Review (4/5): Long time blade user switches to electric
This review is being written by my Husband.
The Norelco 1050 is my first electric shaver. I've been using blades since I first started shaving. I'm now in my mid 40's. I've now been using this shaver exclusively for the last two weeks. All-in-all it is pretty good. Does it give me as close a shave as I got with a blade - no, but it does get pretty close and the advantages I'm about to tell you about make it worth while.
Over the last few years, I swear my whiskers have felt like they were turning into wire. With the blade it was taking me about 30 minutes in front of a mirror to shave. I would pull the skin in all kinds of directions and drag the blade over the skin in all kinds of directions. I got into the habit of shaving using water alone first, followed by dry, followed by an aloe lotion. By the time I was done with the blade, I had a super close shave. However, if I was using a new blade, I would frequently have several deep cuts and nicks. So, I would shave very carefully until the blade was dull. A dull blade reduced the amount of deep cuts and nicks (but I would still have some to several) but also increased the time required to shave. Years ago, it would take about a week for the blade to dull enough but, once dull enough, I could use that blade for a month or more before having to switch blades. Lately, it would take a few days to dull but would only last a few days. So, getting cut to ribbons much more frequently is what prompted me to try an electric.
The first few days to week with the electric, I was convinced I would be returning it. During the second week, my attitude changed. It still took up to 30 minutes to get a shave I was comfortable with. I still pull my skin in all kind of directions and run the shaver in all kinds of directions just like I did with the blade. However, as my face has become accustomed to the electric, the time has come down some to around 20 minutes. I think it may come down a little more as time goes by. Parts of my face get a shave as close as I got with the blade, especially the mustache zone, under the lower lip, and my cheeks. My chin gets close. My neck and the lower jaw (transition from face to neck) are the worst. However, they are close to what I would get when using a new blade and had to be very careful to prevent gouging my face.
The pleasant items about using the electric include: I have only gotten two small nicks in two weeks. I only have to spend a minute in front of the mirror to shave around the sideburns (to prevent shaving too high on the cheek) - the rest of the time I can walk around or watch TV. Cleanup is a snap - pop open the three chambers and rinse with hot water. The razor burn I had on my right lower jaw bone (which I didn't attribute to razor burn but thought it was a skin condition) is almost gone.
In the first few minutes, the shaver gets the bulk of the whiskers; the remaining time is trying to get a closer shave. There is a diminishing point of return on time verses close shave which is why I think the shaving time will come down as I decide where that point is.
Since using the electric, my wife said she thinks my face looks better (I think because of the bumps on the right lower jaw bone going away). She also thinks it feels as smooth as it did with the blade even though I can feel where the whiskers haven't been completely eliminated.
So, end result - not a close as a blade but pretty close with some nice benefits that make it worth continuing to use instead of going back to a blade.