Hair Dryer Review

Introduction to Hair Dryers

Ionic, ceramic and tourmaline are the latest buzzwords when it comes to hair dryers. According to Fort Worth Star-Telegram reporter Erin White, " 'Ceramic' is the most important one to latch on to … if a package says 'ceramic,' that means the coil is made of ceramic," not metal. Unlike metal, ceramic heats evenly and is self-regulating, which means it isn't likely to become hot enough to damage hair.

Hair dyers with ceramic heating coils often offer dual ceramic/ionic technology, although many hair dryers offer ionic technology only. Ions are molecules with a positive or negative charge. According to manufacturers, instead of taking the air from the room and heating it, an ionic hair dryer uses negative ions to shrink the water droplets in hair. Manufacturers claim that negatively charged ions help dry hair faster and with less damage, making it smooth and shiny. However, The Wall Street Journal quotes Bill Nazaroff, professor of environmental engineering at the University of California at Berkeley, as saying there's "remarkably little good science" to either prove or disprove this claim.

Despite the apparent inconsistencies in the "science," all of the reviews we found -- including ones at The Wall Street Journal and Good Housekeeping -- say that ionic hair dryers do indeed make hair smooth, shiny and healthy-looking in testing. Owners posting to TotalBeauty.com and Amazon.com second that finding.

We found the most helpful professional reviews for hair dryers at publications such as Women's Health magazine and Good Housekeeping, along with reports from news organizations where various dryers are tested, evaluated and compared. Owner-written reviews on blogs and beauty supply websites also offer helpful opinions and provide insight into longer-term reliability issues that can only crop up over time.

The newest buzz in hair dryers focuses on the use of tourmaline. Tourmaline is a type of gemstone thought to help hair dry faster and add shine. While many ionic hair dryers have come down in price, often if a hair dryer package reads "tourmaline," it can cost up to $300. Tourmaline is believed to generate a higher number of negative ions than ionic technology alone. The more negative ions, the faster the drying time (up to 70 percent, according to Good Housekeeping tests) and the sleeker and shinier the hair becomes.

So, do ceramic, ionic and tourmaline hair dryers really do what they claim, or could there be other factors at work? The science and testing behind ionic hair dryers is not satisfying enough for our editorial team to be convinced. On the other hand, many ionic models can be purchased at little or no extra cost over a hair dryer that lacks ion features, and 90 percent of the dryers on the market now are ionic hair dryers. In addition, many people -- including many consumer reviewers -- report that they do work better, despite a lack of scientific evidence that explains why. Accordingly, despite some skepticism in the basic research, all of our ConsumerSearch Fast Answers selections for this report are ionic hair dryers.

Also, keep in mind that many other variables can affect how hair looks, including water minerals, shampoo, conditioner, styling products and even the type of brush used while blow drying. None of the sources we found mention how those factors may have contributed to the results they achieved from blow drying. However, Good Housekeeping editors performed tests on standardized hair swatches, reporting that an under-$35 model beat out the $200 and $300 professional hair dryers that were also evaluated. In short, ionic and ceramic technologies should be just one factor to consider when buying a blow dryer. In our research, we found there to be good hair dryers and not-so-good hair dryers at a variety of price points, regardless of the technologies used.