Philips Norelco 9800 Electric Razor Review: The Future of Shaving

ESSENTIALLY, ELECTRIC RAZORS have one job: To give you a smooth, close shave. But shaving, like any industry, is ripe with innovation. Developments in electric razors are usually intended to make the shaving experience faster, easier, more effective and more comfortable. I’m here to tell you that, as a grooming editor and electric razor user for over 10 years who has tried just about every electric razor on the market, sometimes these innovations actually do achieve that goal and sometimes they don’t. Luckily, the Philips Norelco 9800 Electric Razor is not one of those duds.

This luxury razor is packed to the gills with innovation. In fact, it’s one of the most tricked-out, futuristic razors I have ever used. Sure, sometimes all of the techy features in this device can be overwhelming or a little confusing. But the bottom line is that whether you utilize them to their full extent or not, this razor gives one of the best shaves you can get with an electric razor.

It really all comes down to the powerful motor and the three rotary shaving heads that this razor utilizes to their full potential to power through stubble, leaving behind baby-smooth skin and one of the closest shaves I’ve experienced. This is why we’ve named it the best rotary head electric razor. I was especially impressed by the SkinGlide coating on the blades, which allows them to glide over your skin comfortably and helps to minimize potential post-shave irritation. My typically sensitive skin had no sign of redness or razor burn after using the Philips Norelco 9800 and I chalk that up, in large part, to this feature.

Personally, not all of the features are a hit in my book, like the AI-powered accompanying app and the cleaning pod, but when you have a razor with literally every feature you can think of (and some that you didn’t know existed), not all of them are going to be necessary for every person. However, if you are willing to shell out the money for a truly top-of-the-line electric razor, this one is one of the best you can get. Read on for everything you need to know about the Philips Norelco 9800.

SHOP THE PHILIPS NORELCO 9800

When I say the Philips Norelco 9800 is packed with features, I really mean it. I haven’t come across another razor, even other luxury razors at similar price points, that have quite as many features packed into them. Let’s start with the most important: the motor and blades. The 9800 uses three rotary blades situated on a three-part flexing head that allows them to hug the contours of your face closely and effortlessly. For the uninitiated, rotary blades are designed to cut in 360 degrees (versus a linear foil blade) that alleges to mimic the hair growth pattern of your beard, minimizing the need to go over the same areas multiple times.

The rotary blades of the 9800 also feature a proprietary “Lift and Cut” design that the brand says helps to lift whiskers away from your skin allowing them to be cut more easily and a SkinGuard coating that helps them glide over your skin more comfortably minimizing irritation. These blades are fueled by a powerful internal motor that boasts 150,000 cuts per minute, one of the highest CPM rates on the market. This all works together to deliver a shockingly fast and super smooth shave.

In addition to the hardware, the 9800 features a pressure guard sensor that uses an integrated light-up ring around the razor head to alert you when you are using the proper amount of pressure or not. If it glows blue, you’re not pressing hard enough; if it’s red, you’re pressing too hard; if it’s green, then you’re right on the money. The thought here is that the optimal amount of pressure on your skin will deliver the best shave.

There is also a Power Adapt Sensor which senses the density of your stubble and automatically adjusts power for optimal shaving (this sort of feature is now pretty much standard in luxury shavers). In addition to these, and perhaps most futuristically, the shaver pairs with an AI-driven Philips Shaving App for your phone. When paired with the device it can track things like your shaving time, pressure and more, as well as offer you tips on how to shave more effectively. You can also easily adjust settings for your razor in the app, which is a little bit easier than trying to do them on the device itself.

Additional features, like an LED display, travel lock, quick-charge capabilities, and long battery life (60 minutes!) are welcome but also expected in a razor at this price point. I especially like the OLED display which can show more than just the battery life (it’s how you can toggle through settings and adjust them on the razor itself instead of using the app). It also comes with a cleaning station that has the smallest footprint of any cleaning station I’ve used before, and purports to fully clean the razor in one minute flat. However, the pod doesn’t charge the razor—there is an included charging stand for that.

I’m going to preface this by saying that I generally prefer to use a shaver with linear foil blades rather than rotary blades. That’s not to say that I believe one is better than the other, but which one you choose is really a personal preference in how you like to shave and how well it works for you.

The benefit of rotary blades is that you can move the shaver in any direction (instead of just up and down) and, since your facial hair typically grows in multiple directions, you theoretically don’t need to go over the same areas multiple times to get a smooth shave. Even though I tend to use shavers with linear foil blades, I found the experience of using the Philips Norelco 9800 very pleasant and comfortable and I found the end result to be a very close, irritation-free shave.

For me, being able to move the shaver in any direction on my face was a good experience that provided a quick, close shave. And while I can’t say for sure how much of a difference the Lift and Cut design played, I will note that I had absolutely no pulls or tugs on my whiskers while using this razor. The one feature of the blades that I did notice a substantial difference with was the SkinGlude coating, which truly makes the blades move across the surface of my skin more smoothly than the other razors I’m used to using. I’m sure this played a large part in the fact that I had absolutely no post-shave irritation when using this razor.

I liked the Pressure Sensor feature with the light-up ring, as well, which showed me when I was applying the right amount of pressure on my skin. At first, I found myself focusing a bit too much on the color of the light (gamified grooming!) but once I got the hang of it, I found that I was able to apply the correct pressure more consistently. So not only did the light stop changing colors as often, but I stopped noticing it as much.

The accompanying AI-driven app was fun to play around with and features visual aids like graphs to show my :shaving progress.” However, after a few days of using it, I kind of forgot about it and just started to use the razor by itself. The app is handy for adjusting the razor settings more easily than on the device itself and if you’re into metrics, it’s fun to look at, but I don’t believe it is essential to the shaving experience—particularly if you’re trying to get it done quickly.

I love the shave that the Philips Norelco 9800 gives my face, but the one thing I’ll note about the head design is that with rotary blades of this type, it’s hard to work around facial hair. When using a shaver with a linear foil design, it’s somewhat easier to work around facial hair like mustaches and beards, but with this device’s triangle-shaped head design it’s hard to get close enough to hair to give even the semblance of an edge.

There is a pop-up trimmer integrated into the design, which is good for things like sideburns, but I found that it doesn’t provide a close enough cut to give sharp edges to my mustache. However, I loved the shave that this razor gave so much that I was okay using a separate device to edge and trim my mustache while shaving the bulk of my face with the 9800. That being said, I understand many people may want one device that does it all, so I think the 9800 is truly best for people who like a completely clean shave.

There is no mistaking it—this is a luxury razor. There are multiple bundle options available, but the base price of this razor is $239.96, which includes the cleaning station and a travel case (other more expensive bundles include things like the charge stand and cleaning station refills). That price may be high for many people, but when you consider how packed with features this device is, it’s understandable that the price is so high. Given the comfortable and quick experience I had using this razor and the fact that it delivers an incredibly smooth, close shave in record time, I think if you’re willing to shell out the money for a device like this, the Philips Norelco 9800 is worth the investment.

One good thing about this Philips Norelco 9800 is that it comes standard with a cleaning station. That cleaning station is also one of the smallest versions I’ve tried, which is great for people with limited counter space in your bathroom (you can even keep it in a drawer when you’re not using it). Keep in mind that, unlike many other cleaning stations from similar shavers, this one does not also charge the device when you’re using it. I found that the station cleans the razor very quickly (in about one minute) and is great for maintaining it between shaves, however, there was some eventual hair buildup in the razor so you’ll still want to clean it by hand every so often as the station isn’t perfect.

To clean the device by hand, the head of the razor flips up on a hinge with the press of a button, which is a very nice design touch—with many other razors you have to remove the head completely. You can run the device under your faucet to clean it simply and easily since it’s fully waterproof. I found that doing this about once a week in addition to using the cleaning station every day was the best way to keep this razor clean and hair-free.

The Philips Norelco 9800 is not just one of the most feature-packed electric shavers on the market. It also delivers one of the smoothest, closest shaves I’ve had from such a device. If you are a fan of rotary head shavers and are willing to shell out for a luxury product that goes above and beyond to give you a near-effortless shave, the 9800 is one of the best options you can possibly find.

SHOP THE PHILIPS NORELCO 9800

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