Some say they’ve had theirs for a decade. This straightener has more than 7,500 five-star reviews on Amazon, and reviewers report that it lasts far longer than its two-year warranty. The Chi has some of the best reviews and the longest warranty of any iron we tested. Durability, User-Friendliness And A History Of Top Reviews It felt silky and smooth to the touch rather than crunchy and rough, which can sometimes be the case when I use certain other versions. It can be hard to quantify hair health after straightening, but there was a significantly different feel to my hair after using this iron. Overall, ionic, far infrared heat will help the hair retain moisture and shine and result in fewer split ends. “This type of technology improves the hair fibers and elasticity to create smoothness,” says Henry. Infrared heat, for its part, is believed to keep hair healthy by heating it from the inside out and protecting the hair cuticle. Thus, the hair strand should become restored on an ionic chemical level, leaving it shiny, smooth and healthy.” “When the negative ions combine with the positive ions on the hair, there is a neutralizing effect. “Most hair strands on our head are positively charged ions, and ionic hair tools emit negative ions,” says Nicole Henry, senior colorist at Warren Tricomi Salon. Negative ions produced by the straightener work to dissipate water, lock in moisture and seal the hair cuticle, which is supposed to reduce frizz. First, this iron uses ionic, far infrared heat. This Chi iron’s ceramic plate not only has an extremely smooth glide, the material poses additional benefits. While high heat titanium models straighten hair effectively with long-lasting results, their high temperatures can cause more damage than ceramic versions. While a couple stubborn sections at the base of my neck or around my hairline required extra attention, this hair straightener worked quickly and efficiently. It took my strands from looking puffy, frizzy and unfinished to smooth and silky with only one pass on most areas. In practice, this iron easily manipulated and reshaped hair with its single temperature setting. When I used an infrared heat gun to test the heat efficiency, it measured accurately and evenly across the plate. This straightener has only one heat setting of 392 degrees, and during testing we found that it heats up in just 20 seconds, which was one of the fastest speeds of the irons I tested. Ultra Fast Heat-Up And Effective, Even Temperature As someone who hasn’t had a ton of practice creating flat-iron waves, the Chi helped me look like a pro. Together, they make it easy to not only create sleek styles, but also to make a bend or flip at the end of hair or beachy waves. Another perk to this iron’s ceramic plates is the beveled edges and rounded barrel. This was especially helpful for smoothing down the short, sprouty regrowth hairs near my hairline that typically poke upward even when my hair is blown out.

With this straightener, I was able to grip hair tight to the root. As a ceramic iron, it’s also gentler on hair than a high-heat titanium iron, so it’s a good fit for those with fine strands, vulnerable color-treated hair or those who may use a hot tool often and don’t want to cause excessive hair damage.

Its shorter width makes it a handy tool for use on cropped styles and short, face-framing layers, and it’s equally adept at styling long, thick hair. The Ceramic Styling Iron has 1-inch-wide plates, so it works for a variety of hair lengths (although you may prefer a wider hair straightener if your hair is long or thick).

Chi hair relaxer