Dyson Corrale Hair Straightener

The new Dyson Corrale hair straightener is the result of seven years research, 25 dead engineers? and millions of dollars as James Dyson applies the time-worn formula of seeing a problem and fixing it with exquisitely engineered and eye-watering priced solutions.

?None of Dyson’s 5800 engineers were harmed in the development of the Dyson Corrale Hair Straightener. Although the volume of human hair needed for testing affected wigmakers globally.

Now let me tell you that I am not the best person to write about the new Dyson Corrale Hair Straightener. Follicly challenged, haven’t owned a comb in years. Never used one!

GadgetGirl will review the Dyson Corrale Hair Straightener soon – here is what we know

Hair straighteners 101 – how to toast your hair in one easy lesson

The majority of hair straighteners use fat, finger-sized, flat ceramic, tourmaline or metal heating pads on a v-shaped clamp. Some have corrugated pads (crimping); some add steam, and some have curves for curling.

Heat is from mains power and controlled by a simple thermistor – the elements are on when the heat is below a pre-set temperature and off when it reaches that temperature.

Dyson Corrale Hair Straightener — Hair straighteners that are left on are a major cause of home fires

Hair straightening is akin to ironing your hair and applying a downwards pressure to straighten it. It is just like toasting your hair and usually results in heat damage or even worse – burning – and who can stand that burnt hair smell.

And that is what Dyson set out to fix with the Dyson Corrale Hair Straightener!

Its hair science laboratory provided the science to develop the Dyson Supersonic and the Dyson Air Wrap.

It found that

Most hair straighteners use excessive heat (usually around 230°). It found that a) fragile/brittle hair should not use one, fine hair needs somewhere in the range of 140-160°, normal hair 160-180° and thick hair 180-240°
Clamping pressure (Close the tongs and swipe downwards) is often too high
Most consumers use tongs three to five times on each hair bang (a small clutch of hair).
That the four basic hair types (and several sub-sets of thickness) needed vastly different settings to straighten hair. Basic thermistor temperature adjustment is too crude to meet multiple hair types
The power cord gets in the way of easy use
It is hard to carry a straightener for ‘emergency touch-ups.’
And the science needed to address: the size of the plate (length and depth); its edge profile (sharp to arrised); plate material (Titanium for curly/coarse, Ceramic for cheap and partially effective and Tourmaline/ionic for damaged hair); and to solve one-sized fits all approach

The result of most hair straighteners is burnt hair – not dissimilar to the issues facing overly hot hairdryers and stylers.

What a challenge

Now as previously advised this means little to me so here I go

Heat: 165, 185 and 210° settings and Dyson’s advice is to start at the lowest temperature and try it first
Heat-up time: Less than 10 seconds from activation (most are 30 seconds)
Heat control: monitors 100 times a second instead of a simple thermistor on/off
Cord or cordless or both: Dyson developed a magnetic snap on 360° cord while incorporating four lithium-ion rechargeable cells for 35-minutes hands-free use. 40 minutes for a 90% recharge using the supplied cradle or cable – portable
Auto-turn off after 10 minutes (user adjustable)
Aeroplane mode (seriously) for in-cabin transport approved by most airlines
And a totally new design for plates

Plates for all hair types

Dyson has developed a .65 micron thick (about the width of a human hair) plate made from manganese copper that flexes, hence the name Corrale (meaning gather together and confine). A typical flat-plate straightener subjects the bang to dissimilar pressures, forcing the edge of the bang outwards. Dyson’s curved plates form a gentle corrale that keeps hair together and applies a uniform clamping pressure.

The flexible plate is indirectly heated – there are no embedded elements and hot spots. Instead, the elements are under the plate and a magic defuser material transfers it to the plates.

The result (and I have seen this with my eyes) is that Dyson can achieve perfect straightness in a single pass whereas the others require three to five passes at higher heat and pressure.

While Dyson acknowledges that no straightener is perfect, but it does far less damage and the cordless design is easier to use.