This Hot Brush Unlocked My Glossiest, Bounciest, Most-Complimented Blowout Yet
Our beauty editor took the Amika Hair Blow Dryer Brush 2.0 for a spin—here's her honest review of the hot brush.
As someone who has tried a lot of hot brushes (and hair multi-stylers, hair dryers and hair straighteners, for that matter) I know a thing or two about them. They're a really great hair tool to invest in if you love the look of a salon blow-dry and want to take your hair from wet to dry and styled in one sitting.
But, with so many hair brands having now launched their own versions, it can be tricky to know what is really the best one for your hair. If you've been thinking about investing in the Amika Hair Blow Dryer Brush 2.0 (£95), then keep scrolling on for my honest review and pictures.
Amika Hair Blow Dryer Brush 2.0 Specifications
- 3 heat/speed settings(66ºC / 88ºC / 110ºC) to create volume and smoothness across hair types
- Tourmaline coated barrel generates negative ions and infrared heat to smooth hair
- Large oval barrel helps to deliver volume at the roots and through the length and helps to dry and style larger sections at a time
- Nylon ball-tip bristles detangle and smooth, while the short bristles create bounce, shine and polish to your lengths
- Lightweight (380g)
- 3m cord with 360° swivel for easy styling
Pros
- Creates bouncy blowouts
- Lightweight
- 3 heat and temperature settings
- Easy to use
- Creates volume and bounce
- Glides through hair without tangling
Cons
- Might not be smoothing enough for coarse hair
- Better suited for those with layers, or medium to short hair
- Some reviewers note that the hair tool stopped working after a year or so
Using The Hot Brush
As I do with all hot brush testing, I towel-dried my hair after washing and quickly blasted my hairdryer through the roots to remove excess water and help speed up the styling—you want your hair to be about 70-80% dry. My first impression of the hot brush is just how lightweight this hair tool is. Coming in at just 380g (that's less than a can of tinned tomatoes, BTW), there's no risk of getting an arm ache while styling your hair. Phew.
The large oval brush captures a lot of hair (great if you have long or thick hair, as you can really speed up the drying and styling time) while the mixture of nylon and shorter bristles helps to detangle, smooth and polish as you twist it through your hair. I was really impressed by how well it twirled through my lengths without snagging or tugging. If you're wondering how to use a hot brush, you want to twist and gently pull the barrel through each section, repeating a couple of times, to dry and style into shape.
The speed and heat settings feel well considered. There are three heat settings and a couple of different speed settings, so you can tailor it to your hair. I started off with the fastest and hottest setting to dry my hair and then turned down to the slow speed and lower heat setting to shape and set my layers as I dried my hair.
Overall, it took around 20-25 minutes for the hot brush to take my hair from wet to fully styled and dry. I really liked the volume, shape and bounce it gave to my hair, particularly around the front of my face where I have some shorter layers. I didn't see much difference other than shine and smoothness through the longer areas of my hair. But, if you have long or heavy hair, there is only so much shape you'll get from any hot brush. On longer lengths, I'd recommend a curling wand for long-lasting hold.
The bounciness lasted throughout the day, and my hair still retained some shape the next day (my top tip is to sleep with your hair twisted in a loose bun, ideally with a silky scrunchie) however, you might want to re-do a couple of sections to top-up the shape.
The Verdict
Overall, I think this is a really great hot brush. It gave me the bounce and volume worthy of a salon blow-dry and left my hair feeling silky and smooth through the lengths. I'm also obsessed with how lightweight it is—it's by far the lightest I've tried.
My hair is thick, slightly wavy and tends to hold a curl pretty well, so I got a good day's worth out of my blowdry and still enjoyed some bounce and shine the next day. If you have finer hair, you may want to enlist the help of a good hair mousse to help add hold. Amika says that this hot brush works across all hair types and while I can't vouch for it personally in that respect, I will say that this brush head creates really good tension to help stretch out curly hair, helping you achieve a blown-out look. If you want a super-sleek result, you may be better off straightening your hair first and then going in with this hot brush on dry hair.
If I had to nit-pick, I would like it to do a better job at smoothing the more coarser hair I have around my crown, as I still had some frizz after styling, but it was nothing some hair serum couldn't fix. After reading reviews, it appears a few users have experienced issues with Amika's original hot brush model where it stops working after around the year mark. However, it looks as though Amika has listened as this 2.0 model has been upgraded to improve the life of the hair tool (at almost £100, you want it to last over a year at least) so I'd be more confident investing this this new-and-improved hot brush.
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