Braun Series 7 720s-4 Electric Foil Shaver

I have always used electric shavers and have tried many brands, including Philips, Remington and several Braun models. Until the purchase of the Braun 720s-4 I have been somewhat dissatisfied with all of them.I was apprehensive about buying a Series 7 Braun because it was both expensive and had a dual cutter similar to the one used on the Braun 5614 - which was easily the worst shaver I have ever used. My concern was ill-founded because after 4 months of use I can say that the Braun 720s-4 is by far the best shaver that I have ever used.The dual floating head is so much more effective than the fixed type of dual head used on the 5614, and it ensures that the cutters are always in maximum contact with the face. Using a pre-electric shaving lotion helps to raise the whiskers, lubricates the skin, and importantly also lubricates the cutters. From experience with previous shavers the speed of the cutter is one of the main factors for getting a good shave, and in this respect the 720s-4 excels - the Series 7 is probably the fastest of them all, by far. The cutter head can be locked to prevent rotation and make shaving under the nose easier, but I find that the lock offers little benefit.Three operating modes are provided - sensitive, normal and intensive. They appear to slightly change the cutter speed, but I always use the intensive mode without any effect upon my skin. For me the adjustment seems to be a feature with little benefit.The shaver is about the same size as most other Braun shavers, has a soft plastic body for grip and feels comfortable and well-weighted in the hand. The long-hair trimmer is easy to use; a push of the thumb extends the trimmer from its flush position in the body. The durability of the trimmer mechanism has been questioned by some users, but the simple mechanism appears to be quite robust and should prove durable over time. Overall the ergonomics of the shaver are first class and far better than all other shavers that I have ever used.The battery is a Li-ion type, and is both powerful and of high capacity. It provides me with about 21 shaves, and numerous cleanings, before the low battery indicator comes on. Also, very importantly, the reduction in shaver speed between fully charged and discharged is minimal, and has only a small effect upon the quality and speed of the shave. With all previous shavers - especially those using Ni-Cad/NiMH batteries - the reduction of voltage over the discharge period has meant that the speed of the cutter, and hence the quality of the shave, dramatically reduces over the period of discharge. In this respect the 720s-4 is superb and continues to provide an excellent shave over the whole of the discharge period. If the battery does fully discharge, the shaver can also be operated from the supplied mains adapter/charger. Charging is very fast (around an hour) and 5 minutes charges the battery enough for at least one shave.A green LED indicator blinks during charging, and during use. A red LED indicates when the charge is down to the last 2 shaves, although I find more than 2 can easily be achieved.What can I say about the noise it makes? Yes, it makes a buzzing noise but it is not loud enough to cause any problems.Cleaning the head is just about as easy as it can be - short of using a Braun Clean & Renew system. I use a squirt of liquid soap onto the cutters and wash the shaver, with cutting head attached and the shaver running, under a stream of hot water. Remove the cutter, rinse, blow off excess water and leave to dry before reattaching to shaver. Cleaning takes about a couple of minutes. The best results are obtained by cleaning after every use, but quite good results are achieved by cleaning after every other shave. It is not advisable to only clean after more than 3 shaves. A Braun Clean & Renew system (Part No: 67090900) can be purchased separately.The shaver comes complete with a Braun 5210 charger and a black cloth-covered semi-rigid zipped travel case. Although the black cloth cover looks good when new it could become very soiled over time, especially if it gets wet or contaminated. The case only holds the shaver; there is no room for the shaver and charger. There is no hard plastic protector provided, which leaves the cutter heads exposed to accidental damage between shaves, unless the zipped case is used.Best shaving results are achieved by using a pre-electric shaving lotion, stretching the skin, and moving the shaver against the direction of the stubble. The resulting shave, with a clean cutter and a fully charged battery, is probably as close as it is possible to get to a conventional wet shave - the best shaves I have ever had with an electric shaver. The Braun 720s-4 is the shaver I have been trying to find for too many years - just superb!

I have been a wet shaver for the past 20 years. A year ago, ish, I decided to buy a Braun Series 3 on the no quibble money back guarantee. Initially, I was impressed but after about 3-4 weeks I decided that the cut just wasn't close enough so I switched back to wet shaving. Now I should point out that I do not suffer with razor burn and quite enjoy the experience, but I just thought I would see what the latest electric shaver could offer, also taking into consideration the frankly ridiculous price of blades!!More recently I started to read reviews about the series 7 and thought that maybe I ought to have another go with an electric shaver. After doing some research I concluded that the 720 without the clean and renew should be just as good as the 790. Bearing in mind I had the clean and renew with my previous Series 3 I was really not bothered about having it again. Therefore, I ordered the 720 and got it at a cracking price on Amazon so the risk to me was low. I figured if it was no better than the Series 3 then I would either sell it or just keep it for holidays.Lets cut to the chase. The shave itself is not quite as close as wet shave. If I had to put it into percentage terms I would say it was about 95% as close as wet shave. In terms of the actual appearance of your face there is really no difference between the shave it produces and a wet shave, however, when you run your hand across your face you can feel very short stubble, unlike a wet shave for me where you can't really feel anything. It took me about 5 weeks to get used to using it effectively. It terms of time it doesn't save me any compared to a wet shave, but its no hassle, it cannot nick your skin, there are no consumables to worry about and it also looks and feels good too. It charges in 60 minutes and using it every day I get 2 weeks out of it, which I think is great. It feels well made and cleaning could not be simpler. Shave and then simply click the cassette off and run it under the tap. I can say from experience that this actually cleans it more effectively than the clean and renew, so save yourself the money.I thought I would update this as I previously scored it 5 stars but I have gone back to wet shaving after using this for several months. It is good but I just can't escape the fact that the wet shave is better. I actually find that I can wet shave quicker than using an eletric and I don't like shaving before I get into the shower. I would say if you suffer with wet shaving then use one of these but if you don't have a problem with wet shaving then stick with a razor as its simply better.

This was bought as a replacement for a Panasonic ES-RT31, which started well but would then run out of charge, with no warning, after two or three days.I have never paid more than £50 for razors in the past, so in the hope that 'You get what you pay for' I paid £129 for this razor, delivery included, via Amazon Marketplace.The razor is brand new and sealed - only the box is a little tatty - so I was delighted with the price and swift delivery by Electro-Directnet.The razor itself looks a little garish by German standards, but it clearly states it is made in Germany so I just need to get used to modern German styling. The shave it gives is indeed pretty close, with less need to go over various parts of the face several times. Whether this is just because it's new, or whether it's the hi-tech sonic feature, I've no idea. It has a two year guarantee, good to know because the electric motor works quite hard. It is sealed, so can also be used in the shower.It also has three 'personalisation' settings, for sensitive, normal and insensitive skin. I've been using the 'insensitive' setting in the hope of a quicker, better shave - no blood or rash so far ...Having finished shaving there is a clear indication of remaining charge, and anyway it can be used plugged directly into the electrical socket should the need arise.The charging lead is far less bulky than the Panasonic, which was so heavy it would pull itself out of the socket.It comes with a neat little travel case, a brush and some shaver oil.So far so good then; only time will tell whether it was indeed worth the extra money in the long run.