THE JOURNAL
The key to looking good isn’t all lotions and potions – fire up these and you’ll be glowing in no time.
The beauty industry has a longstanding and, frankly, rather undeserved reputation for being a touch simple. But if last year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas was anything to go by, the sector is starting to show its smarts, incorporating AI, as well as augmented and virtual realities, into the latest grooming products.
Electronics giant Samsung has ventured into the grooming sector with a prototype named Lumini. The portable gadget scans the skin and delivers detailed dermatological data to an app. By analysing pimples, freckles, pores, wrinkles, redness and sebum, it can recommend skincare products and, more importantly, pre-empt more sinister conditions.
Elsewhere, swipeable smartmirrors can allow experimentally minded customers to see – and promptly debate the merits of – a new look. Imagine seeing what a head of platinum hair might look like without a single drop of bleach touching your scalp. Technology like this won’t just revolutionise the retail space, it will preserve a good man’s dignity and the small fortune he would have otherwise spent on hats.
These innovations are still several years away, but their presence in at least experimental form demonstrates that there is a growing appetite for technologically enhanced grooming and a growing understanding of how to harness the power of tech. With that, we highlight the five best products of the past 12 months.
SpectraLite Eyecare Pro by Dr Dennis Gross
Light-emitting diodes (LEDs), you might recall from GCSE physics, release energy in the form of photons. In the 1990s, Nasa did a great deal of research into long wavelengths of light and found that they could stimulate cellular regeneration in plants and in human skin. It was not long after this discovery that it decided to use LEDs to assist wound healing in space. The medical field came to use the same technology to treat skin ulcers and serious burns.
It took a while for the beauty industry to see the potential for anti-ageing and in the past few years LED facials have become a thing. Enter the SpectraLite Eyecare Pro by Dr Dennis Gross, a mask that merges the best parts of Ironman, Hannibal Lecter and The Phantom Of The Opera into a single wearable accessory.
The device delivers light via 72 LEDs, which boosts collagen production to smooth wrinkles and reverse time. Granted, you won’t get the kind of wattage used in a professional setting, but it comes pretty damn close.
UFO Smart Mask Treatment Device by Foreo
A gadget that packs every conceivable health and grooming trend into one stylish (and rather curious-looking) hand-held unit. The aptly named UFO relies on LED light therapy, cryotherapy, T-sonic pulsations (think electric toothbrush vibrations) and “hyper-infusion” technologies to turbo-charge the effects of a disposable sheet mask that sits on its surface. Put simply, it’s steroids for your face mask.
It works like this. Choose one of the seven different sheet masks on offer, place it on the device, power up the app and then glide it across your face for the next minute and a half. The various features (heat, cold, light, vibration) work in a specific pattern to push the mask’s ingredients deeper into the skin. The app controls the programme for the sheet mask you choose and will tell you when your time is up.
On paper, this reeks of gimmick; in action, it surpasses the best “traditional” sheet masks on the market. A pre-party essential if ever there was one.
Supersonic Hairdryer by Dyson
It was only a matter of time before the hairdryer got the Sir James Dyson treatment. Much like his vacuums, the V9 motor at the heart of this Supersonic dryer is a feat of engineering. It spins at 110,000rpm, but has the diameter of a coin and, despite its dizzying speed, remains virtually inaudible. The air multiplier technology that was a major component in the brand’s air purifier and bladeless fans also makes an appearance here. In this case, it speeds up drying time by amplifying the airflow, rather than frying your follicles with heat.
Those with directional haircuts will appreciate the magnetic attachments: a smoothing nozzle that eliminates frizz, a styling “concentrator” that channels a controlled flow of air and a diffuser that mimics air drying, which makes it ideal for curls. And, if the new nickel and black model isn’t quite bling enough, you can always invest in the units that have been hand-gilded in 23.75 carat gold leaf.
GloPRO by Beauty Bio
Micro needling works on a basic, albeit rather terrifying, premise. By pricking the skin with tiny needles, cells go into healing mode and jump-start the production of collagen and elastin fibres. Moreover, the tiny holes created by a micro needling device allow the products you’re using to penetrate deeper into the skin where they can work more efficiently. The whole process is a lot like aerating the lawn. Except, of course, that the lawn is your face.
Rather than ruthlessly puncture the uppermost layer of the skin, as previous incarnations of home micro needling devices were wont to do, the GloPRO relies on “micro tips” to gently ease skin cells apart and thus trigger the micro injury response. The device also incorporates red light from an LED (to turbo-charge the healing process) and something called VibroTactile Stimulation (tiny oscillations) to deepen the micro channels that will be filled with your serum of choice. If you’re dealing with acne scarring, fine lines or loss of volume, the GloPRO should be a welcome addition.
Alpha Fit by Clarisonic
The grooming gadget revolution began with motorised cleansing brushes, and their popularity hasn’t waned. Clarisonic, one of the first brands to market, was born out of the same technology behind sonic toothbrushes, and Alpha Fit is its man-friendly device.
Rather than spin and rotate, the cleansing brush pulses back and forth more than 300 times per second, so there’s no uncomfortable tugging or tearing of the skin. This motion also creates a vacuum, which allows the device to excavate pores and raise flat or ingrown hairs so that your razor gets a smoother ride across your neck. Granted, your hands and a good cleanser will get the job done, but if you suffer from breakouts or have a particularly coarse beard, substituting your mitts for motorised bristles will pay dividends. Simply place a little of your cleanser in the centre of the brush, turn on the device and massage the face in small circular motions until the timer lets you know you’re done.
We have the technology