The Best Electric Razor on the Market Just Got Even Better (2024)

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  • Design and Features
  • Effectiveness
  • Value
  • How to Clean
  • Final Verdict: Should You Buy the Series 9 Pro+?

I’ve made no secret about how much I love the Braun Series 9 Pro electric shaver. As a dedicated electric razor user, I stand by my proclamation that the Series 9 is the best shaver on the market. I’ve tried nearly every electric shaver out there in my years since converting exclusively to electric shaving and the Braun Series 9 Pro still stands heads above the rest. But nothing lasts forever and I am here to confidently tell you that a new razor has taken the throne: the Braun Series 9 Pro+.

SHOP THE BRAUN SERIES 9 PRO+ ON AMAZON

Pros
  • The Best Electric Razor on the Market Just Got Even Better (2)Improved cutting with surgical steel blades and a redesigned Pro-Lift blade
  • The Best Electric Razor on the Market Just Got Even Better (3)Redesigned built-in trimmer for better detailing
  • The Best Electric Razor on the Market Just Got Even Better (4)Pre-Shave ProComfort head attachment for a closer shave
  • The Best Electric Razor on the Market Just Got Even Better (5)Improved SmartCare cleaning station that helps prolong life of blades
Cons
  • The Best Electric Razor on the Market Just Got Even Better (6)Very expensive
Battery Life60 minutes
Weight2.11 pounds
WaterproofYes
Charging Station IncludedYes

Okay, I know it’s a little bit of a cop out to say that a newer version of the same razor is better. That’s exactly what updates are for, right? But any iPhone user knows that updates to tech gadgets don’t always make for a better experience. That’s why I was skeptical that there really was all that much room for improvement to my beloved original. It was already the most efficient, powerful electric razor I had ever used (and don’t get me started on the genius Power Case), so I wasn’t convinced it could actually be improved. Man was I wrong. After trying the new Braun Series 9 Pro+ for the last month, I can absolutely say that this razor offers an industry-leading shaving experience, and is truly the best you can possibly find.

Design and Features

The Braun Series 9 Pro+ is nearly identical to the original Series 9—at least on the surface. The casing has the same ergonomic design, which I love because as I said in my original review, it’s like the Goldilocks of electric razors. The razor itself is shockingly light, but still hefty enough to fit well in your hand without feeling like you are going to drop it. The sleek design also doesn’t have many bells and whistles on the outside—namely just an LED screen that shows battery life, a swiveling head, and a lock button, which gives it a slick, elegant appearance. Other standard features are still there as well, such as 100% waterproof usage, a 60–minute battery life and a quick charge option.

The razor technology inside the device is largely the same as well. The Braun Series 9 Pro+ features Sonic Technology with 40,000 micro vibrations per second to help gently lift your whiskers, allowing for a closer shave and a better glide across your skin. It also still has the AutoSense technology that made the original Series 9 razor so great—it automatically senses the density of your beard and automatically adjusts to powerfully cut through all thicknesses of facial hair, even up to seven days-worth of stubble (yes, really).

The meat and potatoes of every electric shaver is, of course, the actual razor head itself, and like the original, the Braun Series 9 Pro+ has 5 shaving elements that cut your whiskers to a baby-smooth 0.05mm. New to the Series 9 Pro+, however, is that these blades are now made from surgical grade stainless steel that stay sharper, allowing for a more effective shave for even longer (the original blades were titanium). The Braun Series 9 Pro+, like the original version, features an ultra-thin ProLift blade (which looks like a gold bar on the razor head itself) that helps to lift hair away from your skin allowing for a closer shave and more thorough cut.

The original Braun Series 9 has a built-in pop-up detail trimmer for sideburns and other facial hair detailing, but the Series 9 Pro+ also updated that feature to make it more effective. The original was slightly curved, but the new detailer is straight—more like the kind of trimmer professional barbers use—as well as 35% wider openings between prongs and 30% thinner tips to make the trimming and detailing more precise and efficient (less of a need to go back over the same area multiple times).

The other new features of the Braun Series 9 Pro+ are outside of the razor itself, but no less exciting. Included is a new pre-shave ProComfort head attachment*—a silicone cap with bristles that looks like a cleansing brush. The idea is that you pop this on your razor and run it over your dry beard area before you shave, allowing the bristles to not only perk up whiskers and lift them away from your skin, but also exfoliate as well for a smoother shave. Honestly, I was skeptical this was more than just a gimmick, but I found that using this attachment for about 30 seconds before I shaved actually does give me a slightly closer shave and delays when I start seeing shadow later in the day by about an hour (every minute counts, am I right?). There is also a new and improved Cleaning Station that not only charges your razor, but also features an updated cleaning solution that also lubricates the razor’s blades to help them work better immediately, but also keep them sharp and protected in the long run. And, of course, we can’t forget my favorite accessory, the Charging Case (also included with the Series 9 Pro+) that is an essential for anyone who travels a lot or doesn’t have room on their countertop for the full cleaning station.

*Editor's Note: the ProComfort Pre-Shave head will be available in a future version later this year.

SHOP THE BRAUN SERIES 9 PRO+ ON AMAZON

Effectiveness

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I wasn’t convinced the Braun Series 9 Pro+ could really beat the shave of the original. The Series 9 was already the most efficient razor I had ever tried, which cut my whole-face shave down to about 3 minutes, even with several days of stubble. I can now confirm that I was wrong. Shaving with the Braun Series 9 Pro+ still takes me about three minutes (sometimes less, if I don’t have much stubble to power through), but where it really shines is the closeness of the shave. Most of the new features, including the pre-shave ProComfort head, focus on more effectively lifting facial hair away from your skin allowing for a closer, smoother shave. I found this to be absolutely the case. Immediately after shaving, my skin feels baby smooth—like I don’t have any facial hair at all—and I found that signs of shadow show up later in the day than they do with the original version, and sometimes I have absolutely no shadow at all, even as I head to bed. This is especially true when I use the ProComfort head before shaving.

The Best Electric Razor on the Market Just Got Even Better (8)

I also found the new and improved detail trimmer to be more effective than the previous version, thanks to an easier-to-use straight across design and more space between prongs. It’s ideal for larger detailing like sideburns, but unfortunately is still not ideal for crisp lines or very specific detailing like around my mustache. It has more to do with the design over the overall razor, where the trimmer pops up to be perfectly in line with the razor head. It’s fine for larger areas, but not effective for detail work because of visibility issues. I found that to trim and shape my mustache, I still needed to use a separate trimmer like a t-blade.

Value

Like the original, the Braun Series 9 Pro+ is a luxury razor and you’re going to pay a top-shelf price to match. The current version is $350, with a forthcoming full set with all the accessories and ProComfort head priced at $429.99. I know that’s a ton of money to spend on an electric razor, but between the top-of-the-line razor itself and the additional accessories—especially the Power Case, which I find to be the most innovative and essential razor accessory out there—it’s a worthwhile investment. Right now, you can only get the Series 9 Pro+ as part of this grouping, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Braun eventually came out with different tiers, like they have with the original Series 9, which allow you to purchase the razor without the SmartCare Center or Power Case. And if you’re already a Series 9 user, but don’t want to completely upgrade, the replacement razor heads for the Pro+ will also work on the original Series 9. You’ll be able to upgrade your shave itself, you just won’t have the additional design elements of the Series 9 Pro+.

The Best Electric Razor on the Market Just Got Even Better (9)

How to Clean

The easiest and most efficient way to clean the Braun Series 9 Pro+ is to use the SmartCare Center, which uses the updated solution to not only deep clean the razor but also lubricate and protect the blades. If you don’t use the SmartCare Center (frankly, I don’t always use it because my counter space is very limited), you can clean the razor like any other—by running the blades under hot water and adding a little liquid soap). Don’t forget to keep the included cleaning brush handy to help remove hair in the nooks and crannies.

Final Verdict: Should You Buy the Series 9 Pro+?

Whether you’re already a Braun Series 9 user looking to upgrade or are just looking for the most efficient and effective electric shaver on the market, the Braun Series 9 Pro+ is a worthwhile investment. It’s priced very high, sure, but if you can afford it, it’s absolutely worth the price—in time you save on shaving alone.

SHOP THE BRAUN SERIES 9 PRO+ ON AMAZON

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The Best Electric Razor on the Market Just Got Even Better (2024)
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