Philips 1600W Hair Dryer - BHD300/10

The Philips BHD300/10 sits in the 3000 Series, and it earns its place with two things that are genuinely uncommon at this price: a DC motor and the ThermoProtect apparatus.

The DC motor is the quieter, longer-lived type. Most dryers around this output use an AC motor, which is cheaper and louder and wears faster. You notice the difference every time you use it, and again in three years when it is still working.

ThermoProtect is the answer to the usual dilemma. Drying fast means high heat, and high heat costs you condition. The 14 mm attachment mixes warm and cool air so the temperature at your hair drops by up to 10 °C — but the airflow keeps working, so the dry does not take noticeably longer. You get the gentler temperature without paying for it in time.

The attachment's slim hood also makes it a styling tool rather than only a protective one. The narrow profile focuses air precisely, so you can go back and perfect one section — a fringe, a stubborn kink, the shape around the ears — without going over the whole head again.

Three heat and speed settings, a cool air burst to fix the finished style, a folding handle for storage, a hanging hook, and under 0.3 W of standby draw. A 1.8 m cord gives room to move around a mirror.