Customer Reviews on Amazon.com

1. 2 of 2 people found this review helpful

   By A. Moreira on Amazon.com 16 August, 2011

   Not good with thick beards.

   I think this beard trimmer would be great if you have finer hair on your face. I have one of those thick bear like beards and this beard trimmer just could not cut it. It tried, and after 10 minutes there was less hair on my face, but my wife was always surprised when I told her that I just trimmed my beard. I like that I can use my rechargeable batteries and they lasted for 30-60 minutes before they needed to be recharged, but overall, I had better things to do than going over and over my beard with this trimmer.
2. 2 of 2 people found this review helpful

   By XtraCredit on Amazon.com 12 February, 2009

   Doesn't cut very good, but good value and no rechargable batteries

   I bought this product for the price and I wanted to opt out of a rechargable shaver, because I am replacing a rechargable shaver in which the batteries went bad. It seems to have trouble cutting my facial hair compared to my previous Conair kit. But it seems well built otherwise, I like that it is waterproof.
   
   It doesn't last too long on a set of batteries, especially since it takes longer to get the job done due to the poor cutting. I'll probably stick with this despite the poor cutting because of simplicity (not tons of attachements to lose or chargers to keep track of or batteries that will go bad) and the waterproof feature, which makes it easy to clean.
   
   Overall you get what you pay for, an inexpensive shaver that gets the job done, and has everything you really need in a self contained unit.
3. 4 of 5 people found this review helpful

   By SirStinky on Amazon.com 14 December, 2011

   LONG TERM UPDATE

   I bought this online 2 years ago when I decided to start growing a beard. I bought this because it was small, lightweight, ergonomic, had 5 cutting adjustments, and was completely waterproof (you can immerse it, unlike some of the more expensive comparable models). Plus, it's a Panasonic. I own several Panasonic devices and they are all really good, so I figured this would be good as well.
   
   My first impressions were mixed. It is small, about 6 inches long and less than 2 inches thick. The body is ergonomically sculpted and is really easy to hold and manipulate. It's also comfortable in my hand. I have only dropped this 3 times that I can remember. It has a removable sliding cutting guard that has 5 height adjustments, from (roughly) 1/8 inch to 1/2 inch. The on/off switch is located at the top under the cutter head assembly and is nice and big, making it easy to manipulate when your hands are wet. It runs on 2 AAA batteries located under a pretty unique battery door. The door is actually a cover on the bottom half of the trimmer. You pull it off to access the batteries and just push it back on when finished. It has a rubber O ring seal to keep water out. It also has self-sharpening stainless steel blades that Panasonic says will last for about 5 years under normal use.
   
   The first time I used it, I was expecting a lot, but unfortunately I wasn't thrilled with it. I wanted to trim my beard very short, like stubble-length, but even on the lowest setting, it wasn't short enough. I actually ended up taking the guide and running it on a sander to shave off some of the top to get it to cut shorter. Also, the trimmer guide is terrible. It doesn't line up or "guide" the hairs into the blades, it sort of pushes them around or moves them off to the sides away from the blades. Some get through and get cut, but it seems like a lot of them are missed and I have to go back over the same spot over and over to get the stragglers. However, the guide is pretty durable and clicks into each adjustment firmly and didn't move on me when I was trimming.
   
   Another issue is that the trimmer doesn't seem to be that powerful. It runs on 2 AAA batteries for 3 volts. That keeps the trimmer compact and lighteright, and it will trim body hair and beards just fine, but my thick whiskers made it bogg down, which is hard on batteries. Speaking of batteries, you will be replacing them about every 2 hours of run time depending on what you are trimming. I did a big overhaul on my beard this morning after letting it grow for a month. It took me 45 minutes to cut it down to size because of the poor cutter guide design, and it went through one set of batteries. The trimmer still worked, but the blades were moving slow and didn't have enough power to completely cut the hairs so it would grab and pull them on occasion (ouch). I wonder why Panasonic didn't make this rechargable? If you want to make this rechargable, go buy some rechargable AAA batteries and a charger. You will get longer run time and save money over time.
   
   On the bright side, I really like how light and compact it is, and the ergonomic design is easy to hold and maneuver while trimming. It is also waterproof so I can take it in the shower without it getting waterlogged. I dropped it in the toilet once (don't worry I cleaned it really good) and it worked just fine after that! The trimmer is made entirely of ABS plastic, and I have dropped this a few times and it is durable. No broken parts, no dents or dings either.
   
   This is also easy to clean. The blade assembly is like a cartridge that can be removed and cleaned inside. It comes with a small brush so you can do that very easily. There are also drain holes that let you run water through the internal mechanism to flush any hairs out. It also came with a little bottle of oil for lubrication.
   
   Pros:
   
   Panasonic quality
   Easy to hold
   Compact
   Lightweight
   Durable
   Completely waterproof
   
   Cons:
   
   Doesn't trim hair evenly or completely
   Poorly designed cutting guide
   A little underpowered
   Doesn't trim to stubble length
   AAA batteries don't last long
   Not rechargable
   
   So, for what it is, it's okay. It trims and that's about it. For the price, if you don't mind the poor cutting performance, it's very good. There are better models out there in this price range that are rechargable, but aren't waterproof. If you want a nice trimmer that is waterproof, rechargable, and cuts very good, then plan on spending about twice as much.
   
   LONG-TERM UPDATE
   
   I've been using this for several years now and am happy to report that nothing has changed. The blades are still sharp and cut great, it's still easy to clean, waterproof, still a little underpowered, and still works perfectly, albeit it still doesn't cut that well. It's mostly used for precision jobs like to trim my neckline and sideburns now as I do the beard trimming with a hair clipper without the guides set to the highest setting, which trims my beard in under 2 minutes compared to 10 with this thing.
   
   I still hesitantly recommend it though. I gave it an extra star because it's proven to be a good product (typical Panasonic, my shelf stereo is over 11 years old and works as good as the day I bought it, even after falling off my dresser! Our Panasonic vacuum lasted almost 9 years before we replaced it) and has served me well, but I can't get around the annoying cutting guide.
4. By Gadget on Amazon.com 10 May, 2013

   Decent shaver, needs a setting lower than "1"

   My last beard trimmer's "1" setting left the stubble much shorter. Good product otherwise. Like that I can use it in the shower.
5. By John D. Biggs on Amazon.com 4 April, 2013

   Ok but not enough length selection.

   2 things I notice. The batteries seem to drain pretty fast. And the length selection is better for hair on your head not beards.
   
   If they made the increments more appropriate for regular beards then this would be an excellent product.
6. By ray on Amazon.com 26 September, 2012

   under-powered motor...

   decent quality, but poor performance due to under-powered motor or too short trimmer blade. Anyway it is portable enough for trip, do NOT expect too much. I broke it when dropped to wash room floor, cheap product and quality! I would recommend ER224s over this model.
7. By Eric R. Scott on Amazon.com 20 February, 2009

   Lacking Power

   I bought this because it uses regular AAA batteries and I had a lot of trouble with previous trimmers that had built-in batteries since the batteries would no longer hold a charge at some point. Now I can just use rechargable AAA batteries.
   
   Being water-proof is also a big plus and makes it really easy to clean
   
   The only downside is that it is lacking in power and doesn't work that well on my curly beard.