Customer Reviews

Farouk CHI Auto-Digital Advanced Wet to Dry Ceramic Ionic Flat Iron 1-1/4" with Free Stand and Thermal Pouch

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(16)

 

 

I have been using Chi irons for years now. This my second wet to dry iron and I love it. I would never go back to a plain Chi dry iron.

Chi irons are superior to all other irons because of their temperature level and evenness. I have confirmed this with a laser heat gauge comparing Chi's to other brands. The temp is nearly identical to the digital display on the front. This is WHY you buy a Chi. It is for serious thick hair-straightening.

The trick is that you really need to know how to use the Wet-Dry iron. It is not intuitive, nor can you simply use on wet or damp hair with the same old products. There are some key points you need to know.

Wet to Dry Key Points:

Key Benefit: The number one benefit of the wet-dry iron is resistance to humidity. When I started using this iron, I stopped getting chemical and thermal straighten at the salon. I live in Fla and I have zero curl, fizz or puffiness when humidity is at max. I only get this benefit with the wet-dry.

Steam: Yes you are steaming your hair. Yes it is safe. No, you shouldn't worry that you are hurting your hair. You are steaming out the moisture and product not your hair. The temp on your hair shaft is the same as a dry iron. The key is NEVER to leave the heat on too long. See below.

Water Content: Damp almost dry hair works the best for many reasons. It is faster, and the outcome is virtually the same as on wet hair. Some professionals tell you NOT to use this product on true wet hair. I have used on wet hair, but it takes forever, takes more skill and as I mentioned there is no benefit in the straightness category. Note however that the more water you steam with, the more humidity resistance you will enjoy. You'll figure out the correct wetness for your needs. Start out with dryer hair and gradually work damper with each attempt.

Product: I am told by a top professional that silicone based thermal products are the only ones to use with a wet-dry iron. I have had that experience first hand. The regular old thermal protectors leave my hair feeling crunchy. The nicer silkier products are hardly noticeable. YES-use product before you blow dry and again before you iron. No need to use on each section. Just a small drop worked into your hair. I like a cream before I dry and the oil before I iron. Chi makes great stuff for this.

Dryer: There are a couple of approaches depending on your time commitment. 1) you can simply get all the water out with basic simple blow drying. As long as your hair is damp to the touch this method will produce pin straight hair once you iron. or 2) you can straighten your hair with a round brush and blow dry in sections. Again as long as you leave each section damp to the touch the iron will work great. I prefer method 2 for silkier hair. Remember leave in enough wetness. Don't blow nearly dry. If top sections get dryer as you work, a little drop of water does the trick.

Small batches: Just a reminder for those of you that may not know this. The trick is to start at the nape of your neck and work forwards. Divide your head in half down center and then pin all up except what you are working with. Iron in small sections about a 3rd the width of your iron's length. This produces the straightest outcome. Use a comb to catch the hot section. You will burn your hands.

Steam: You should produce steam, that is how you know there is still water on the shaft. Do NOT leave the iron in one place EVER. Again NEVER EVER hold the iron in one spot. Catch your hair close to the head and iron till ONE INCH before the ends. You may have to go over a section again but that is the idea. Once you have completed that section you can then gather the entire section in the iron, and iron to the ends of the shaft. This protects your ends, THE most vulnerable part. (this is the same with a dry iron BTW)

I have had this iron for two weeks shy of a year. The iron stopped working. I thought, "Great! Finally something actually breaks down two weeks BEFORE the warranty runs out instead of two weeks after!" After contacting Farouk, I learned that the warranty is VOID if the product is purchased over the internet. This was in no way, shape, or form disclosed to me when I purchased my iron. DO NOT BUY!! WAY too much money to drop on a flat iron that doesn't even have a valid warranty!

I used on my damp hair, and the result weren't as I expected from this flat iron. This is not my first iron, and I also had Chi products before that I truly love such as my ceramic blow dryer. My hair was kind of stiff and dry, so the next time that I used I blowed dry my hair first and then I used the flat iron with much better results, but the fact is thet I bought it because I wanted to use it on wet hair, so if that is what you want I don't recommend it.

I purchased this flat iron through Amazon.com about three months ago. At first, I loved it- it heated up quickly and it thoroughly straightened my very long, thick hair in minutes. I used it about two times per week for the past three months without any problems. Last week, it just stopped working- I would turn it on, it would start heating up, and then it would just switch off for no reason. I checked Farouk's website for the warranty information and was very shocked to read that the warranty is void if you purchase the product over the internet. If you must buy this product, please buy it at a professional beauty salon. Spend the extra money, because the iron WILL break, and you will need to use the warranty. I'm extremely disappointed with both Amazon and CHI/Farouk. I will never purchase another CHI.

Our flat iron broke after minimal use in only 4 months. Normally that would be a small problem, but the seller "Payless Beauty" did not disclose that the manufacturer does NOT warranty items sold over the internet. We would recommend buying only from a brick and mortar establishment.

This iron was well worth the money. My daughter has curly hair and she loves that she can dry it a little bit and then use the iron to straighten it completely. Her hair looks beautiful all the time.

I really like my CHI but was extremely disappointed when all of a sudden it just stopped working one day. I have had it for less than 6 months, and apparently the warranty is not valid if the product is purchased from Amazon. It seems that this has happened to many others as well. Although it worked great on my hair, I will not purchase another one considering I spent over $100 for less than 6 months of use.

Before I bought this product, I read all the reviews, good and bad. A few of them noted that the warranty on this product is void when bought off the internet, but I didnt listen because my last chi lasted over a year so I wouldn't need the warranty anyways! I thought it'd be worth saving the money from buying here vs. at a beauty salon...

Well, I got the chi in the mail, was very excited to use it and it worked great at first. Then, the second time using it, one of the plates wouldn't heat up! I unplugged it, waited a couple days, but it didn't ever work again. I guess in a way I was lucky this happened to me quickly so I could still return the product, but I can imagine the same thing happening after 2-3 months and that would be SO disappointing!

Despite that horrible experience, when using the product I noticed that the finger grips/button positioning/steam holes were designed for a stylist who works on someone elses hair. It was awkward to hold the correct way while working on my own hair (accidently press buttons or trap steam under my hair)
I'd recommend the more basic CHI, or a different brand all together.

This really is a great flat iron. It straightens your hair super fast and it stays straight even in humidity. I highly recommend it, even though it is rather expensive it is totally worth it!

I purchased my Chi Wet to Dry iron from Discount Jungle online. The iron works great - when it works! After 2 months of minimal use, it started turning off in the middle of my styling for no reason. Discount Jungle gave me a replacement and the same thing happened after 3 months. This time the temperture display would zero out and then it wouldn't turn on at all. Discount Jungle wouldn't replace it and neither would Farouk since I bought it online. It's a shame because it really styled well. I only used it about 2-3 times per week and it was never subjected to any physical abuse. It's just a bad product. My hair sytlist had trouble with hers as well. Try a different iron or at least buy it directly from Farouk so you can use the warranty.