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Every time Dyson releases a new hair tool, we want to know about it. Now, the brand has finally launched its newest member, the Dyson Airstrait, into the UK, and we have all the details ready to go. As its name lets slip, the newest recruit taps into forward-thinking technology to manipulate air into giving us straight hair with – drum roll – less damage. What's more, beyond a regular straightener, the tool has the ability to style hair from wet to dry to save on styling time.
When it comes to problem solving and changing the game, Dyson remains ahead of the pack and predictably, the technology in the Airstrait is next-level techy. The question is: are the results worth the hefty price tag? (FYI: it's £449.99).
I was lucky enough to be one of the first to try it out. Here's everything you need to know…
The Dyson Airstrait at a glance
- The pros: It combines blow drying and straightening to cut down on styling time and it's far less damaging on hair than traditional heat tools.
- The cons: Its styling abilities are limited – you can achieve softly straight-looking hair but you can't use the tool to create waves or curls. Plus, the price point makes it an investment.
- Price: £449.99
- Our verdict: It's genius if you wear your hair softly straight on a daily basis. It's not for you if you want more versatility from your styler.
- GLAMOUR star rating: 3.5 out of 5
Meet the reviewer: Elle Turner, GLAMOUR's senior beauty editor
I have fine, slightly wavy hair, but lots of it (plus it's very long), so it takes me a long time to blow dry and style my hair. I'm lazy when it comes to my styling so I love a tool that will do all the heavy-lifting for me. I'm already a Dyson Supersonic stan (the speed, the shape, I can never go back) and I tend to look for stylers that can give me some texture and volume. I admire the way that Dyson has come to the hair tool market with such a trailblazing approach and I'm interested to see what's next from them.
The packaging
On first appearance, the Dyson Airstrait looks like a jumbo pair of straighteners, but when you look closely it's loaded with tech, from the vents on the side (which when clipped together, work as a blow dryer) to the tension rods inside which replace traditional heat plates. The front looks futuristic, too, with five buttons – including the power button and hot and cold temperature buttons to personalise the styler to you.
The product details
This latest launch has been years in the making to achieve a wet-to-dry straightener that's gentle on hair. Unlike previous tools on the market, the Airstrait forgoes heat plates in order to dry and straighten hair, without boiling and damaging it (which is what happens when you apply extreme heat to wet strands). Styling relies on breaking the hydrogen bonds in hair and then resetting them, which can be done using moisture or heat. Opting for moisture, by styling hair with air, the Airstrait is able to work more gently while creating less flyaways and protecting natural shine.
When clamped on hair – in the same way you'd clamp straighteners – a precisely angled high-pressure blade of air is forced downwards and into the hair, to dry and straighten strands in one go. It achieves a softly-straight style (like what you'd get with a blow dryer and a brush, vs. the poker straight strands you'd get from regular straighteners).
The tool has both ‘wet’ and ‘dry’ styling modes, each with pre-set airflow temperatures and a ‘cool’ mode to set your style. In ‘wet’ mode you can choose 80°C, 110°C or 140°C, and in ‘dry’ mode you can choose 120°C or 140°C. Plus, the intelligent heat control uses glass bead thermistors to measure the temperature of airflow 30 times per second in order to maintain the optimal heat. Woah.
More movement and more texture.
There's also two speed settings – high flow and low flow – along with a cold shot and root drying mode.
The tool has been tested on all hair types to ensure it works on semi-straight to coily textures – and to ensure you can get into the roots, the tool can be clamped together to create a blow dryer on the side so you can rough dry right at the roots.
The GLAMOUR road test
The first thing I noticed when I turned the tool on was the ‘whoosh’ noise it makes. Before you get styling, the tool blasts out air to clean the arms and remove any product build-up. Next, you can choose which mode – wet or dry – you need. Because wet hair is easier to reset into a straight style, the temperature for this mode is lower. If you want to dry style day-two hair, the air heat is amped up slightly in order to give straight strands.
I normally prefer messy waves or a voluminous blow dry, but I was impressed with how silky-straight the first section of my damp hair looked with just one pass, although I needed a couple of passes to get it as sleek as I'd like. For me, it doesn't give the same root lift as a blow dry, so if you like a lot of volume this may not be for you. However, the mini blow dryer on the edge of the arms means you can zhuzh roots more than other wet-to-dry straighteners I've seen – and is great for getting right to the roots of curly or coily hair.
This gives sleek, silky straight strands that feel healthier to touch (you can tell they haven't been frazzled) which leaves it shinier, too. However, I personally like to style the face-framing sections of my hair with a little flick, curve or bend, which I couldn't easily achieve with the Airstrait alone.
The verdict
I was impressed at how perfectly it straightened my hair, so if you wear your hair straight on a regular basis, this is definitely for you. However, if you prefer a bouncy blow dry, waves, curls or more versatility with your styler, you're better off with the Corrale or Airwrap.
For more from GLAMOUR's Senior Beauty Editor, Elle Turner, follow her on Instagram @elleturneruk