Customer Reviews

Panasonic ES8095NC Electric Shaver (Black)

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Folks,

This is a public service announcement... the following is an excerpt from an email exchange with Panasonic about the difference between the 8095NC and the 8092NC. Please read on.

My message to Panasonic:

-----Original Message-----
From: <omitted for privacy>
Sent: Saturday, August 21, 2004 1:01 AM
To: PHCC Health
Subject: ES8095NC vs. ES8092NC

Hi,
I have been trying to figure out what is the difference between the ES8095NC and ES8092NC but I have been unable to determine this based on the information on your website. Could you please let me know what is the difference between the two models?

Also, I found ES8096 and ES8097 models listed on google, but they are not listed on your website. What is the story with these models?

Thanks!
-<omitted for privacy>

Panasonic's response:

Dear Panasonic Customer,
Thank you for your inquiry. The model number ES8092NC and ES8095NC Pro-Curve Shavers only differ in the colors they are offered, and the stores where you would be able to purchase those units. All other features are the same.

The other models that you have referenced are products that are produced by Panasonic for specific National Retailers or sales distribution channels. We regret that we do not have specifications of these products to provide you, but can only assume that the differences between these models and our normal models are minor in nature.

Representative <omitted for representative's privacy>
Panasonic Customer Call Center

I have used electric shavers in the past with no variable in the degree of results I obtained....none of them worked on my beard! They left me patchy, irittated and still stubbly! Like many, I was very interested in the Braun Synchro and received one as a Christmas gift. The Braun is a fine shaver and I had better success with it than any other previous electric model. I received the Panasonic Wet Dry as a gift and thought I would try it out. This shaver, for me, shaves AS CLOSE AS A BLADE AND WITHOUT THE IRRITATION! Clean up is quick and easy and you can shave in the shower for the best shave yet. I am still convinced that the Braun is an excellent dry shaver, but for me, the point is when I shave with each doing what each is capable of, I get a better, closer, smoother shave with my Panasonic wet dry. Is it the world's best shaver? You bet, for me at least...and, like autombobiles, different models and brands may better suit other individual beards. Mine is heavy and dark and this shaver mows through it without any nicks or cuts. My recomendation is to try it in the shower with a fog free mirror and with a good shaving oil like The total shaving solution for men. The results are world class. The pricing may make this a hesitant choice for some but the payback on mach III blades is pretty quick...and the results, in my opinion, are better. Five Stars, only because the rating system won't let me use 10!

I bought this shaver at the same time as I purchased a new Norelco 8894XL shaver. Now that I've used both for several weeks, I've found that this shaver has several advantages and a one disadvantage over the Norelco:

Advantanges:
1. This shaver gives me a much, much closer shave than my Norelco.
2. This shaver causes much less irritation than my Norelco.
3. The shaver comes with a stand charger which charges inductively. This means that to charge the shaver, just put in in the stand. You don't have to hook-up any cables like you do with the Norelco.
4. The instructions recommend wet-shaving with the razor, and, having done it, I must say that it is quite an experience. The easiest way to wet-shave is in the shower, but since I don't have a mirror in there, its hard to see when I'm done. The razor works very well dry.

Disadvantanges:
1. You have to shave directly with or against the grain of your beard or it won't work. I assume that this is a function of any linear shaver. With Norelco rotary razors, you don't have to shave quite as consistently with the grain of your beard. As a result, it takes a lot longer to shave using this razor. Typically, I can shave in under a minute with a Norelco rotary shaver, but with this razor, it can take as long as five minutes to get a good shave. In the end, however, this razor does a better job than the Norelco.

Face it, shaving sucks. Luckily, I was able to avoid it for the first 26 years of life, even during basic training at Ft. Benning, where running a disposable blade across my face was little more than an exercise in nicking and forestalling the wraith of a drill sergeant. Sadly, over the past few years I've reached the point where shaving every day is a necessity, and God knows how much money I've pissed away on Mach III cartridges over the past couple of years.

I guess complaining about the Mach III is poor form, since it's the best razor (by far) in the history of mankind. That said, I've found that each razor is good for one burn-free shave, which winds up costing a lot of dough to keep in the medicine cabinet.

Which is why the Panasonic kicks ass. It gives as good a shave as the Mach III without ANY of the associated skin irritation, thanks in large part to it's ability to cut through shaving cream and water (i.e. it can be used in the shower). It's a snap to clean, and has a computerized readout of the remaining battery charge. Buy it without any hesitation.

I've used Norelco and Remington electric shavers off and on since high school. Because of their poor performance I've been reluctant to invest over $100 in a Panasonic that may not perform any better. Only because of the strength of the reviews I've found online did I decide to go ahead and make the plunge.

There are three Panasonic models that appear to be identical except for color (8092, 8095 & 8152). I sent an email to Panasonic to confirm this, but have never received a reply. I purchased the 8095 only because Amazon had a special where with the purchase of Panasonic items over $129 they would send a $50 certificate towards future Amazon purchases. This brought the effective price down to just under $100.

For the last few years I've been using the Gillette Mach 3 Turbo with decent results. My face is sensitive and my beard grows in many different directions so shaving with a blade has been slow and painful. I'm always left with nicks, razor bumps and razor burn. There are also always a few little spots where I never get as close of a shave as I would like.

I purposely did not shave this morning since I was expecting the new Panasonic this afternoon. As soon as it arrived I placed it in its charging base. The battery indicator showed a 20% charge. I left it in the charger for about 30 minutes to indicate a full 100% charge.

Like the instructions indicated, I used shaving foam and probably took about 5 minutes to shave my entire face. Hopefully after using the shaver for a while I will be able to shave in 3 minutes or less.

The instructions state that it will take about 30 days for my beard and skin to get used to the new shaver. If my first shave is any indication, after 30 days I will absolutely never consider going back to a blade. I have a shave that is every bit as close as a blade if not even closer. No nicks, no razor bumps and little razor burn. Even after only my very first shave I feel very comfortable in recommending this shaver to anyone that is fed up with using a blade.

My skin tends to be a little sensitive, and blade nicks cause me to bleed far too long. Electric shavers are nice, but don't cut close enough, and I prefer to shave in the shower. The newer Norelco's and Braun's looked interesting, but the higher end ones seemed to require some kind of expensive add-ons, in terms of cleaning solution, dispensing face cream and such. I did not want the added complexity. So, the ES8095NC Panasonic seemed to address most of those shortcomings and I decided to spend the extra to give it a try.

It took several days, if not a week, for my beard and the shaver to work together well. Also, this shaver is a little different than most, so it took me a week to figure out how to best use it. The independent heads are really well made, and function very well. Each blade floats independently of the others, and you can see it work as you shave. At first the shaves were relatively slow, and sometimes it shaved so close that I would have slightly irritated areas, but certainly nothing like a blade nick or cut.

Then I tried this shaver against my old electric Norelco and a Braun. For blades, I tried it against the Mach 3 & Quattro blade shavers. In each trial, I would shave half my face with one, half with the other. I also tried shaving with it "dry", just water wet, and with shaving cream. In every case, this Panasonic won or tied. Sometimes it equaled the blade, and a couple times it just flat out won, which truly surprised me. That said, especially in the beginning, it took more effort/time to get a blade close shave. As I get used to using it (develop a habit pattern that works best with it), however, that time is dropping. No nicks or irritation after about 3-4 days of use.

I found the best method is either just after the shower, or in the shower, with a thin layer of shaving cream--not the normal blade shaving cream thickness. More shaving cream does not yield a worse shave, just a longer one as you have to clean the shaver more frequently. Done this way, it shaves amazingly close.

If there is a downside, it is that the battery does not last quite as long as others. I think it would last a week or two of normal shaving without a problem while traveling and such. I think the batteries are NiMH, so top-off charging should not be a problem, and the instructions show how to replace them should they go bad. The charging base is nice and well made. The inductive charging method is a great touch for when the shaver is a little wet (not dripping, but recently used in the shower). The shaver cleans itself very well in that Turbo mode.

The long term will tell more about this shaver, but I am throwing everything else out of the bathroom. For me, it was worth the extra cost.

I'm new to electric shavers and had always heard bad things about them, but I was worn out from shaving with Gillette Sensor, Mach III, and other "manual" razors. Sometimes they were comfortable, but at other times even a brand-new blade was painful. Hoping for a more comfortable shave, I decided to take a chance on an electric. I was even willing to sacrifice some closeness for comfort. Still, I wanted to get the best electric possible, and after reading quite a few reviews here on Amazon I opted for the Panasonic ES8095. The first time I shaved with it was fun and I was surprised at how close it shaved. There were a couple of spots that needed extra work, but I've been using the shaver for two weeks now and have learned how best to approach the various contours of my beard. I've used it both wet and dry with equally good results. Before buying it, I thought that I might return to a Mach III for special occasions when I needed to look extra good, but now I know that won't be necessary. I can't compare this Panasonic to other electric shavers, but I can wholeheartedly recommend it.

I have owned this razor for approx 1 year. For those who do not currently use an electric razor:

The pros:
Quick and easy to use.
Eliminates skin irritation, cuts, and nicks.
Actually shaves closer than a blade. (The real test that sold me was I shaved with a top notch razor as close as I could get, then used the electric afterward, and found the electric was able to cut the minor stubble left over that my razor couldn't cut)

The cons:
It is more expensive than standard razor shaving, but if you use Mach 3 with expensive shave gel and aftershave lotion the cost can actually be cheaper with an electric.
Electric razors are not very good at shaving your neck--it takes practice to get good at it. I found that first I had to let go of everything I used to do with a standard razor--that is an electric can't cut you! Once I realized this, I found that I can get a quick close shave on my neck, but it requires using light pressure and going over my neck up down left right and diagonally, sounds complicated but becomes fast and routine after a couple of months of regular use.

I have been using electric razors for the past 10 years, and in that time this is my third razor. This razor is definitely the best I have ever used, but if price is an issue I can honestly say while this razor is the best, it isn't a ton better than the other Panasonic and Braun razors I owned that cost me about $60.

Performance wise is great wet or dry, basically if your skin is sensitive do it wet, otherwise dry is just as effective. One note regarding a previous review--Electric razors are not meant to be used with shaving cream! It is a waste, in fact it will actually cause you to get a poor shave. Using warm water is much more effective and costs you nothing extra.
Regarding other reviews on possible reliability problems, I did have a battery problem after 8 months. The razor is 100% guaranteed for 1 year. I contacted Panasonic and had to send the razor to SF, 2 weeks later I got my razor back all fixed with no cost to me. I don't know if this is a consistent issue with this razor or a coincidence, but the razor worked great for the first 8 months and after the repairs it has been as good as ever for the last 4 months.

I had owned a Norelco 6885XL rotary for 2+ years before switching to the Panasonic. I was wondering if a linear shaver would be better than the rotary. After using the Panasonic for a few weeks, I found that the Panasonic clearly blows the Norelco away - it gives a closer shave and has wet/dry capability. It's a bit more expensive, but worth it.

This is my first electric shaver, and I love it. I never thought I'd like using an electric shaver--was I wrong. I demand a close shave, and this shaver does not disappoint. Keep in mind, however, that using an electric razor does take a little getting used to.

The first time I used this, my neck got quite irritated. So I followed the instructions and used it for a month. After around a week or two, my face slowly got used to this new shaving method. After using this shaver for a little over a month, I feel that it shaves as close as a triple blade razor with much less irritation.

The wet/dry capabilities are a very nice feature (one of the reasons I purchased it). I use it in the shower with a very rich facial foaming cleanser, which provides excellent lubrication (much better than shaving cream/gel, in my opinion). To get the closest shave, I have to stretch the skin on my neck.

Using an electric does take a little longer than using a razor, but it's well worth it. No more razor bumps, and much less irritation. The one major gripe I have is that it can be difficult for this razor to shave coarse hair really closely. Sometimes it leaves a few very short strands of really coarse stubble, and it can be difficult to shave off. But for most people, I imagine that this shaver shaves close enough. But then again, I do demand a really close shave.