating a gentle, cooler airflow. The Styling Concentrator is wide and thin, creating a high velocity blade of air, enabling you to style one section of hair at a time.
The Diffuser disperses air evenly around your curls, helping to reduce frizz and improve definition. The Wide-Tooth Comb is designed for curly and textured hair, featuring robust teeth to lengthen hair or create volume and shape.
Last but certainly not least is the Flyaway attachment, which is an absolute game-changer for getting a sleek, straight finish without having to use any other styling tool. I use the Flyaway regularly and it is excellent for achieving a blow-dried look without the effort. I also use it after straightening to get a smoother and sleeker look.
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It’s a little hard to use at the back of your head, so you have to bring the hair round to the sides, and you can’t create a bouncy blow dry with it, but if you’re after the salon-smooth finish, this is the attachment of dreams. It smooths away flyaway hairs effortlessly, and it’s quick to do too.
Drying hair performance
Design and claims are one thing, but if a hair dryer doesn’t dry your hair properly then it’s about as useful as a chocolate teapot. Thankfully, that’s not an issue for the Dyson Supersonic. This hair dryer works – and very well indeed.
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I use it on a number of different hair types – from long to short, to straight to frizzy – and although I’m not usually in the business of testing hair dryers on a weekly basis, I am – and continue to be several years on – impressed by the results.
Drying times certainly feel quicker – almost twice the speed compared to what I typically used before the Supersonic – and it sounds quieter than your average £20 hair dryer, too. The various attachments I mentioned above also make such a difference.
The Supersonic hair dryer’s heat and power settings can be adjusted quickly between three speed settings – fast drying, regular drying and styling – with four heat settings. There’s 100°C fast drying and styling; 80°C regular drying; 60°C gentle drying; and 28°C constant cold to give you plenty of options.
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Then there’s some more Dyson smarts on board. A microprocessor measures and regulates air temperature 30 times every second, keeping the temperature under control without fluctuation, which helps prevent heat damage to protect your natural shine. My hair certainly looks silkier and shinier to boot too, which I love.
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Dyson Supersonic hair dryer
The Dyson Supersonic hair dryer is everything you would expect from a hair dryer if the brief in creating one was limitless. It looks great, dries your hair in double-quick time, and has the design ethos of a Mercedes and BMW combined.
Verdict
The Dyson Supersonic hair dryer is everything you would expect from a hair dryer if the brief for creating one was limitless. It looks great, dries your hair in double-quick time, and has the design ethos of a Mercedes and BMW combined.
This is top-of-its-game stuff. But the caveat – and there’s always a caveat – is that it completely disregards any notion of being affordable for what it is. At over $400/£329, this is – and continues to be – the most expensive hair dryer on the market even years after its initial launch. It’s an amazing bit of kit and while it won’t be a justifiable purchase for many, if you’re on the fence, it is worth it, especially with the extra Flyaway attachment.
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