An epilator for women pulls hair out at the root with a set of small tweezers, and Philips India says the results can last up to 6 weeks in the short term, the same period it gives for waxing.
Four cordless Braun Silk-épil models are covered here, and Braun India lists each of them as a wet and dry epilator. Braun and Philips both sell epilators, so the comparisons and the comfort wording in this guide are attributed to the brands and are not independent findings.
How an epilator compares with waxing and shaving
Philips sets out the comparison on its India hair removal pages, and it says the pain of an epilator and of waxing is of a similar intensity. The page adds that both methods become less painful as the sessions are repeated.
The practical gap lies in the length of the hair. An epilator can take hair as short as 0.25 cm, while Philips says hair must regrow to at least 0.5 cm before waxing can be done again.
On skin, Philips says waxing can remove surface skin cells, which could lead to irritation, and it states that an epilator protects those cells. This is the view of a company that makes epilators, so it is a brand position and not a medical finding.
Shaving gets a short mention on the same page, which says a razor may miss extra fine hairs. The one drawback Philips names for the epilator is the initial outlay of buying the device.
The American Academy of Dermatology describes the other methods on its own page, and it is an independent medical body. It says shaving results are short lived and may need repeating every day or every few days, and that frequent shaving can cause cuts, nicks, razor burn and ingrown hairs.
For waxing, the Academy says results can last a few weeks or longer, and that freshly waxed skin can stay red and irritated for a short time. It also says hot wax can burn the skin.
The Academy advises against waxing for people on isotretinoin or an antibiotic, for anyone who took isotretinoin in the past 6 months, and for people applying tretinoin. It says the skin may tear when the wax comes off.
Threading, in the Academy’s description, gives results that last 4 to 5 weeks with little irritation, though it is not suitable for large areas.
Using an epilator in water
Braun India states that each of the four models works on wet and dry skin, and each runs without a cord. For the Silk-épil 7, the brand’s page says it can be used “in the bath or under the shower”, so anyone who prefers to epilate in water will find that wording there.
Philips makes a similar statement for its own range. Its page says the epilators and lady shavers it sells can be run on skin that is wet or dry, and it lists the legs, arms, armpits and bikini area as the places they cover.
The same Philips page says epilating is not suitable for the intimate area, and that a trimmer or shaver with its comb attached is the tool to use there.
A corded body epilator, the Philips HP6519, comes with a manual that gives different instructions. It tells the user not to use the appliance in a bath or shower, to keep the appliance and its adapter dry, and to make sure the skin is completely dry before epilating starts.
Those rules are written for that corded Philips model. The wet use wording for the Braun models comes only from the Braun pages, and the bath and shower quote for the Silk-épil 7 is the brand’s own line.
Tweezers and battery
Tweezer count is where the models separate most. The Silk-épil 7, the Silk-épil 9 and the Silk-épil 9 Flex list 40 MicroGrip tweezers each, while the Silk-épil 5 lists 28.
Braun says the Silk-épil 5 catches hairs as short as 0.5 mm. That is a brand figure, and it is not drawn from a test shared with the Philips figure for hair length.
Battery time differs by model as well. The two Silk-épil 9 pages state 50 minutes of cordless use, and the Silk-épil 7 and Silk-épil 5 pages state 40 minutes when the epilator is used within 24 hours of charging.
Head design and modes vary too. The Silk-épil 7 has a wide head, and the Silk-épil 9 Flex has a fully flex head. Braun says the Smart Touch feature on the 9 Flex switches between a power mode and a gentle mode, while the comparison table on the Silk-épil 9 page lists 2 speed settings.
The four Braun models
Braun lists the four models under its Silk-épil range for India, with wet and dry use and a cordless design shared across all of them.
The Silk-épil 9 Flex SkinSpa 9-681 suits a buyer who wants a flexible head and a choice between power and gentle mode. Braun describes the result as less pain and more comfort, which is a brand claim and not a tested outcome.
Braun gives the Silk-épil 9 a SmartLight, a light meant for finding short hairs, along with a shaver head, a trimmer cap and a massage cap. Its page uses the line “Built to last years”, and that line is a brand claim and not a warranty statement.
For the Silk-épil 7 7-030, Braun lists a massage roller cap, a lady shaver and a trimmer comb. The brand’s wording for this model is “less pain, more comfort”.
Lowest in tweezer count is the Silk-épil 5, which also includes SmartLight. Braun says it is designed to limit pain sensation, a statement that is not a clinical result.
Attachments, care and warranty
Accessories are the other point of difference between the models. A massage cap is listed with the Silk-épil 7 and the Silk-épil 9, and a trimmer attachment is listed with both as well, in the form of a comb on the first and a cap on the second.
Both of those models also carry a way to shave as well as epilate, namely the lady shaver on the Silk-épil 7 and the shaver head on the Silk-épil 9. The Silk-épil 5 page names SmartLight among its features.
Replacement parts are listed on the Braun UK service page for the Silk-épil 9 Flex, and they include epilation heads, a trimmer cap, a massage cap, a shaver head and a white cleaning brush. The same page says an extended warranty comes when signing up to BraunCare+ on selected products, with the terms set out on braun.com.
Cleaning instructions in the research come from the manual of the corded Philips HP6519. It says to switch off and unplug the appliance, remove the attachment, brush out loose hairs, rinse the non electric parts and let them dry fully before reassembly.
The manual adds that the epilator and its adapter must never be rinsed or submerged, and it advises against scouring pads, abrasive cleaners, petrol and acetone. It also says the exfoliation brush of that model can be used wet or dry and rinsed with soap or shower gel.
Pain, comfort and result claims on all four Braun pages are written by Braun, and the Philips comparison is written by a competing epilator maker. A reader weighing an epilator against waxing or shaving therefore has brand statements on the epilator side, with the Academy page as the independent source on the other methods.
Skin after epilating
Small bumps can follow epilating, and a Philips page describes them as something that fades with time and is not a concern. This is general brand information and not medical advice.
The same page says irritation that lasts longer than 3 days is a reason to see a doctor.
