SmoothSkin Bare Ultrafast IPL Hair Removal System - Black

I'm updating this review as I test the product over a longer period of time.11.2016:I'm so pleased with this that I decided to post my first ever review. I've had another IPL device for a few years and I did see good hair reduction when I used it, but I always gave up with it because it just took too long and felt like a chore. I paid around 400 pounds for that device. At that stage, I think home IPL was basically just a nice idea, but only for those who could put in the time, effort and money. This I think is really a game changer. It's as fast and easy as using e.g. an epilator, but without the pain. The lamp flashes pretty much as quickly as you move your hand. I don't see it getting much faster than that. And it's more moderately priced than previous IPLs. I think it really could replace shaving, even for lazy people like myself.I just hope it's well enough powered that it prevents hair regrowth for a good amount of time. I found it quite difficult before I bought it to find any technical specs in comparison to other models. The flashes certainly seem bright though - much brighter than my previous device. I'll update this review in a few months when I find out how effective it is.Update 1.1.17:I found some info now online about its power. Apparently it is 3J/cm2. My previous device was 4J/cm2. The SmoothSkin Gold is 4-6J/cm2.So this model is quite low intensity, which is one reason why it is so fast and pain free. If I had known it was low intensity, I might not have ordered it, since I have pale skin and dark hair, and can therefore stand higher intensity, with presumably more permanent results. However, I am still glad that I bought it. It is so fast that I don't think twice about using it, whereas my old device was so slow that I kept procrastinating and never got to see real results. The SmoothSkin Gold would have been faster than my old device, but still a lot slower than this (from what I've understood, the Ultrafast is two-three times the speed of the Gold on its highest power setting).So far I've used this device 5 times. My legs are nearly hair-free now between the weekly treatments, though underarms/bikini are taking longer. I'm really happy with that. When I reach 12 weekly treatments, I'll see if I can cut down to bi-weekly or monthly treatments. If I end up having to use this device every 2 weeks for years, I won't care, since it is so quick. If I have to use it every week, it will still be way better than waxing or shaving, but I might wish I had bought a more powerful model.I'll update this again in a couple of months.Update 21.2.17:I'm taking one star off now because I'm a little bit disappointed. I have now reached 12 weekly treatments and I'm not yet hair-free between treatments. It might be that I had too high expectations, but I am beginning to wish that I had bought a more powerful device after all (like the smooth skin gold or braun silk-expert). I made really good progress over the first 5 weeks, but after that the results have been slower. The device itself also slows down now noticeably about half way through each treatment - but that may just be a fault in my device (or the power-adapter I'm using), so I'll see if I can get that fixed somehow.I'm reducing one star now, but still giving it 4 stars on the assumption that I will eventually be hair free between weekly treatments and I can get the device back up to hyper-speed. Then it will still be a really good product! But if it ends up being too weak and not even that fast anymore, I'll reduce the stars again and recommend the more powerful version. I'll update again after a month or two.2.5.17.I'm definitely now wishing that I had bought a more powerful device. I haven't seen much progress since week 5/6, and I've been using it weekly for five months (though I did skip a week last month). It has worked pretty well on my legs - the hair is much reduced between treatments (though not totally hair-free). But it has had little effect elsewhere. Also the device is still slowing down half way through a treatment. I'm disappointed! I'm still giving it 3 stars because of the speed, because it worked ok on my legs, and because I'm hoping it will eventually work elsewhere. It is also probably still the best device for someone with medium skin tone (since you can't use high energy settings on darker skin tones in any case). But I wish I had known that it was underpowered before I bought it.26.8.17I wanted to post my final verdict on this, having used it faithfully every week for ten months. I wish I had spent the money and time on a more powerful device. This has definitely significantly decreased regrowth on my legs, but I am still not hair-free between weekly treatments and there has been no more progress in the last 4 or 5 months. And it has made little difference on underarms and bikini line. It just isn't powerful enough. It might still be the best device for people with light hair and/or darker skin tone, who cannot use high power devices anyway. And it might be powerful enough for people with finer, weaker hair. But for those with pale skin and dark hair, who can stand a higher power settings, it's definitely worth investing in a powerful device. I wish I had bought for example the braun silk-expert or the smooth skin gold. And I wish I had known about the power difference before I spent the money on this.It also turns out that my device slowing down during the treatment is normal. At least according to customer service. The device starts as fast as advertised but then gradually slows down as the lamp heats up. I suspect that happens with the more powerful devices as well, but it still seems like false advertising to me.I'm sorry to end on such a negative note, having started so positively. I'm still happier with this than the very slow, weak device I bought years ago - which I ended up not even using at all. But I do think there are better options now. I'm not sure whether to give it two or three stars in the end. I'll stick with three, since at least I kept using it and it did make a difference.10.17Reducing now to two stars, since after nearly one year of faithful weekly use, I'm finally out of steam. I'm not motivated any more to keep up the weekly treatments when I'm still not hair free between treatments, have only seen a reduction in leg hair anyway and have made no more progress in many months. I feel like I wasted my time, money and enthusiasm, and I don't want others to make the same mistake. If others have had better long term results, that's great. I hope there are other long term reviews that inspire more hope. But this is my verdict.

I own the SS Gold device already; having received the new SS device to test I can give some early indications of results. I may come back to update this review in a few weeks.ABOUT ME: I am in my early 40s, and of Pakistani heritage, so have mid-olive skin (albeit with a warm [red/orange/yellow] base tone, rather than cool [blue/purple]). The closest European approximation is a southern European person in a sunny climate, not suntanned to nut brown, but definitely not white! This is an important prerequisite because many IPLs won't work on darker skin tones. This was one of the main things that swayed me to the SS brand - you really can be quite brown to use it (plus it's beautifully designed and lovely to look at).Much of this review will be about the *original SS Gold* device because I owned and used. In terms of the new smaller SS Black Bare device, I would say on results so far:- just as good and as potent as the SS Gold (if not more…?)- much faster than the SS Gold (hurrah!)- fantastic value as number of flashes are unlimited I think? Unlike the Gold- *much* easier to handle and use on tricky areas like upper lip and chin and armpits.I will now review the SS Gold and then mention the new SS Bare. First of all, to say that the original SS Gold device was life-changing for me is not an exaggeration. I bought it principally to win the battle against chin and upper lip hair. Ladies, you know how it goes...mid-thirties onwards or after kids, the unwanted facial hairs start rearing their horrid little heads, and tweezing goes up from once a month to once a week - or worse. One day it occurred to me that I should fix the problem once and for all, before the darn things turn white (and useless for any IPL device), and I end up with a white goatee to rival Tom Jones's. I also thought I may as well sort out armpits and lower legs with the SS device as well (I am otherwise more or less hairless on my body but get awful ingrown hairs on my legs and dark shadows in my armpits when shaving).I used the SS Gold as instructed, and after about two months, I ceased shaving my armpits (only a few fine hairs left), my legs had hugepatches totally devoid of hair so mostly sorted, my arms were almost hair free, and all but the most stubborn of my facial hair has gone. What more can I say? My skin is baby smooth. It has been AMAZING and transformative. The only place where I've found hair is more resistant, bizarrely, is my thighs. My leg hair there is very fine anyway and maybe that's the challenge. I don't know... I'm still trying to zap.Now the new device, which I was sent to consumer test, WOW! Now my lower legs are devoid of all hair *after one use* - this is not an exaggeration (remember my baseline was nearly all hair gone with the Gold device). And I've managed to catch the last little hairs in my armpits and on my chin and upper lip. My theory is that the new Bare device is easier to manoeuvre so no hair can escape its beam on curved body parts.Drawbacks of the new device: as with the old one, it won’t work on my bikini line because my natural skin tone there is too dark from years of too much hair removal. If you're tanned and buying mainly for your bikini line, you might be disappointed if you are darker 'down there'. That's not the device's fault, it's Mother Nature's (or my own!). The only other drawback is that I find the light pulse much brighter with the new Bare device, so I have been wearing sunglasses when using. But not an issue at all for me.Finally, just to say that compared to other devices on the market, the SS ones are as beautiful to look at as they are to use. Absolutely fantastic all round, I love, love, love, both devices! At £199 and unlimited flashes, this one I think is an absolute steal.In conclusion, it is as my headline says: SS is the best money I have ever spent. And I cannot thank whoever invented and designed them enough.