Reviewers Say This 'Gem' Of Hair Dryer Rivals The $300 Ones — For $32
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'This dryer puts the high-end ones to shame. Including my $400 Dyson that now collects dust in the closet.'
It's not uncommon for people to spend a car payment on a quality hair tool but with this $32 beloved Wavytalk ionic dryer — you don't have to. Lightweight, with helpful attachments, and curly hair-approved, this 'hidden gem' of a dryer gives you shiny hair fast, without the frizz. Today, it's 20% off the already reasonable price.
Rivaling luxury options that cost 10 times the cost, the Wavytalk Blown Away is the people's hair dryer.
Calling it ' absolutely the best hair dryer and attachments I've ever used,' one reviewer says the Wavytalk puts high-end options to shame, including their $400 Dyson, 'That now collects dust in the closet that decided to quit after 6 months of use.' Another user notes, 'My hair looks better than it ever has in my life.' For $32, this could be you.
'I thought my hair stylist got my hair smooth because of the shampoo she used,' one reviewer said. 'Nope, it was her Ion dryer. I'll never go back to regular.'
Without getting too AP physics, the Wavytalk is an ionic dryer, meaning it releases negative air ions, canceling out the positive charges responsible for static and frizz. These dryers can be especially helpful with thick or curly hair, as they can cut down drying time and make your hair easier to style.
With a powerful motor and smart design, the Wavytalk dryer works fast, exposing your locks to less heat. Enjoy the three temperature settings and two airflow speeds, including a cooling finishing option. It's notably quiet, weighs a mere 1.5 pounds, and offers a 6-foot-long cord, perfect for homes or hotels with inopportune outlets. Reviewers say it's compact, easy to use, and runs circles around its name-brand counterparts. 'I've had high-end dryers that were a ton more expensive, but this one beats them all,' one reviewer said. 'It left my hair feeling and looking vibrant and full, but not frizzy at all!!'
The attachments are another draw, with reviewers saying they're better than more expensive options too.
amazon.com, amazon.com
The nozzle gives you concentrated airflow, while the diffuser reduces frizz and helps define curls and waves. Users especially love the comb attachment, which you drag or 'comb' through your hair. 'It effortlessly detangles my hair while drying, reducing frizz and leaving my hair smooth and shiny,' another reviewer said. 'I love how easy it is to use; I can dry and style my hair in half the time compared to my old routine.'
Find the dryer in a bunch of great colors, with neutral and vibrant selections. Some of the brighter hues are great for younger users, with parents saying this device is great for teens, kids, and even toddlers.
If you're looking for something travel-friendly and easy to use that will leave your hair looking and feeling great, snag this Wavytalk dryer while it's still on sale.
Promising reviews:
amazon.com, amazon.com
'I got this as an early Christmas gift, and I LOVE it!!! It dries my hair quickly and leaves it sleek and shiny. I think this is a great alternative to the Dyson hair dryer. I can't recommend this enough. ' — Ashley Marshall
'This is honestly the best blow dryer I've used in a while! I t dries my hair fast without making it frizzy, and the diffuser is perfect for defining curls and coils. My hair feels soft and moisturized instead of dry and brittle, which is a huge plus. It's also lightweight and quieter than other dryers I've tried. If you have curly or coily hair, you need this in your life!' — Sahara
'My daughter has been wanting a blow dryer forever. She has wavy/curly hair, so she wanted one that had the diffuser attachment for that type of hair. She was thrilled to receive this as a gift recently. She loves the sleekness and simplicity of it. It's quite cute and has clean lines. It's chic without being pretentious and overly fancy. It's a great overall blow dryer that comes with a comb, diffuser, and regular air-drying attachments. It's not too loud or sharp sounding like many that we've had before.' — J. Choy
'Either I was using a paper fan to dry my hair, or this thing is magic. Effortlessly dries my hair in a fraction of the tim e. Lightweight, so it makes it easy to move around, and has attachments if you like to do fancy things (not my forte, but you go Glen Coco if that's your style). The color is a nice matte white, so it watches everything, and a long cord so you're not restricted to hanging out next to the wall while you do your hair. Three temp and fan settings plus a cool feature that comes in handy when it's too hot for a blow drier. Highly recommend to anyone in the market for a super high-end brand alternative with everything you really need.' — Katie Ulrich
' Absolutely the best hair dryer and attachments I've ever used. Was skeptical since pricing was so cheap. Was I wrong!!! This dryer puts the high-end ones to shame. Including my $400 Dyson that now collects dust in the closet that decided to quit after 6 months of use. I have permed curly hair, and the diffuser is amazing. Hair was dried in half the time my Revlon dryer took.' — Andrea
' So I have a Dyson, and I purchased this one for travel, and I love it so much that it has replaced my Dyson for everyday use. It dries my hair quickly, and the attachments are great if I want to change from straight to curly on different days. I highly recommend this product! ' — Heather Ann Dunn
'Was very disappointed when my Dyson died after 2 years of use, so didn't want to spend too much again to be let down once again. I tried this guy after so many great reviews, and I must say it was amazing! Left my hair so smooth and frizz-free, and it wasn't too loud and quick to dry. I am seriously so impressed. Will definitely recommend it to others. With that price, it is worth trying for sure.' — Trevdoe
'I really like this blowdryer. I couldn't bring myself to spend $400 on a Dyson, but I found this one that was recommended for curly girls like me. It's not too loud, feels very high quality, dries quicker than my old dryer, and I feel like it creates less frizz when I diffuse. Bonus, it has a cool setting that stays on without having to hold down the button.' — Maritza
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Dyson Airwrap vs. Shark FlexFusion: I Tested Both Hair Tools on My Long, Thick, Wavy Hair. There Was an Unexpected Winner
Few high-tech hair tools get mentioned the way the Dyson AirWrap does when it comes to high-tech hair tools. It's sleek, well-designed and yes, expensive. But in recent years, a new, more affordable contender has stepped into the spotlight: the Shark FlexFusion. Both brands promise salon-quality results at home with less heat damage. After testing both hair styling tools for a few weeks, I found that while they promise similar results, each works best for different hair types. For the purpose of this article, I parted my hair down the middle and styled one half with the Dyson Airwrap and the other half with the Shark FlexFusion. I wore the results all day, tested for hold and volume, and noted how each side held up by the next morning. How these hair tools work At first glance, the Dyson Airwrap and Shark FlexFusion seem to promise the same results. Both are multi-styling tools that dry, curl, volumize and smooth hair using fast airflow instead of extreme heat. Both styling tools use what's known as the Coanda effect, a technique where air follows the natural curve of a surface. It's what allows your hair to wrap around the barrel without spinning parts or clamps. Dyson vs. Shark: Comparison table Feature Dyson Airwrap Shark FlexFusion Price $599 $349 Attachments included 6 4 Heat settings 2 heat settings + cool shot 3 heat settings + cool shot Technology Coanda effect Coanda effect Cord length 8.5 ft 8.0 ft Hair types supported Mostly for fine to medium hair thicknesses Works well on all hair types, including thick and curly First test: Straightening my hair with both tools To compare them fairly, I did a true side-by-side test. I parted my hair down the middle and straightened one half with the Dyson Smoothing Brush and the other half with the Shark Fusion Brush, both tools set at the highest heat setting. The Shark smoothed out my roots a lot better than the Dyson. It took longer to straighten my hair with the Dyson because I had to do more passes near my scalp, and it still didn't tame the volume as well as the Shark. On the ends, the Shark also gave a sleeker, more polished finish. I expected the Dyson to do a better job, but the Shark brush is designed to give you a more blowout look and the Dyson smoothing brush is more for strict straightening. The Shark definitely gripped my thick waves more firmly and shaped them with better tension. I do have to make a note of the noise levels, though. The Shark is much noisier than the Dyson. At times, I felt the need to use earplugs when styling near my ears with the Shark. The Dyson tool performed pretty quietly. This is what my hair looks like naturally, air-dried with no products before styling with the tools. Nasha Addarich Martínez Dyson side: The bristles on the smoothing brush move from side to side, which avoids pulling on hair and prevents breakage. This gentle movement made my hair feel extra soft. It didn't grip my hair as firmly as I would have liked, leaving visible waves near the roots. If your roots are straight, this won't be an issue. But with deep waves, curls or coils, you may need several passes or a round brush to fully straighten them. The ends were fine but lacked definition and style. Shark side: The Fusion brush gripped my hair better and provided more tension, giving the roots and ends a sleeker look. Because of this, I had to do fewer passes, and it cut my drying time by around 10 minutes compared to the Dyson. The airflow felt stronger, which also contributed to faster drying time. Overall, the end result with the Shark looked like a professional blowout. Verdict: For this part of the test, Shark was the obvious winner for my long, thick hair. Shark's half looked better styled (as if I had it professionally done), without the heat damage. However, if you have fine hair with less texture, the Dyson should give you great results. Left image: Left side styled with the Dyson. Right side styled with the Shark. Right Image: Left side styled with the Shark. Right side styled with the Dyson. Nasha Addarich Martínez/CNET Second test: Using the curling rods After straightening both sides of my hair with the smoothing and Fusion brushes, I tested each tool's curling attachments. I used the Dyson Airwrap conical curling barrel on one side -- the thinner barrel, not the thicker one that gives more of a blowout look. This was the side I had blow-dried with the smoothing brush. On the other side, which I dried with the Fusion brush, I used the Shark FlexFusion curling rod. Both tools have dry or damp settings, so I used them both on the highest setting for dry hair. Right off the bat, the Dyson earns brownie points for its single reversible curling barrel. It makes switching curl directions easier -- just twist the top of the barrel. The older Airwrap version required two separate barrels to curl in different directions. The Shark FlexFusion uses two separate curling rods, each marked with arrows to indicate airflow direction. That makes the Dyson more convenient -- you only need one barrel, not two rods, and it's quicker to use. With the Shark, you have to swap rods to style each side of your head, and you often have to wait for them to cool down first. I frequently found them too hot to handle. Dyson side: This side of my hair had tighter, more defined curls Curl direction was easier to control because of the single-barrel switch option The airflow and barrels felt a lot more gentle on my strands, with less pulling and tugging (better for fine to medium hair) Curls were a lot more structured and classic, which I find more appropriate for formal styles or long wear The Dyson also comes with two curling barrel sizes, 1.2-inch and 1.6-inch, so you can decide if you want tighter or looser curls. My experience with the larger barrel is that it doesn't give you a lasting curl look but rather a more blowout wave. Shark side: Gave looser, bouncier curls with more movement The airflow felt stronger, so I had to spend less time curling my hair The rods and airflow had a better grip on my hair (better for thick or textured hair) Curls had a softer, more lived-in texture, which I find better for casual looks Verdict: If you want precision, and convenience or have fine to medium hair, the Dyson is the best choice. On the other hand, if you want more relaxed curls and bounce and have thick or textured hair, the Shark is the better choice. Left image: Left curled with the Dyson and right side curled with the Shark. Right image: Left curled with the Shark and right side curled with the Dyson. Nasha Addarich Martínez/CNET Dyson Airwrap vs. Shark FlexFusion: Other attachments included The most popular tools used for both the Shark and Dyson are the curling and straightening attachments, but both brands offer additional attachments to add versatility to your routine. Here's a breakdown of what tools each one offers: Dyson Airwrap attachments Conical Airwrap barrel (for tighter curls) 1.6-inch Airwrap long barrel (for looser curls) Dryer and flyaway smoother Fast dryer Large, round volumizing brush Soft smoothing brush Takeaway: Dyson gives you more customization attachments that cater to precision styling and polished results. The Flyaway attachment really stands out for polishing frizzy hair. Dyson Airwrap attachments Nasha Addarich Martínez/CNET Shark FlexFusion attachments The Shark FlexFusion is a build-your-own bundle that comes with a Fusion brush and ceramic straightener (like a flatiron), and your choice of two other attachments. For mine, I chose the curling rods and the styling concentrator so I can also use it as a handheld hair dryer. You can choose two of the following: 1.25" auto-wrap curlers Oval brush Curl defining diffuser Frizz fighter finishing tool Wide-tooth comb Styling concentrator Takeaway: Shark prioritizes efficiency, as you can choose the tools you'll actually use. You'll get the essentials for your styling needs, so it's less about endless combinations and more about practicality. Shark FlexFusion attachments Nasha Addarich Martínez/CNET Which one is best: the Dyson Airwrap or Shark FlexFusion? As a person of color with thick and textured hair, I know all too well that most hair care tools are built with finer hair in mind. I think both of these tools can work for all types of hair, with some caveats. The Dyson Airwrap feels and looks more premium, but you'll need to section and style smaller pieces of hair and it'll require more passes (and more time) to get polished results on thick hair (even on the highest setting). For fine hair, you can probably get away with larger sections. The Shark handles my volume effortlessly and gives a sleeker look to my roots and ends. I think that the highest setting may be too strong for fine hair, so it's best to use a more gentle setting to avoid breakage. Dyson Airwrap pros and cons Pros: Luxurious feel and design Great for tighter curls and soft blowouts Lower heat, which makes it safer for daily use Cons: Struggles with thick or curly roots Pricey Takes more time for dense hair Nasha Addarich Martínez/CNET Shark pros and cons Pros: Better tension and grip for thick, wavy or curly hair Smoother results for roots and ends Faster styling More affordable Cons: Curling rods require you to switch them out for different airflow directions Louder airflow than the Dyson Nasha Addarich Martínez/CNET Final verdict If you have long, thick, curly or wavy hair like me, the Shark FlexFusion may be the best option for you. It delivers faster results, smooths both roots and ends more effectively -- and does it all for a fraction of the price of the Dyson Airwrap. That said, Dyson is a leader in the hair care world for good reason. If you want more polished curls, love the luxurious experience, are a fan of the Dyson name or have fine to medium hair, it's definitely worth the splurge. If we're looking objectively at performance alone, especially a tool that'll work well on all hair types, the Shark FlexFusion is really impressive.
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WIRED
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Dyson Has Killed Its Bizarre Zone Air-Purifying Headphones
'One of the things we've learned is people really do care about what it looks like when it's on your head.' 'No, this is not an elaborate April fool'. This is how WIRED first reported on the Dyson Zone at the end of March 2022. The Zone was a wild reimagining of an established product type—a big, bulky pair of headphones with an integrated air-purification mechanism that presented rather unfortunately like a high-tech gimp mask. A solution to a problem no consumer seemed willing to acknowledge existed in the first place. Worse was to follow. December 2022: 'Dyson's hellish-looking air-purifying headset will cost $950.' And in May 2023, our review made liberal use of words like 'embarrassing', 'troubling' and 'derision,' and suggested the reviewer felt like 'a Fisher Price Batman villain' while wearing them. 'You can finally buy this bizarre, head-mounted contraption—but for pity's sake, don't'. Zone marked the first time Dyson's chief engineer (and son of James) Jake Dyson had been project lead for a product since he folded Jake Dyson Products into the Dyson portfolio. At the time, he was bullish about the Zone's chances: 'After six years in development, we're excited to deliver pure air and pure audio, anywhere.' Since then, Dyson has gone eerily quiet on promoting the Zone, and now your chances of acquiring a pair are close to nil. In the United States, everyone from SportPursuit to Best Buy is out of stock, and retailers show no sign of doing anything about the situation. At the time of writing, Walmart's website reckons there is one pair left throughout the entirety of the retail giant. In the UK, meanwhile, retailer John Lewis is unequivocal: 'We will not receive more stock of this item'. In fact, it seems the only place where you can still buy the Dyson Zone is at even here, the product is far from front and center. Should you find yourself able to navigate to the relevant page, you'll have to scroll down a long way to get to an image of the headphones with their air-purification muzzle attached. Indeed, 'black sheep' seems a reasonable enough way to describe the Zone's position in the Dyson product family. In an exclusive interview, WIRED sat down with Jake Dyson, who was disarmingly open about the fate of the Zone. So it seemed only right to discuss the Zone's fallout, look at Dyson's altogether more successful (and de facto replacement model) OnTrac headphones, and, considering that Jake's first swing for the company has turned out to be such a high-profile miss, find out Dyson's future plans in the audio world. Jake Dyson at the 2023 London launch of the now discontinued Zone, a project he spearheaded. Courtesy of Dyson '[With the Zone] we thought we could bring something better to the table than what's currently out there," says Jake Dyson. "You get pure delivery of undisturbed air, and join that with headphones because you have to wear it on your head. So combine the two, you make it a more attractive proposition … there's added value. It brings a bit of fun and spirit to the product. And, of course, the visor is detachable—it can be something you wear in your hour of need, and then take it off and you've got an audio headset.' But it is this leap with the air-purifying Zone that many could not quite fathom: 'You've got to wear it, so let's make it headphones.' What made Dyson go there in particular? And, moreover, when it became clear this would be such a hard ask, many brands would rethink things—yet Dyson plowed on anyway. 'I'll be completely honest, quite often we work in an obsessive nature," says Jake. "We want this product. We want to make this thing. Sometimes before actually evaluating what the market response might be. And the market didn't exist. So you've got to take those risks.' Those risks are thrown into stark relief when you consider the market response to Zone. A product that is only two years old, yet you seemingly can't buy it anywhere now apart from on Dyson's site. Has Dyson quietly killed the Zone? 'First thing: Zone was completely ahead of its time," says Jake. "It's solving a problem that is quite niche—the amount of people that are neurotic about air pollution, that want to solve that problem, and are willing to spend an amount of money; coupled with the fact that it's headphones, means your market is small. We have sold thousands. And we still have the tooling—but we've stopped manufacturing it. We haven't thrown the tools away. It's something we believe will come around in the future. It's a brilliant product.' It's worth noting at this point that, outside of Dyson, the Zone isn't universally regarded as being a brilliant product. According to one major retailer in the US, 'most people read it as a gimmick or another Google Glass–type product. For price, aesthetic, and performance, the space already has highly compelling offers from brands established as experts. Why would Dyson want to do 'that' when what it is good at is 'this''? Alan Sircom, editor of globally respected Hi-Fi+ magazine, goes even further. 'The Zone is too odd, in my opinion. Anything that reminds people of wearing masks during Covid is dead in the water. I'd forgotten about it—that's how little market penetration Dyson has [with the Zone].' Dyson, of course, is a privately owned company and consequently not obliged to release any information regarding the success (or otherwise) of the Zone. But Ivan Lam, senior analyst at Counterpoint, doubts anyone can be happy with its performance. Zone prototypes map the internal development of the air-purifying headphones. Courtesy of Dyson 'Zone was the result of six years of modeling and testing, of making maybe dozens of tooling models. Even if you just assume a team of 10 people, working on this project for six years, you're talking about a lot of expense,' Lam says. 'Sound tuning is expensive, prototype testing is very expensive. It's hard to calculate exactly, but I'm sure it will have cost tens of millions of dollars. And the result is a product with no revenue, no profit margin, and no visibility. I haven't seen a single pair being worn in Hong Kong.' And Hong Kong is not the only Asian territory where the anecdotal evidence for Zone is uninspiring, despite the fact that Dyson is a revered brand name in Asia, with huge presence. No major retailer can help you. At the Gain City Megastore, which at 11 stories is Singapore's largest consumer electronics retail store, they're not in stock. At e-Earphone, Japan's largest headphone retailer, they're not available either. Yodobashi is the world's largest chain of electronics stores, but when WIRED visited the Kyoto branch recently the Dyson Zone was conspicuous only by its absence—and this is an electronics store with a 'wireless headphones' department that has a footprint comfortably larger than that of the average Japanese apartment. Dyson launched its OnTrac regular over-ear noise-canceling headphones with no wider innovative/unnecessary/bizarre (reader's choice) functionality in July 2024, just over a year after the Zone. And as a way of entering the market with a product that doesn't actively scare people, and of competing with established brands on a like-for-like basis, it looks like a sensible move. Certainly, our review of the OnTrac discusses the excellent noise-canceling, the nicely balanced sound, and the interesting industrial design. We gave them an 8 out of 10, along with a coveted 'WIRED Recommends' badge—a far cry from the Zone's rating, and quite the turnaround. Jake is justifiably proud of them. Also, the move from Zone to OnTrac shows a definite path despite the poor fortunes of Dyson's first swing at audio. 'We've learned a lot of lessons. It would be stupid not to take things further in audio," says Jake. "Looking at other headphones out there, they all just look the same: black plastic, not very nice forms. Aesthetically, there's something deeply missing in terms of headphones. We thought we could achieve the best noise-canceling out there, and also bring something more interesting in terms of design. Engineer a beautiful product, bring customization, and more of a fashion element.' As OnTrac has clearly sold significantly more than Zone, does Dyson consider Zone to be a product that didn't work, and OnTrac one that did? '[We've sold] ten-fold [more]—and we launched OnTrac last July, although you could say September was when it came to life. It normally takes about six months before people realize there's something there. OnTrac worked. [As for the Zone] we never deem anything to be a failure, because we always learn something.' To affirm this point, Jake Dyson says that OnTrac is not merely the same headphones as Zone but with the fan system removed. 'We've taken the advancement of the noise-canceling and enhanced it even further,' he says. 'We've increased the software capability, so the range of sound, from the treble to the bass, is expanded.' Compared to the polarizing Zone, Dyson's OnTrac headphones have supposedly been a relative success. Courtesy of Dyson If WIRED knows anything about the market for premium wireless over-ear headphones, though, it's that the space is crammed with products from profoundly well-regarded brands—brands that have won their credibility through decades of experience in many areas of the audio market. Dyson, which is starting from a base of just about zero (if you accept that the relative success of OnTrac balances out the catastrophe of Zone), will need to establish a reputation for audio excellence pretty fast if it's going to compete. The impressive and numerous customization options for OnTrac are a start (and more are on the way), but in the area of the market in which Dyson seems determined to compete, thoughtful industrial design is a minimum. Reputations are won and lost in every department: sound quality, obviously, and the standard of active noise-cancellation, ergonomics, extended functionality, and headline technologies are all important, too. It is a sad fact that many brands with greater audio chops than Dyson have floundered. That's not to say Dyson can't make it happen, though. The company will have taken a lot of learning away from its (ultimately fruitless) N526 electric car project—and let's not overlook the fact that Dyson is a brand that usually gets where it intends to go. The company's hits hugely outweigh its misses—and there seems no reason to assume the combination of engineering expertise and sheer persistence that has made James Dyson a billionaire is about to desert the brand any time soon. And perhaps most importantly of all, the whole Zone experience has led Jake Dyson to an extremely important realization—at least when it comes to headphones: 'One of the things we've learned is obviously people really do bloody care about what it looks like when it's on your head.'
