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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Lifestyle
Lily Smith

Free ice-cream, glowing skin and camping wins: Filter UK writers reveal the unexpected perks of product testing

Sian Lewis sits at a tent entrance using a camping stove, with hills in the background
Making a meal of it: testing camping stoves turned one instant-noodles camper into a dab hand at outdoor cooking. Photograph: Sian Lewis/The Guardian

It’s our birthday! So to celebrate turning two, we asked our contributors to reflect on their year of testing pretty much everything – from beauty products to video doorbells. It turns out they’ve had some unexpected wins along the way.

Some managed to tick an extra thing off their to-do list. “After six months of testing IPL devices, epilators and then IPL devices again, I had no need to book in for my usual pre-beach wax this summer,” says Lise Smith. Rachel Ogden says testing toasters has meant knowing her smoke alarm “works just fine”.

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