Independent beauty-tech guides
Beauty tools, measured.
Hair dryers, stylers, LED masks, microcurrent and at-home IPL, explained by engineers. What the specs mean, what they don't, and which device is worth your money.
Lab readout● live
- Categories
- 7
- Devices shortlisted
- 21
- Paid placements
- 0
- Last updated
- November 2026
Seven labs, one per device type
Each guide explains the specs that matter and shortlists three devices worth your money.
LAB 01
Hair dryers
- Dyson Supersonic Nural Hair Dryer
- ghd Helios Professional Hair Dryer
- ghd Air Professional Hair Dryer
LAB 02
Multi-stylers & dryer brushes
- Dyson Airwrap i.d. Multi-Styler
- T3 AIRE 360 Multi-Styler
- T3 AireBrush One Step Round
LAB 03
Straighteners
- Dyson Airstrait Straightener
- ghd Chronos Styler 1 inch
- T3 SinglePass StyleMax Flat Iron
LAB 04
Exfoliation & dermaplaning
- PMD Personal Microderm Elite Pro
- Dermaflash LUXE+ Sonic Dermaplaning
- PMD Personal Microderm Classic
LAB 05
LED face masks
- Shark CryoGlow LED Face Mask
- Dr. Dennis Gross DRx SpectraLite FaceWare Pro
- CurrentBody Red Light Therapy LED Face Mask Series 2
LAB 06
Microcurrent devices
- NuFACE Trinity+ Facial Toning Device
- NuFACE Mini+ Facial Toning Device
- FOREO BEAR 2 Microcurrent Facial Device
LAB 07
IPL hair removal
- Philips Lumea 9000 IPL
- Braun Skin i-Expert Pro 7 IPL
- Ulike Air 10 IPL
The method
How the lab works
Beauty marketing is full of numbers that are hard to compare. We read them like engineers, test what we can with instruments, and are clear about the difference.
- Measure, don't repeatWe explain what a spec means in practice: temperature, airflow, wavelength, current.
- Say where a number comes fromEvery figure is marked as the maker's or ours. We never present a maker's claim as our own measurement.
- Test with instrumentsThermocouples, anemometers, spectrometers and current meters, not impressions. Results are added to each guide as tests are completed.
- No paid placementsBrands cannot pay to be included. We earn from retailer links, and that never decides the order.