Review Led Article of GHD Platinum Plus, Remington Botanical and Cloud Nine Straighteners Review

DISCLOSURE -THIS ITEM WAS GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW. ALL THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS ARE THE REVIEWER’S OWN.

Reviewed by H Whetton

Haircare is a big business with everyone bringing out new and improved products with very scientific words daily, quite often with a nice price tag to go with them.

I recently wrote a review of a pair of Cloud Nine contouring hair straighteners. These particular straighteners are priced at £279.00 in their sale; the normal RRP is £319.00 from CLOUDNINE.COM
To me, that is quite expensive for a pair of hair straighteners, so today I am testing a pair of Remington Botanical straighteners, RRP £77.99 at Boots.com, along with a pair of Platinum plus GHDs, RRP £239.00 from ghdhair.com. These are just three sets that I have in my house at the moment. There is a vast array of straighteners on the market with varying prices from cheap and cheerful to high-end.

Do you need to spend £100’s of pounds to get the style you want? I am going to be looking for the ease of use, style, value for money and build quality in the three sets, and I shall be giving a score out of 10 for each category.

So starting with the most expensive at £279.00, the Cloud Nine Contouring straighteners from www.cloudninehair.com

Ease of use- having a curved plate did take a bit of getting used to; I did burn my fingers a few times, at the tip of the straighteners, as I styled my hair. Once mastered, they straightened well and gave a nice lasting curl; however, it was hard to get to my roots due to the plates being so wide. The vibrating plates helped them glide easily through my hair. However, I did find them a bit bulky to use, and they take a long time to cool down. 5/10

Style – I love the style of these; the dark blue is a lovely colour, the design has been thought about, from the colour-coded storage box to the wrap that comes with the straighteners. The wide, curved plates are smooth to the touch. They do look special and not the usual run-of-the-mill straighteners; they look like your hair is ready for a treat. 9/10

Build quality-They are well made, nothing has been missed on these straighteners, the storage box is lined to protect them, the velvet wrap is perfectly stitched, there is no colour deviation, the plates are perfectly smooth and balanced. I cannot fault the build quality. 10/10

Functions – I like the vibrating plates; they help protect your hair from too much heat. But I did notice an annoying buzz when I used them. I like the fact that they have 11 heat settings, and I also like the digital touch screen. I do not like the fact that it has no beep when they have reached the required temperature; they just have a flashing then a solid light. They have a 360-degree swivel cord to help with styling. The automatic shut-off is always a good function to have. 6/10

Value for money – I do think that the Cloud Nine Contouring straighteners are very expensive, I like the build quality, and the styling, even the science behind them; however, I do think that they are expensive even in the sale. They do not have a worldwide power voltage, so I cannot travel with them. I could not see myself paying upwards of £279.00, especially as I have not found anywhere to test them first, unlike some other high-end products. 4/10

Next in line are the Platinum Plus GHDs, RRP £239.00 from ghdhair.com

Ease of use -straight out of the box, these straighteners are easy to use; they glide through my hair, leaving it soft and straight. They are a nice size and not bulky to use. I can get right down to my roots, creating a nice, smooth, straight style. The downside is that they only have one heat setting. 9/10

Style – The GHD straighteners have sleek, clean lines. They come in a lined hard shell box, with a travel bag and heat cover that is all colour coded to your straighteners. I like that they make special edition colours, it just makes them feel and look that bit special. 10/10

Build quality – Their build quality is fantastic; they are well-designed and built. From the hard shell-lined box to the travel bag, everything has been thought about and made to last. 10/10

Functions – The GHDs have smooth floating plates that glide through your hair, they have a “wishbone hinge” that gives you more control when you are styling your hair, it does only have one heat setting, they say that it is “the most optimal for your hair”. They have a “heat-resistant protective plate guard”, which means that you can use them and travel with them straight away; you do not have to wait for them to cool down completely. I always let mine cool down first; they do not take long. They have a universal voltage, so you can travel with them. They also have a 360-degree cord to help you style your hair and an automatic cut-off if they are not being used for over 30 minutes. 9/10

Value for money – GHD Platinum Plus are expensive at £239.00; you can purchase cheaper ones online for around £130. I like that I could test the GHDs in store before I purchased them. I had the chance to see how well they worked and which ones suited me best, which I think is important when parting with a lot of money. My daughter has had her GHDs for about 4 years now and uses them nearly every day. 10/10

Last but by no means least, the Remington Botanical hair straighteners, RRP £77.99 from boots.com
I managed to purchase these in Boots whilst they were on offer at £39.99 during the January sales.
Ease of use – I like these straighteners; they are easy to use, straight out of the box. They are light and easy to manage, not too bulky. They glide smoothly through your hair without snagging. They create smooth, straight hair that lasts. However, if you are trying to curl with them, they do have a habit of snagging 9/10 Style – I like the botanical range; the green is pretty and travels throughout the range. To be honest, I chose these partly for the colour, I like it when companies move away from the standard black. They have been very well designed; they do look more expensive than they are. The actual housing has a slight curve to it, which gives it a nice shape and design feature. It has been designed purposely to glide easily through your hair. Unlike the Cloud Nines and the GHDs, the Remington’s do not come with a hard shell storage box; however, they do come with a heat mat and travel bag. 10/10

Build quality – The build quality is excellent; however, they are manufactured by Remington, so I would expect nothing less than perfect. The plates are smooth, and they heat up quickly. Even the heat mat and the travel bag are of good quality. 10/10

Functions – They have a worldwide voltage, so you can take them anywhere. The plates are coated with “aloe vera, jojoba and rose” to help protect your hair. The temperature is set at 185 degrees; however, they do have 10 heat settings, should you prefer a different temperature, which I like. They also have an eco-button, which gives a lower heat, which I like. They have a 360-degree swivel cord for easy styling, an LCD display and a temperature lock function. They also have an automatic cut; however, theirs is 60 minutes, which I think is a bit too long. They also do not make a noise when they have reached the correct temperature. 9/10

Value for money – The Remington Botanicals are value for money, especially if you can get them in the sales like I did. They do look and perform brilliantly. At a RRP of £79.99, they are not the cheapest on the market; however, they do perform beyond their price. 9/10

Conclusion – All three of these straighteners performed well; they all have their good points and let-downs. However, it does prove that you do not need to spend a lot of money to get a good product. It does take research, and to know what you want out of your straighteners. My personal favourites are the GHDs, the only thing I do not like about them is the fact that I cannot change the heat temperature. I like the fact that I could try before I purchased them, I like the weight of them and how easy they straighten and style my hair. Very closely followed by the Remington Botanicals, for price and results, unfortunately, I would place the Cloud Nine Contouring straighteners third due to price, the annoying buzzing from the vibrating plates and size.