What do we look for in our hair tools?
We want gadgets that are easy to use, speedy and multitasking, earning their real estate in our space-deprived homes. But we also want to minimise damage and frizz, while maximising volume and shine. It’s a tall order and one that forward-thinking haircare labels are in hot pursuit to achieve.
GHD has had a stellar run in its latest launches. Its Chronos straightener hit the nail on the head for the ES Best team who found that the styling essential substantially cut down the amount of time taken to achieve poker straight locks, while the wet-to-dry Duet Style was a breeze, drying and styling with every pass. So, expectations were high when the good hair day specialists announced another gadget to its line-up.
What is the Duet Blowdry?
Building on the first Duet release that was part hair dryer, part straightener, the Duet Blowdry (£379) can also be used on freshly washed and crucially, still wet hair, going against everything you would have been told about using heated tools. It dries hair at a consistent temperature of 120°C as selected for its ability to minimise thermal damage and there are heat sensors constantly monitoring the surface temperature.
Through the Duet Blowdry, GHD has unveiled its new and trademarked Heat-Air Xchange Technology, an aerodynamic system that uses airflow to heat the barrel for the bouncy blowout that you deserve.
The bristles are also made to be snag-free and set on an elliptical design to boost volume (three times according to the brand), create a long-lasting style, combat frizz (there are 16 internal channels for an even distribution of heat and that act as airflow vents) and add 50 per cent more shine. But we’ll be the judge of that.
How do you use the GHD Duet Blowdry?
After brushing your hair, turn on the Duet Blowdry, which will emit a fairly loud humming sound revealing that the fan is ramping up. The light stops flashing and starts beeping once it has reached the desired temp.
Use the barrel to rough dry large sections of hair at once and repeat until dry. Then the styling begins but there are no additional buttons or functions. Divide up your hair and place the tool underneath for three seconds. Lift up and away to shape.
We put the Duet Blowdry to the test on thin, curly and luscious thick locks.
Find out what we thought below
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Ellie Davis, Shopping Editor
Hair type: Thin, straight and long
I have to admit, I rarely blow dry my hair. As my strands are on the thinner side, they tend to air dry so quickly that I forgo the addition of heat in my haircare routine, opting instead to plait it to give my naturally poker straight strands some intrigue and movement. This is why I’m not hugely familiar with styling brushes and I’m fairly inept at any form of dry and roller brush curl movement that professional hair stylists make look so easy. But even with my beginner status, the Duet Blowdry could not be easier to use.
The instructions detail to start with a rough blow dry. For this, the slapdash approach to drying that I would typically take with a blow dryer was not particularly effective and I found better luck, and greater speed, with slowly running the barrel from root to tip. My hair glided through the bristles with no snagging at all and you don’t need to be ambidextrous to use it as it combines a brush and dryer in one. The entire process took around 10 minutes and was especially simple due to the length of the barrel which meant that when my hair was parted in two, I could dry half my head of hair at once (sob cry at my genetic hair thinness).
The Duet Blowdry is fairly loud and tactical hand placement is key to prevent burning. The airflow is controlled so the result is a lot less frizz than typical but I wonder if the slow passes actually have more heat impact than a dryer as it is more concentrated?
After rough drying, I moved the barrel from the top of my hair to underneath the strands to add volume - and volume it added, but in a bouncy, healthy way rather than looking overly pouffy. A tactical rollout at the tip meant you could really see the layers that nicely frame my face. Will I be incorporating this daily? Probably not as my low-fuss approach is just too tempting and the three-figure price tag cannot be ignored (you could get a Dyson AirWrap for that!). But, on the other hand, as soon as I used this I was complimented by my colleague so...
Saskia Kemsley, Shopping Writer
Hair type: Curly, fine and long
I’m quite frankly appalled that ghd promises wet to blow-dried locks with “no heat damage and three times more volume” with the help of the ghd Duet Blowdry brush. I don’t say this lightly, but it’s the worst attempt at a hot brush I have ever had the displeasure of using. And it’s an eye-watering £379.
I’m a naturally curly-haired girl who uses a standard BaByliss hot brush at least twice a week. My haircare routine on a blow-dry day consists of lightly towel drying my hair after washing, applying heat protectant and sectioning my hair. My hair falls to about the middle of my back when straight, but this process alongside a full blow-dry never takes me longer than 30 minutes.
To test the ghd Duet Style Hot Brush, I wet my hair and went about my usual routine. My God, don’t even breathe the word ‘tangle’ next to this device or I fear it will explode. ghd recommends you brush all knots out of your hair before use, but sectioning naturally causes the odd tangle that would normally release with ease with a standard hot brush.
Despite the fact that the brush head doesn’t even rotate, if you attempt to move this brush in a remotely circular motion with the hint of a knot hidden within the depths of your hair, the device will threaten to scalp you.
Unlike my £53 daily warrior, the 4-in-1 BaByliss Hydro-Fusion, brushing from the tip of your head to the bottom of your hair with the Duet Style Hot Brush is a physically painful experience. The brush head and bristles are – for reasons I cannot possibly begin to imagine –rock solid. This means that if you have relatively thin hair, moving the hot brush in a brushing motion will make you wince.
While the device worked to straighten the ends of my hair, it did absolutely nothing for my mid-sections which remained frustratingly curly. This device can only be used by those with naturally straight hair who wish to murder any ounce of volume in true 1990s style.
The ghd Hot Brush also got far too hot for my liking and elicited a foul burning smell and remained hot long after use. While the noise is manageable, I really disliked that you had to toggle the button up and down before being able to turn it off.
There’s nothing about this device that helps style hair, especially given that if you even flirt with the notion of twisting the brush head like a traditional hot brush you run the risk of tangling half the hairs on your head and ripping them off your scalp. I apologise for the graphic imagery but as a curly-haired girl, I wish to vehemently dissuade our readers from investing in such a ridiculous attempt at a styling product.
Abha Shah, Deputy Shopping Editor
Hair type: Wavy, thick and mid-length
I'm trying to let my hair air dry when possible these days: a lifetime of blow-drying quite ruthlessly with a round brush has meant frazzled strands, split ends city and a growing concern about heat damage. When I’m working from home that’s fine but if I'm going out or into the office, I'll crack out the big heat guns.
This usually means wielding a large round brush and hairdryer over my head trying to recreate salon-quality blow-outs. I rarely reach my goal, giving up on the back sections because of the awkward angle (and because if I can’t see it, I can pretend it doesn’t exist).
I've experimented with hot brushes before and find them much easier to manoeuvre around my head, but the noise and heat level are off-putting. Too much of both is hardly ideal, especially if you live with other people or just want to sing along to the radio as you get ready for the day.
With ghd's Duet Blowdry in my hand though, I could hold a conversation while using it, even when it was right beside my head. In fact, the beep emitted when turning the tool on was louder than its standard operating din.
A section of my towel-wet thick hair took minutes to dry, needing just a handful of passes. The round brush is also great at lifting roots, adding volume and curling the ends into a cheerful bounce.
It's not too heavy either, but you won't be holding it for long. The brush and dry features mean you can get through a whole head faster than with traditional tools.
That being said, the price is off-putting, especially when competitor brands offer as effective hot brushes for much less.
Buy now £379.00, GHD
