So let me start by saying that I did not purchase this for myself as I like the double edge razors. My girlfriend appreciates how I pragmatically research my tool purchases (Agile Product Owner over here) and asked me to look around for a nice razor for her. She was using a Schick Intuition razor with a bazillion blades and the shave cream built into the head.
There were reasons she did not like this. This is the order of priority for the things she disliked, as I perceive them from our conversations. I, of course, did not ask her to prioritize this list. Most negative on top.
- It creates too much waste. They have a ton of plastic, like way more than the average man's cartridge. It's probably comparable to using a new Bic Lady every damn day.
- She has to be very careful about storage. If the razor is left in the shower the "cream" on the head melts off and it's trash. If it's left on the sink the "cream" leaves soapy areas on the counter. So it has to go in the basket under the shower head every time. No opportunity to make a mistake and recover unless I notice and move the item for her. People make mistakes. Situations like this are unacceptable when considering how the product will be used.
- It's expensive. They cost $21 for 6 heads. Wow. The Personna blades for this are between 40 and 50 cents each.
- She felt like she could get a better shave. In this case that means closer and using better chemicals on her skin.
Of course there were things she did like about the Intuition. I prioritized similarly, with the most important features on top.
- It is convenient. Not having to lather up in a shower is a big win for ladies. Performing a wet shave I find this blasphemous. This isn't about me though and convenience was definitely the largest appeal to this razor.
- It is easy to use. Blade changes are easy and it's super hard to cut yourself.
- It is quick. This is thanks to being both convenient and easy. It deserves mentioning on its own since it is something she mentioned independently not recognizing that the reason was simply because of the other two line items. This tells me that we can sacrifice a little of the other two as long as we acknowledge that things we change in those two areas should not impact this one or it will be perceived as exponentially detrimental to the user.
Well ****. This was a challenge. We started with the OneBlade Core. It has a pivoting head, easily replaceable blades, very little waste, and is made to last for several years. Unfortunately there were some problems with this razor. Mainly it was incredibly aggressive for a lady. The blade is also completely exposed and requires a razorblade suitcase to safely dispose of them. She made several efforts to shave with this using both Creamo and Gillette Pure creams. She had nicks and stray long hairs galore. I tried to talk to her about blade angle, asking "did you find your angle by starting with the head or the guard against your skin?" She was not amused. Ok. We needed something easier. It's time to find a better cartridge...
So I looked for the closest thing I could find to a Bic Lady because I know from first hand experience those are awesome. Life pro tip: travelling and don't have your DE with you? Get a Bic Lady and use it on your face.
Anyhow, after a bit of searching I found this handle on the WCS site and looked into compatible cartridges. Personna Twin Pivot cartridges were made in the USA (important to me), cost about 50 cents, are more aggressive than the Intuition, and have been in production for a long time. So I took the 25 dollar plunge and grabbed her one of these and a 10 pack of blades. The day after it arrived she tried it and was incredibly happy with it. I did not expect this as I thought it would just be a mundane replacement. But now she is looking for a better shave cream as she doesn't like the ones I have provided for other lists of reasons. lol. She's going to try a bath and soap with brush. Fingers crossed. This could greatly up my wet shave budget. hahahaha
Her feedback on what she likes about the razor.
- Just as easy to use as the Intuition.
- Extremely little waste. The cartridges last about a week.
- She gets a much closer shave and now has opinions about creams and soaps. I guess if you don't get close enough it doesn't matter what you use. :)
- It has a good deal of heft to it and no moving parts. In both our minds this means the product will likely last a long time.
- It is a nice looking razor. The picture on the site made it look wonky to me with the o-rings on the handle. It doesn't look odd in person. It's proportioned just right. She mentioned how nice it looked the second she took it out of the box.
There is a *** for every tat. So here's what she doesn't like about the razor.
- It took a minute to figure out how to attach the head.
- That's it. She had no other complaints.
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