Philishave Turbovac HTQ863 review

Philishave Turbovac HTQ863. Gadgets, Styling products, Philips 0

Reviewer: Stuart Miles
Review Date: 5 November 2004
Manufacturer: Philips
Price as reviewed: £30
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Our score

8/10

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Full Review

The saying goes that “If you haven’t experimented with facial hair before you are 30, then the likelihood is that you won’t ever.” Lets face it chaps, we’ve all been there, gone on holiday, had a lazy weekend and then looked in the mirror and thought - hmmm, I wonder what it would look like. For the most part the wife or girlfriend won’t let you get past that prickly stage and it’s off within a flash, but for some, the experience becomes one that stays that little bit longer.

But then you’ve got the next problem, the unruly facial growth of hair on your face, Philips with its Philishave range is hoping to step into the breach with its TurboVac HQT863, an adjustable beard trimmer that has a built in sucker to literately suck those cut hairs away from your face once you’ve whizzed over it with the trimmer.

The model is a revamp on the classic clipper system found in most barber shops for beard trimming or giving you a number 2 all over, but rather than come with multiple clips that you are likely to lose in a couple of days the TurboVac opts for a swivel system that simple moves the guard further away from the clippers depending on the setting you choose. Choosing the length of your beard depends on the man and here you can opt for one of nine settings to either give you that two-day stubble look or for the full-length desert island look.

Cutting this much hair off your face is where the TurboVac comes into its own and the sucking capability is very strong, in our tests (we wore a white shirt especially) we had no hair on our shirt after a beard trim. Like a Dyson the hair is collected in a small bucket and emptying it afterwards is very simple.

The downside? It is very noisy, and considering the size against other shavers on the market slightly on the larger side, however Philishave would probably counter both of these with the need for more powerful clippers and the need to cut longer, thicker hair, rather than a bit of stubble.

Verdict

For the man with a beard, this is a very good way of keeping it under control wherever you are. I had my go of growing a beard back in January this year and one of the reasons why I shaved it off in the end was its unruliness and the inability to keep it under control when out on press trips or away for the weekend. Had I had this unit, the story probably would have been a completely different one, and in fact the tempation to attempt to grow another has started to tinker in the back of my mind

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