Beauty editor Ashleigh Cometti road tests Dyson’s newest wet-to-dry styler.
Trialling the latest beauty tech comes with the territory as beauty editor. But my personal philosophy of wanting to test drive something for a minimum of six weeks before I cast my final judgment often means reviews are a long
I was kindly loaned the new Dyson Airstrait back in October, a first-of-its-kind tool for the brand which has made using airflow to style hair its table stakes.
In the time since, it’s been pulled from the drawer countless times, often in a hurried attempt to tame my strands in front of an audience (my two small people were confused as to whether this was a hairdryer or a hair straightener. Hint: it is both).
Over the past six weeks, I’ve worn my freshly styled hair to kindy drop-offs, long lunches, date nights, birthday parties and everything in between.
Below, here’s every honest thought I had while reviewing the new Dyson Airstrait, and my verdict as to whether I’d want to purchase one myself.
The promise
As with most of Dyson’s devices, the Airstrait comes with some big claims: fast wet to dry straightening without the need for hot plates.
Instead, the hybrid hair dryer and hair straightener in one harnesses directional airflow to smooth and straighten hair, promising to do so in 25% less time than an existing hair care routine (we’d like to caveat this by saying that also depends on hair type and preference).
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Advertise with NZME.Without the need for excessive heat, the Airstrait is said to help preserve hair strength (meaning less breakage during styling) and locking in natural shine to ensure hair feels and looks healthy. The result is naturally straight (not poker straight) hair with minimal frizz and flyaways.
The newly minted tongs received Time magazine’s 2023 Best Invention Award, almost a year before the device was available to buy in Aotearoa.
With one pass through the hair the Airstrait performs three functions: helping to dry, smooth and straighten.
According to Dyson, wet hair is much easier to style due to the hydrogen bonds in the hair being more pliable and easier to reset. By using a lower temperature and resetting the hair’s bonds from wet, Dyson says the hair’s internal structure is better protected, yielding ultimate shine.
The Dyson Airstrait doesn’t just work its magic on wet hair, either, and boasts both Wet and Dry modes with three pre-set temperatures (80, 110 and 140 degrees celcius) for a tailored styling experience.
In Wet Mode, allow the airflow projected downwards at a 45-degree angle to create the tension needed to smooth style hair, while Dry Mode, can be used to refresh dry styles. A cool shot function is designed to help set any style.
The practice
Both of my children were still sound asleep the morning I unboxed the Dyson Airstrait, and I relished the fact that I would have at least 10 minutes of uninterrupted styling time before one of them woke.
Off I marched to the ensuite, before realising that the XXXL plug wouldn’t fit in the power socket that sits above our heated towel rail. The oversized rectangle is known in tech circles as a PRCD plug - necessary according to Dyson as an additional safety feature of the high-powered device.
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Advertise with NZME.When I say it’s big, I’m not exaggerating - for context it weighs just shy of 500g and is 15cm long.
Thankfully, we do have a second bathroom which has plenty of clearance under the socket. I power up the Airstrait which immediately flicks into “self-cleaning mode” for a moment or two before it settles into its natural whirring rhythm.
I’d kindly been gifted two tubes of Dyson’s new Chitosan hair care range - a Pre-Style Cream to use first and a Post-Style Serum to apply to finish the style. I work one pump of Pre-Style Cream through my mid-lengths and ends, which is said to promote long-lasting flexible hold while promoting softness and shine.
Then the baby wakes up. We’re not off to the best start.
I revisit my styling attempt half an hour later, having fed and changed the two small people who stand mildly terrified in the hallway and watch as I flick the Airstrait back on.
I start by locking the arms of the device together, taking it from hair straightener to hair dryer in one click of a button. It responds intuitively, powering up to a higher airflow as I blast dry the roots of my hair.
As I unlock the arms, I notice the Airstrait powers down a notch, signalling a lower airflow. I come to learn that this is a key feature of the tool, which senses when hair is between the plates and powers up, before dropping back down when hair isn’t to keep noise to a minimum where possible.
Conscious of my audience, I save time by separating my long, thick and slightly wavy hair into two sections rather than my usual three and get to work - clamping the Airstrait at the root as it powers up, before smoothing the plates slowly to the end of my hair where it intuitively powers down. I repeat this process around my head on the bottom layer until my hair is both bone dry and silky straight.
Inevitably, one of my children hits the other and I have to quickly abandon the Airstrait on the vanity while I play referee.
The device turns off after three seconds and I wonder if I’ve broken it. But when I pick it up once more it restarts at the same setting it was on originally.
Auto Pause is just another safety feature sure to appeal to the forgetful amongst us (and thwart any of those “have I turned my styler off?” panicked moments when driving down the driveway).
I move on to the top layer of my hair, and find that the size of the plates make it slightly tricky to straighten my hair from the root. My hair type is mostly straight over my crown so it’s not a huge bother to me, but I do spare a thought for those wanting to use the Airstrait on coily or kinky hair types who might prefer a more narrow plate.
After exactly eight minutes, I’m done.
This is quite a feat considering my poor hairdresser spends no less than 40 minutes blow drying and styling my hair in the salon.
The price
The Dyson Airstrait is available in three colourways: the original Bright Nickel and Rich Copper colourway and the limited-edition Ceramic Pink or Strawberry Bronze colourways. The device is priced at $799 and is available from selected department stores including Mecca, Noel Leeming and Harvey Norman, or Dyson.co.nz.
The verdict
Test driving the Airstrait for the past month and a half has led to my (rather groundbreaking) realisation that I don’t suit poker-straight hair.
Sixteen-year-old me would recoil in horror at this fact - having spent years clamping hot irons around my bleached blonde hair and paying particularly close attention to my sweeping side fringe.
Instead, the result that the Dyson Airstrait gives me is what they call a “relaxed straight” style. It’s your natural hair, but smoother - not ironed to within an inch of its life.
For this reason, I still have ample volume at the root (I love nothing more than a good root zhush to refresh my hair multiple times throughout the day) and my hair still appears full and thick rather than limp and lifeless.
I don’t often wash, dry and style my hair in the mornings because of the lengthy chunk of time it takes me, but the Airstrait has streamlined my hair care routine and enabled me to look polished enough for the office (and not at all bedraggled like when I let my hair air dry).
Since my first attempt with the Airstrait, I’ve reached for it more times than I can count. I’ve only used it on dry hair once (I mostly curl my hair when dry rather than straighten), but have used it on almost every hair wash day since receiving it.
Some mornings, I won’t section my hair at all - just glide the plates through my hair and be pleasantly surprised that the result doesn’t match the minimal effort I’ve put in.
With the summer holidays coming up, I’m tempted to take this away camping with me for its two-in-one functionality. I can give my roots a quick blast after returning from the beach, or quickly refresh my hair in the evenings before drinks with friends.
The PRCD plug be damned, I’ll find room for it in my bag somehow.
Would I shell out $800 for the Dyson Airstrait? Yes. It’s quickly become a hair styling staple in my weekly beauty routine, and has given me zero excuse to leave the house with wet hair.
The low heat the Airstrait uses has meant that my hair’s condition hasn’t been negatively impacted, and my hairdresser noted my hair is in the best shape it’s been in a while at my most recent salon appointment.
In my opinion, this clever styling tool doesn’t completely replace the need for a hair dryer (I do love a big, bouncy blowout from time to time), but it has put my regular hair straightener on hiatus until further notice.
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