There are fewer bonds stronger than the relationship between a girl and her blow-dryer. Women spend a lot of time — and even more money — when it comes to their hair, so a lot of trust goes into choosing the tools that touch it. Since a blow-dryer is typically the first to touch each strand, it's the one that can make or break a style that you hope lasts for the week. Therefore, it needs to be good. No, great.
I first learned how to style my hair from my mother and back then, there were no multi-stylers or blow-dry combination brushes or fancy heatless tools. She simply handed me her blow-dryer and a round brush, and since then, it's been my preferred method — even with the knowledge I've gained from all the tools I've tested. So, when I was tasked with trying two similar hair-dryers to see which one was worth your time and money, you can bet I took it seriously.
In one hand, I had Dyson's latest hair dryer model, the Supersonic Nural, with its advanced technology and more engineering than most appliances I own. In the other, the upgraded version of a lesser-known, but growing in popularity, brand Laifen. Both look nearly identical in design and promise similar style outcomes, but I would be the judge of that.
How I tried the Laifen and Dyson
I used both devices multiple times within a span of about a month. For every hair wash day, I'd switch between the Dyson and Laifen to dry and style my hair. I used the same heat protectant, volumizer and shampoo and conditioner beforehand, so that each device had the same starting point of hair quality and texture.
Both products come with various attachments, but for fair testing, I only tried the ones that both devices provided, which ended up being the styling concentrator and diffuser. (Since I do not have curly hair and have never tried a diffuser before, I excluded it from the test.)
Best for kids; your wallet:
Having been fairly unfamiliar with Laifen before giving this tool a try, I had the advantage of going into this review with zero expectations. It immediately passed my first test: it's pretty! (Yes, I'm a professional shopping writer, but I'm still just a girl who loves the color purple.) More than its matte pastel lavender look, I truly appreciated this blow-dryer's lightweight design. I tend to do quite a bit of traveling, and I feel like this is something I'd have no problem throwing into a carry-on — but for domestic trips only, as the tool is not dual voltage.
With only two buttons, using the device itself was pretty intuitive, but that was by no means a determinant of its complexity. First, the air speed was impressive, thanks to the tool's upgraded 108,000 motor output of 21.5m/s. If you're like me and don't exactly know what that means, in layman's terms, it dried my mid-to-long-length hair very quickly. And safely, as the brand has built-in smart controls that monitor temperature 80 times per second to keep your hair protected.
What I found most interesting about this device was the five temperature levels, which are shown via LED lights surrounding the head of the device. The different colors represent hot (red), warm (yellow), cold (blue), temperature cycling mode (a mix of all three) and child mode (blinking yellow). Although the brand boasts cooler overall temperatures than traditional hair dryers, the hottest setting still emits an adequate amount of heat. The switch to cool and warm is impressively quick, but in order to get to the two specialty modes, you have to keep the button pressed down for the temperature cycling and double-click on the yellow color for child mode (which is also designed to be pet-friendly!). Figuring this part out was a pain, and I'm not sure why they couldn't just make it cycle through each setting with one button press at a time. That would have been much easier.
What I found strange was that half the time I used this tool, my hair tangled up more than normal, despite starting with knot-free strands. I would have to stop the process more than once just to run a brush through my hair before continuing the blow-dry with my styling round brush.
Best for scalp protection; long-term investment:
Unlike the Laifen hair dryer, I am very familiar with Dyson's products (I wouldn't be a very good commerce writer if I wasn't), so I admittedly had my own expectations while using this product. And I think that's fair for anyone committing to a hair tool that retails for a whopping $550. Price tag aside, this was my first time trying the brand's most updated model, and I wanted to go in with an open mind. To be fair, I can also start with its appearance — and as you'd expect, it looks like something that would be featured in a Back to the Future movie if it were made today. It's very expensive looking, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't like it, especially the fun color combinations that are available.
It's what's hiding inside this sleek tool that baffles me most. If I didn't know any better, I'd swear NASA worked on its development — there's just so much going on under the hood. It's very clear that hair health was top of mind during the engineering stage. According to the brand, its scalp protect mode automatically adapts the heat and airspeed depending on its distance from your hair, preventing scalp barrier damage, improving moisture retention and increasing shine at the same time. As for damage caused by heat? Not a chance, thanks to smart monitors that consistently keep the tool at an optimal temperature. It even has a sensor that recognizes how you use it and automatically programs the device to your preferred settings. Creepy or efficient? I'll put my own mind at ease and say the latter.
The Dyson has three speed and heat settings, respectively, as well as a cold shot button for setting your style. Though it has the Laifen beat when it comes to attachments, with five overall included: a wave and curl diffuser, gentle air attachment, wide tooth comb, flyaway tool and styling concentrator. I primarily used the styling concentrator, which worked incredibly well to direct air exactly where I wanted it.
Best overall
This was a harder decision to make than I imagined it would be. They're both just so similar: compact shape, lightweight feel, magnetized attachments, strong motors. I've come to the conclusion that there is a person out there who will absolutely benefit from both.
Overall, my hair looked best after drying and styling it with the Dyson. It was shinier, set exactly as I wanted it to and got the overall process done quicker than the Laifen. It also has the design and attachments that make it incredibly versatile and seemingly compatible with way more hair types.
Let me be clear, the scales may be tipped in one direction, but it's not by much. In many ways, the Laifen edged out the Dyson. The former's child mode and cycling mode are probably something the more popular brands should take note of, simply because of how innovative they are. I showed my sister (and mother of two) the child mode setting, and we were equally impressed with the subtle change of temperature that occurred when we double-clicked the tool. She said she wouldn't hesitate to try it on her soon-to-be 3-year-old.
All in all, if you have the money to spend, or a wish list to add it to, the Dyson is clearly an investment item that has the potential to give you A-plus hairstyling for years to come. The technology is too good to ignore. But if you're on a budget and need something that works practically just as well, I'd have no qualms recommending Laifen's blow-dryer.
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The Shop TODAY editors and writers search the internet to find the best products out there. We interview expert sources and use our own personal experiences with the product and brand to make shopping easier for our readers.
Danielle Murphy is the audience development writer for Shop TODAY. She’s been writing for the team since 2021, covering everything from fashion and beauty to product reviews and sales content. She is no stranger to the testing process when it comes to finding the best hair products, having previously written about various hot tools, styling products and more.
