Best Norelco for now!
Pros:
Offers the closest shave, price isn't bad compared with added features, pretty durable
Cons:
If you're not used to electric shavers, you may get irritated skin.
The Bottom Line:
This is the one to get if you're skeptical about how close a shave electric razors are capable of
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
I've been a Norelco user for several years now. I have a thick beard, and am always looking for an electric razor that can give me the convenience of an electric, but also give me a close shave. When you figure that a Gillette razor with all those blades you have to keep replacing, an electric razor may actually save you money from the conventional shave.
My first Norelco was a Reflex that I inherited from my grandfather. It was pretty old, and its rechargable batteries died. That made it useless. The Quadra series came out, so I tried switching to that. I found it did give me a closer shave because the heads were flexible and could better fit the contours of my face. It worked fine, and then the Spectra came out.
The differences between the Quadra and the Spectra are not great. The main thing is that the Spectra has a sensitivity dial (with my beard, I always have to have it set to the highest setting....which is pretty much just like the Quadra). It supposedly has different heads....the blades are exactly like the Quadra and it's just the slots that are slightly different. So there isn't a big difference in shaving. Although, the one nice thing about the Quadra is that you can use it as a corded razor when the battery is recharging, or dead (with the Quadra and Reflex razors I had, they would only run on the battery). That means the razor will also have a longer life...not dictated by the life of the battery.
I can honestly say Norelco has seriously upgraded with the smart touch system. Each head has twice as many blades....with 3 rows instead of one. The heads also sit on a cradle that rocks back and forth. So it can reach any pesky curve or crevice on your face. As I understand, the Smart Touch razor is different from Norelco's new Speed series in that it has a rocking cradle. The Speed series has the same heads, but doesn't offer the pivot action that only the Smart Touch offers. It's certainly worth plunking down the money if you're looking for a closest shave from an electric razor. If you have a slighter beard though, the Spectra series would be just as good and save you money. All the new models let you use them as either cordless or corded razors, so the only time you might look for a new razor is when they come out with one that has more blades!
