The Dyson Airwrap Is The Only Styling Tool I Use—And The Newest Version Is Available Right Now

The Dyson Airwrap Complete Styler is the most expensive personal care product I’ve ever bought. I don’t like spending money. I don’t buy fancy body wash; I buy Dove Beauty Bars in multi-box packs. I never get manicures—I do my own nails with Olive & June products (which are great, by the way). I’ve been to Drybar exactly once, for an event.

So why, you might ask, did I blow (pun intended) two months’ worth of my self-care budget, usually reserved for partial highlights and a good cut, on one hair tool? Simple. When I do style my hair, I want it to be quick, easy and painless. The Dyson Airwrap not only checks those boxes but also makes doing my hair feel kind of magical. And now the brand has just launched a new and upgraded version of the multi-styler, complete with re-engineered attachments.

The Dyson Airwrap made this writer love styling her hair—and the kit has just gotten a major … [+] upgrade.

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I didn’t buy mine on a whim. In fact, I started using it when it first launched in 2018 and my beauty editor roommate at the time shared her media sample with me. It sat in its beautiful tan leather package on our communal bookshelf, and I used it whenever I dried my hair—for me, during a non-pandemic work week, that’s two to three times. Pretty soon, I had abandoned my usual hair dryer and curling iron in favor of it. And when I moved in with my now-husband a year later, I ponied up. I needed an Airwrap of my own.

I found that the blow dryer attachment was stronger, lighter and faster than my old salon-quality hair dryer. In my opinion, it performed as well as the standalone Dyson hair dryer I had just bought for my mom; after she had a stroke, she needed something lightweight that would allow her to dry her insanely thick hair fast, before she got too tired to finish the job. The Dyson was perfect.

After rough drying it with that attachment, I found that I could put the same loose waves in my (far, far thinner) collarbone-length hair using the Airwrap’s round brush and wave wand attachments faster and with fewer burns than I could with my curling iron. You’re reading the words of someone who has given herself second- and possibly third-degree burns with a hot tool. Pro tip: Never, ever use one when you’re not wearing a bra. The Airwrap doesn’t get nearly as hot as a curling iron—not going above 302 degrees F versus the typical 400-plus degrees of a hot tool—and is designed so that even fools like me can use it without so much as scorching a fingertip.

It may have a lot of attachments and potential, which is fantastic, but the basic features—that don’t require a YouTube tutorial to master—cater to lazy people like me. Trying to decide if it’s worth the investment for you? Let’s take a closer look at the Dyson Airwrap’s features, and its latest upgrades, and what it can do for your hair.

A Closer Look At The New Dyson Airwrap

The Dyson Airwrap styler is basically a fancy hair dryer brush. It combines the effects of a brush and blow dryer into one device to make it easier to achieve salon smoothness or texture at home. You may be coordinated enough to manipulate a round brush and hair dryer like your stylist at home, but I definitely cannot. It’s too hard to get the right tension and angle on hair. Plus, your arm gets tired. A blow dryer brush has bristles and airflow to let you simultaneously brush and dry with one hand. Brilliant. Lots of brands make them.

Where Dyson, otherwise known for its high-suction vacuums, differentiates itself is with how that air flow works. The company has harnessed a dynamic in physics called the Coanda effect, typically used in aircraft wing design, to create a tool that makes hair even easier to style without using high heat. Basically, the airflow is designed to pull your hair into it. This gives you extra tension on the round brush, and it makes using the curling wands practically effortless. The attachment literally grabs your hair and twists it around the barrel for you.

My kit came with a blow drying attachment, a flat brush and two curling wands: one that twists hair clockwise and another counterclockwise. The best way to get natural-looking waves is to alternate directions, so you can section your hair (or just pick up random pieces like I do) and use one wand for half, then switch. The attachments snap easily onto a lightweight barrel, which has three heat settings, including a cold shot to set your style. The barrel also has a ring-shaped brush you use to clean the filter.

The brand-new version of the Airwrap has all the same features I love about the original—and then some. It’s been upgraded with a more optimized Coanda effect across the board. It also includes a curl wand that works in both directions, so you don’t have to switch attachments to get nice, even waves. They’ve switched out the plain blow dryer attachment that used to come with the kit for a Coanda smoothing dryer or a wide-tooth comb dryer, for different hair types. And finally, the cool tip on the new tool rotates, so it’s even easier to keep a good grip while you work.

How To Use The Dyson Airwrap Styler

It’s honestly not all that different or more complicated than using a hair dryer, unless you want to get fancy about it. Start by combing out your hair, and then apply a heat protectant product all over from root to tip. The Airwrap may not get as hot as other hair tools, but it’s still heating up your hair enough to set a style—you don’t want to do damage. With the current version, you should ideally let your hair air dry or rough dry it with the blow dryer attachment. With the upcoming version, this is less important; Dyson says it’s fine to go ahead with styling when your hair is 80% dry.

Step one: Rough dry hair with blow dryer attachment until it’s about 80% dry.

Elyse Moody

Next, pop on the attachment of your choosing. The round brush and smoothing brushes are straightforward to use; just section your hair and brush them through.

Step two: Smooth and add volume with the round brush.

Elyse Moody

The wands take a little practice. Dyson has a wealth of tutorials on its website, and you can find even more on YouTube. You’ll want to keep the tool moving but also go slowly enough to let the heat smooth or curl your hair.

Step three: Create soft waves with the wand attachment, which swirls your hair around the barrel on … [+] its own.

Elyse Moody

Finally, use the tool’s cold shot to set your style. This is really important if your hair’s like mine and tends to fall flat the minute you walk out of the bathroom. The Airwrap is one of those things you can really train yourself to use to its full potential, or just make your standard routine faster and easier. My take? Learning how to use it doesn’t have to be unnecessarily complicated if you don’t want it to.

Is The Dyson Airwrap Worth Buying?

For me, it was. I enjoy having a fast, easy way to style my hair when I want to. I haven’t used another hair dryer or curling iron in four years. I enjoy watching the wands magically twist my hair around and curl it, like there’s mini tornado winding it around. (It really is cool to watch.) Plus, as I mentioned, I really like the case.

If you’re someone who gets their hair professionally blown out more frequently than I do, it’s pretty easy to make the case for the Airwrap. The same goes for if you’re someone who spends a lot of time styling your hair at home every day. It’s by far the most advanced blow dryer brush out there, with the most styling options. You could argue that it’s definitely worth it, in terms of your money or your time. I felt that it was, but it really depends on your budget.

If you’re more interested in simple blow drying than curling or styling your hair, or if you’re not sure how often you’d use it, you might consider going with a simpler and less expensive hair dryer brush for starters (solid options start well under $100). You’ll miss out on the handy attachments and the innovative technology, but they might not matter to you anyway.