I love Paul Mitchell products and the whole ethos of the company. Although the man himself passed away, the same people who set the business up with him are still running the company since it started in the early eighties and they still aim to make the best hair products on the market.
I recently wrote reviews for Paul Mitchell hair dryers but I was disappointed to discover that there were no decent write ups and reviews on their products, especially their hair straighteners. A while ago I have collated a load of video reviews including comparisons to other makes like Chi but decided that was not enough.
That is why I decided to create these reviews, to help you dear reader find the best Paul Mitchell hair straightener for you. I must warn you that I am very biased because I love these hair straighteners a lot but I will include negative comments if I think they are helpful.
On this page we will be looking at the hair straighteners in the range. They fall under two categories, the Pro Tools and the Neuro range. If the item has the name style in it, then the plate is one inch thick, if it says smooth then it is 1.25″ wide.
Paul Mitchell Protools Express Ion Style 1″ / Smooth 1.25″ / Smooth + plus
The Express Ion range has cushioned ceramic plates, bevelled edges and heats up to 400°F in a minute. There is an adjustable heat dial located on the bottom of the straightener, next to the on/off switch. The dial lets you easily adjust the temperature from its lowest setting of 240°F to its maximum setting of 400°F. This is something you cannot do with GHD straighteners.
This is why I think adjustable heat is so important in a straightener. If you have fine or thin or even medium thick hair you can easily damage it by constantly using the highest heat settings on a flat iron. Reducing the heat means you can straighten your hair whilst protecting it from heat damage. If you have much thicker or coarse hair, you can turn the heat up to straighten your hair. The other bonus of adjustable heat is that this hair straightener is suitable for all hair types.
To use the straightener I tend to place a comb into the section I want to straighten. I run the straightener through my hair as it follows the comb. A lot of users say that saw the difference immediately and couldn't believe how silky their hair felt and how straight it was.
Comments also loved the fact that the flat iron does a lot more than simply straighten hair. Basically, if you twist a small section of your hair around the iron and pull down, you get this lovely curl effect and also create beautiful waves as well.
The swivel cord is nine feet long so you don't have to hunch over the electrical socket when straightening your hair. It is also very energy efficient using just 75 watts of electricity.
The plates themselves are made with a combination of ceramic and silicone and use ion technology to help produce a silky glossy finish and maintain your hairs moisture. They are a nice slim size which means that you can straighten very close to your scalp.
So what do actual users say about the product? One reviewer said "It really does created magazine-smooth hair, without sucking the volume out of my strands." It is also really good at removing static build up in your hair and flyaways.
June Update - For some reason the regular version does not display an image at Amazon. However, wanted confirmation that this was indeed the dial model and three people confirmed that it was.
Plus + verses regular
The only difference between the regular and + model is how you change the temperature. The regular has a dial that is like a thermostat on the top. It allows you to set the temperature exactly how you want it. The plus model has an LCD digital display on the top. Like the Neuro range, the buttons for adjusting the heat are on the inside. Having spent some time researching this product I noticed that in some places like ebay people will list a flat iron as + when it is in fact not. The way to check is look at the picture and see if it has a dial or an LCD display.
Disadvantages
The Protools express ion smooth flat iron is not dual voltage which means that you cannot use it in Europe.
It only comes with a 12 month warranty compared to 2 years from GHD.
This model does not an have automatic shut off feature.
Conclusion
If you are looking for a high quality straightener this this Paul Mitchell flat iron is a great choice for people who prefer ceramic plates. It has adjustable heat settings and it works really well on nearly every hair type.
Paul Mitchell Neuro Smooth 1.25″/Style 1″
The Neuro range use the latest advances in technology to give you not only chic looking products but also effective tools with lots of options. That's what the official page says but what does that mean exactly?
The Paul Mitchell Neuro flat iron offers lots of customizable options in a digitized straightener. Features include:
- LCD digital display
- Heats up to desired temperature in thirty seconds. Will even heat up to 450 degrees in this time!
- 2.7m swivel cord that also has a hanging loop. This gives you plenty of space to move around and you are less likely to trip over it.
- It comes with a 12 month warranty that can be upgraded to 2 years if you send proof of purchase to the company.
- Titanium IsoTherm 1.25" plate with bevelled edges. It's also cushioned which gives extra protection to your hair. Titanium outperforms traditional ceramic irons.
Technology that keeps heat consistent
Heat Settings
This is a hair straightener with a lot of flexibility and options. You can either set the heat to exactly what you want or you can set it for your hair type. Just in case you didn't know, these are the settings for different hair types:
If you are not sure what hair type you have then ask you hair stylist. When you set the temperature, the flat iron beeps and you can also see the desired temp on the display screen. You can use the Paul Mitchell neuro smooth flat iron to do more than just straighten. In fact you can use it to flip or wave your hair. To do this simply close the Neuro smooth over the hair at the place where you wish the wave to begin and rotate it 180 degrees. Then, with firm tension, slowly pull the iron through the hair clockwise all the way through the ends.
One of the things you will hear a lot about is the special chip. Basically what this does is check the temperature of the straightener fifty times a second to ensure that it maintains the heat you set it to. What this means is that when the heat stays consistent you only need to run the flat iron over sections of hair once because it keeps it at the desired heat.
The Paul Mitchell Neuro flat iron has a safety feature on the plug. One blade is wider than the other so that it will only fit one way. This gives a tighter more reliable connection and reduces the risk of it being yanked out of the plug and causing serious damage. Like we said before, there are a lot of things you can adjust on this straightener. You can even set the auto shut off time to anything between 0 to 2 hours.
I imagine 2 hours is best suited in a salon but at home you probably want to set it for 20-30 minutes.
In terms of negative reviews there have been a few. Some of them are to do with the flat irons breaking and sadly Paul Mitchell support has not always been as helpful as it could be. There is definitely room for improvement in this department. However, some of these issues sound as though people have not been looking after it properly.
When a product is this expensive it is really important that you look after it well. You can find out how to do that and discover more about the warranty by reading the instruction leaflet pdf here.
Conclusion
This really is a great product for people who prefer titanium plates. Anything that you think a flat iron should have, Paul Mitchell has probably added it to this straightener. People say it is a pleasure to use and makes their hair look shiny and feel smooth. It keeps hair straight for a long time as well.
Although not cheap it is a similar price to GHD and other high end straighteners. The price has dropped again in recent months making it more affordable than ever before.
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