Laifen T1 Pro Electric Shaver: Our honest review

The Laifen T1 Pro Electric Shaver stands out from different electric razors due to one key distinction: It truly appears like a razor. That issues as a result of so a lot of its friends are cumbersome sufficient that they require their very own journey case separate out of your toiletry kit. When you’re making an attempt to benefit from each ounce and inch in a jam-packed carry-on suitcase, these cumbersome designs make you surprise if you may get away with saving your subsequent shave for if you return residence.

If your reply to that hypothetical is “absolutely not,” the Laifen T1 Pro is price an extended look. It’s not good, however its supreme portability and its versatility as a beard trimmer fill an important position for anybody who nonetheless performs day by day upkeep on their facial hair after they’re on the street. After a number of months with this distinctive shaver as a part of my grooming routine, which included separate stints rocking a beard and staying clean-shaven, listed below are my ideas on what makes the T1 Pro not only a precious grooming software however a authentic travel accessory.

The Laifen T1 Pro is an reasonably priced electrical razor designed to really slot in a Dopp equipment. Its foil shaver is nice for guys who don’t go greater than a day or two between shaves, and its swappable beard trimmer means it may be your solely razor when you additionally develop some scruff every now and then.

There’s a contentious second within the 1987 Star Wars parody “Spaceballs” the place one character packs a big trunk throughout a scenario wherein she was advised to take “only what you need to survive.” After lugging the large crate throughout a desert planet, her rescuers have had sufficient. They throw it down within the sand and pop open the lid to see which important merchandise may probably be so heavy. What’s revealed? A jumbo, industrial-strength hair dryer.

I prefer to assume I’m not as high-maintenance because the literal princess in that scene, however I can’t assist however really feel her ache when making an attempt to pack the whole lot I want for a close shave whereas touring. Shaving cream, a manual razor, some type of aftershave to calm my pores and skin — it provides up. If I attempt to simplify and go for dry shaves with an electrical razor, the area for different issues like toothpaste and deodorant begins to run tight, and if I’m fearful about battery life, I’ve to pack the charger too.

The Laifen T1 Pro is the drama-free answer to this conundrum. Everything about its silhouette is impressed by the common cartridge razor you most likely discovered to shave with. It’s flat sufficient to suit into the crevices of my toiletry bag (or actually wherever you wish to stash it), and at underneath 4 ounces, it received’t weigh you down if you need or have to journey mild. Most importantly, it’s totally TSA compliant. You can use it within the bathe as a result of its IPX7 waterproof score means it could actually survive a short submersion, not to mention a stream, as nicely.

Because the T1 Pro expenses by way of the identical USB-C port as just about all electronics lately, you don’t must pack one other energy brick past your phone charger. Battery life is stable for one thing so compact; in my testing, I obtained practically two and a half hours of run time earlier than the low energy warning turned on, then one other 10 minutes earlier than it died.

Getting again to a full cost clocked in at 45 minutes, and although there’s a journey lock to stop by chance draining the battery, fast-charging can get you eight minutes of run time after only one minute plugged in when you ever go to shave and discover it useless. Even if we account for battery efficiency depleting because it ages, it’s an awesome begin to not have to fret about how juiced your razor is if you pack.

The T1 Pro presents two haircutting choices. Its interchangeable heads — a foil shaver and a two-sided trimmer — magnetically snap to the physique of the razor. They create a formidable mixture so long as you aren’t making an attempt to battle by means of a grizzly beard or obtain supersmooth outcomes. This is a razor made for maintenance and upkeep, issues you’ll be able to’t cease simply since you’re not at residence.

In my testing, the foil shaver is the standout of the 2. When making an attempt to maintain up a recent look, it was in a position to simply mow by means of a day or two’s price of stubble with ease. If you’re the sort of man who desires a clear face each morning however whose pores and skin doesn’t react nicely to moist shaves, that’s the place the T1 Pro shines.

Trying the foil shaver on longer progress, nonetheless, was like taking a Weedwacker to a forest; it is going to be outmatched by design. That’s only a actuality of this sort of shaver, which hides its vibrating blade underneath a rounded sheath, then cuts hairs as they poke by means of holes in that sheath. Longer hairs are inclined to get pushed or bent, whereas quick hairs simply match into the holes.

As somebody who usually prefers the ol’ cream-and-razor strategy, utilizing the T1 Pro felt acquainted regardless of its reverse classification. The weight balanced comfortably in my hand, with a design that’s ergonomic with out being overengineered. It made it straightforward to get the correct angle in opposition to my pores and skin as I moved from neck to chin to cheeks, one thing that’s essential for reaching a profitable shave with a foil razor.

Speed is one factor you’ll sacrifice with the T1 Pro. Its 12,000-cuts-per-minute (CPM) motor is not any slouch, nevertheless it’s powering only one foil. Compare that with our best-tested electrical razor — the Panasonic Arc5, which has 5 foil blades and a 14,000 CPM motor — and also you’re getting considerably much less reducing energy and protection. That doesn’t imply the shave is dangerous, nevertheless it does imply you received’t be completed shaving in a minute and might’t glide over the pores and skin with quick strokes. Other choices I’ve examined that ship each pace and portability are Laifen’s different razor, the P3 Pro, and the Panasonic Arc5 Palm, however neither provides the duality of a trimmer, and each are costlier.

On the plus facet, that singular foil gave me precision once I solely needed to scrub up the perimeters of my beard or navigate different tight spots, similar to the place my mustache meets the nook of my nostril. In my opinion, it’s a good trade-off for a transportable bundle.

The great thing about the T1 Pro is you received’t be caught struggling by means of grueling tugs and pulls when you do go greater than 48 hours with out a shave. The double-sided trimmer head is made for precisely that scenario, reducing hairs nearer to stubble size so you’ll be able to sport some shadow or swap again to the foil shaver to attain a better end.

As somebody who grows a good beard however by no means retains it longer than just a few weeks earlier than beginning over, having this functionality is a should. While the foil shaver is a signature characteristic for day by day upkeep, pairing it with the trimmer is what qualifies the T1 Pro to chop down nearly each size of beard with out the necessity of one other software.

While the T1 Pro’s trimmer attachment helps carry longer beards to a extra manageable size for foil shaving, the three included guards — which slide onto the trimmer from the facet and measure 5, 3 and a pair of millimeters — depart some efficiency to be desired.

I used all three to mix my beard into my shaved head, utilizing the 5-millimeter size on most of my face, then fading to the shorter guards nearer to my ears earlier than utilizing the naked trimmer on the very high. They did their job and gave me the size I needed the place I needed it, however having used an analogous electrical trimmer and its guards for years, the T1 Pro was not practically as thorough or environment friendly. It took a number of passes to ensure everything of my beard was uniformly trimmed.

If you’re extra interested in the trimming capabilities of the T1 Pro than its shaving acumen, I’d counsel one thing from the Philips Norelco All-in-One 9000 Series. I’ve owned a previous-generation mannequin for years, and whereas its foil shaving attachment is weak, its lineup of guards is each deeper and simpler than Laifen’s. What took a number of passes and minutes to finish with the T1 Pro is routinely mild work for the Philips.

That Philips Norelco mannequin additionally presents extra bang on your buck in contrast with the T1 Pro. Sure, Laifen offers you a dependable (and replaceable) foil shaver, plus an ample trimmer, however the Series 9000’s nostril hair trimmer and extra trimmer heads — one mini and one vast — add worth to a bundle that’s already extra reasonably priced than the T1 Pro.

Of course, the T1 Pro’s promoting level is its mobility and day by day use circumstances, and in that enviornment it has the Series 9000 beat. It all is determined by what you set extra inventory in: portability and foil shaving, or an arsenal of attachments higher fitted to exact beard lengths and physique hair trimming.

Laifen put loads of thought into varied elements of the T1 Pro’s design. In addition to the dimensions and form I’ve already gone over, its aluminum alloy shell is freed from edges or creases that may lure trimmings and useless pores and skin, so it appears clear even after months of use. A journey guard covers the foil shaver with out including bulk. Even Laifen’s packaging is admirably Apple-like, with neatly nested white bins that make it really feel as when you’re unboxing a brand new iPhone.

But whereas the T1 Pro’s group of attachments — two heads, three trimmer guards — will not be sturdy, I might’ve preferred to see one thing included that stored all of them collectively. They’re small and made from clear plastic, which makes them straightforward to lose and extra prone to disappear in a bag. At one level throughout testing, I misplaced the 2-millimeter guard. If you’re touring, it wouldn’t be arduous to lose one in a towel scooped up by housekeeping or unknowingly left behind on a toilet counter.

It wouldn’t have been tough to remain true to the T1 Pro’s signature portability whereas including storage for whichever items you’re not utilizing. I’m envisioning a railing that might snap onto the shaft of the razor with out rising its footprint.

Form issue alone can’t crown the Laifen T1 Pro as the very best electrical razor of all of them, nevertheless it may make it the precise possibility for you. It’s why we thought of this mannequin for our 2026 NCS Underscored Innovation Awards. In a pool of electrical razors constructed to by no means depart your toilet, the T1 Pro is free-range. Bury it in your checked luggage. Stash it within the sun shades pouch of your travel backpack. Heck, I’ve a buddy who determined his greatest time to shave is on his drive to work, and the T1 Pro would take up barely any area in his glove field.

Even when you aren’t racking up miles all 12 months, the T1 Pro is a smooth, easy-to-use possibility for the person who shaves each day. As lengthy as you’ll be able to settle for its limitations — it’s neither a high-powered, multiblade shaver nor an all-in-one physique groomer — it could actually thrive in its position.

NCS Underscored has a group of expert writers and editors with a few years of expertise testing, researching and recommending merchandise who guarantee every article is fastidiously edited and merchandise are correctly vetted. We speak to high consultants when relevant to make sure we’re testing every product precisely, recommending solely the very best merchandise and contemplating the professionals and cons of every merchandise.

For this text, NCS Underscored affiliate testing author Joe Bloss used the Laifen T1 Pro as a part of his grooming routine for greater than three months. Bloss has written extensively about males’s grooming for NCS Underscored, having authored product reviews on the best shaving cream, how to maintain a shaved head and his favorite grooming gifts.