Philips OneBlade Pro in test: For beards without uniform length
Trimming instead of shaving is the order of the day. The OneBlade Pro from Philips is supposed to offer more options for this than its cheaper version without Pro in the name. A comparison.
I've been trimming my beard with the Philips OneBlade for two years and am very satisfied. I still won't pass up the chance to try out the Pro version. I have been wondering all along what I get for the extra price and whether my criticisms of the cheap version will be invalidated.
The Pro stands for more comfort
The differences between the OneBlade and the OneBlade Pro can be quickly summarized: The larger Pro version offers more convenience. For example, you can see how full the battery is and you can adjust the beard length in 14 steps instead of 3. However, Philips uses the same blades for the shaver with a shear blade that moves 200 times per second. Accordingly, the result of shaving and trimming edges is identical.
Same blade, better attachment
The cheaper OneBlade only comes with three attachments that allow me to vary the hair length when shaving. I stuck with the middle option. The OneBlade Pro, on the other hand, has a "precision comb," as Philips' description puts it. With 14 settings ranging from 0.4 to 10 millimeters - at varying intervals - I could shave creative styles into my beard. When I stand in front of the mirror once a week, however, I'm not particularly creative.
A small disadvantage of the Pro: With its precision comb, it seems clunkier than the OneBlade with the simple attachments - but this difference is not noticeable in use.
Different lengths for the beard hair can be set faster and more conveniently than with the conventional OneBlade, despite the larger selection. During shaving, the OneBlade Pro glides over my face - always against the direction of growth of the beard. Edges and curves he takes with flying colors and without limiting the cutting performance. In the cutting result, I do not notice any difference between the two variants of the razor.
On my unit length beard, both OneBlades feel the same during shaving. However, if I wanted to have different lengths for different areas of my face, the change is much faster with the Pro.
After shaving, I rinse the OneBlade Pro with water. It is suitable for wet shaving and therefore also for cleaning under the tap. Then it's the turn of the sink and its surroundings. The device does not catch the cut hairs and they spread all over the sink.
Philips praises the OneBlade Pro for shaving the entire body. For this purpose, an attachable skin protection attachment is included. However, it ensures that noticeable stubble remains. Then I prefer to stick to wet shaving, as with my main hair.
Knowing how long the battery will last
The OneBlade Pro shows me on a small display how much percent of its battery is still charged. I especially appreciate this since my OneBlade without a charge indicator once left me with a half-shaved face. Luckily, it was the weekend and I had enough time to charge it before I had to leave the apartment. It doesn't have to be a display like the OneBlade Pro, but some kind of low charge indication would be helpful.
According to Philips, the OneBlade Pro's battery is supposed to last 120 minutes. When I shave for about five minutes, the display decreases by four to five percent. This brings me close to the 120 minutes. So the charger does not have to be in the luggage on every vacation.
To charge, the OneBlade Pro goes on the included station. If you don't have a flat surface to stand on, you can also plug the charging cable directly into the shaver and lay it down. Instead of the proprietary connector - which is different from the OneBlade's - a standard connector like USB-C would have made me happier with both. Now I have to stash another charger around the house in a way that I can find it when I need it.
Verdict: For beards of varying lengths.
The OneBlade Pro is better than the OneBlade - anything less would also be a huge disappointment given the massive upcharge. Still, the Pro version isn't worth it for all beard wearers.
If your beard is consistently the same length - and the OneBlade's one, three, or five millimeters fit - the OneBlade Pro's precision comb won't have the same effect. If you work on your beard at different lengths, that's the main reason to get the Pro version. The battery indicator is convenient, but not absolutely necessary.
When I was but a young student, I'd sit in my friend's living room with all my classmates and play on his SuperNES. Since then I've had the opportunity to test out all the newest technology for you. I've done reviews at Curved, Computer Bild and Netzwelt, and have now arrived at Galaxus.de.
