First came the Supersonic, then the AirWrap and then Dyson unveiled its latest hair styling innovation – the Dyson Corrale straightener.
Not only is the Dyson Corrale the first pair of flat iron-style straighteners to get the James Dyson treatment, but they’re the “first and only” straighteners to include so-called “flexing plates”, engineered to protect your hair from excessive heat damage. What’s more, the Dyson Corrale straighteners are cordless, meaning you can style on the go.
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Read on to find out more about the technology behind the Dyson straighteners, and check out our Dyson Corrale review to discover if it’s actually worth £400.
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Dyson describes the Corrale as the “first and only” straightener to feature the company’s patented flexing plates. Using microhinged plate technology, which has been engineered to flex in order to shape and gather hair, the company claims the Corrale applies “even heat and tension to all the hair strands in every pass keeping them perfectly aligned, reducing the reliance on heat.”
This, coupled with Dyson’s Intelligent Heat Control, helps manage the temperature of the plates and reportedly limits the amount of damage this heat causes to your hair. As a result, Dyson claims the Corrale is suitable for all hair types.
To straighten hair, flat iron straighteners combine heat and tension to break the hydrogen bonds before compressing and reshaping these bonds to smooth and flatten the hair.
During testing, Dyson’s engineers found that flat plate straighteners only apply heat and tension to the thickest part of the hair, and this means that towards the ends, there are loose strands which are not treated or tensioned.
These become flyaways – and you can usually hear or feel them being pulled as you straighten your hair. These are only controlled and smoothed by repeatedly running the straighteners over your hair, but this increases how much time your hair is exposed to potentially damaging heat. This excessive heat can then lead to weak, dull hair.
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To solve this problem, Dyson has developed manganese copper alloy plates designed to give better flexibility and strength than standard plates, and which offer improved thermal conduction. Each plate is 65 microns wide – the width of a human hair – and uses tourmaline in its edges to ionise the hair and help reduce static and frizz.
As the plates adapt to the hair, they apply tension more evenly and stop strands splaying which Dyson boldly claims creates less reliance on heat and reduces damage by 50%, when compared to the same style being achieved using flat, solid plates.
GHD – the Queen of hair straighteners – has previously stated that it doesn’t offer multiple temperature settings on its models because the optimum temperature for straightening your hair is 185°C.
Dyson has chosen not to adopt this thinking and the Corrale comes with three heat settings – 165°C (330°F), 185°C (365°F) and 210°C (410°F). According to the British firm, these temperatures allow users to tailor the settings to suit their hair type and desired style and, because of the flexing plates, this allows users to style at lower temperatures “without compromising on the results.”
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To control these temperatures, Dyson uses the Intelligent Heat Control technology found in its Dyson Supersonic and Dyson AirWrap. This technology uses a platinum sensor to measure the temperature of the plates 100 times a second and the Corrale’s microprocessor uses these measurements to control the heating system and deliver more precise, accurate heat.
It should be noted, this is similar to how the GHD Platinum Plus‘ own heat control technology works.
Although the Dyson Corrale is one of the first premium straighteners to run on batteries – the same battery technology found in its cordless vacuums – it can also be plugged into the mains. The cordless feature simply gives you more versatility.
Dyson claims that the battery on its new straighteners recharges in an hour and 10 minutes and will last for around 30 minutes, depending on your usage and hair type. It also says no power is lost when used on-the-go, either, and the Corrale has a Flight Mode feature making it suitable for taking in cabin luggage on flights.
The only exception is in Japan where stricter regulations mean you can’t board with any battery-powered straightener.
The Dyson Corrale is on sale now and, as you’d expect, the Dyson Corrale’s price will put it out of the reach of many of us. At £399, it’s more than twice the price of the GHD Platinum Plus, which is widely considered the benchmark upon which other straighteners are judged.
