The Sonifer SF-9518 is a straightener with two features that punch above its price: a real LCD temperature control and a one-hour auto shut-off.

The LCD matters more than it looks. Most straighteners at this level give you a low/high switch, which means you never actually know what temperature you are applying — and you cannot repeat it. With a display you can find the heat that suits your hair, note it, and hit exactly that every time. For fine or coloured hair, where the difference between 170 °C and 200 °C is the difference between styled and damaged, that control is the whole game.

The auto shut-off is the other one. After an hour it powers down on its own. Everyone has had the moment of standing at a bus stop trying to remember whether they unplugged the straightener; this removes it. It is a safety feature, but mostly it is a peace-of-mind feature.

The plates are ceramic-coated so they glide rather than snag — dragging is what breaks hair on a straightener, more than heat alone — and the 360° swivel cord keeps the cable from winding itself up as you work around your head.

Note that Sonifer does not publish a wattage, plate size or maximum temperature for this model, so we have not quoted figures we cannot verify. What is confirmed is above.