The ceramic coat on my old Flat Iron started peeling a few months ago so I decided to get a new one. For the longest time, I have heard so much about CHI. Naturally, I was going to get a flat iron by CHI. But at the same time, I also wanted to see what else was out there on the market that could be comparable to CHI. Then... I found GHD.
I didn't really know anyone around me that owned a GHD so all my research was done on the web. From these sources, I was able to come up with a good comparison of these 2 leading brands and make a reasonable purchase decision by purchasing 1'' GHD professional Advanced Ceramic Heat-styler.
My research showed that there's absolutely nothing wrong with either of the 2 brands but GHD does stand out for a few reasons:
1. It has universal voltage from 110v to 230v. I took my GHD with me when I went to Asia a couple of months ago and it worked like a charm without using a voltage converter.
2. It automatically shuts off the power if the flat iron is not in use for 30 minutes. I haven't tried it out yet but people on the web speak highly of this feature. (I thought it would be really useful because I did go home a couple of times to check if I have turned off the flat iron before) I don't know why nobody else has come up with this feature. Doesn't iron have this feature a long long time ago?
3. It doesn't have a temperature setting. Apparently, the iron is smart enough to figure out what temperature is good for your hair as soon as the flat panels touch the hair. (Note: It does get REALLY hot on your hair so make sure you use heat protection spray or serum before using the iron. My favorite two heat protection products are CHI Silk Infusion and TRESemme Thermal Creations Heat Tamer Protective Spray.)
4. It heats up within a blink. With my old flat iron, I had to keep checking if it's ready after switching it on. With GHD, after 5-6 seconds, it beeps twice to let you know that it's reached the temprature.
Cost: Many places such as Sephora.com, Nordstrom.com, Folica.com sell GHD from $180-$240. Amazon was selling it for $155, which is not much more expensive than CHI.
One thing to watch out for is that apparently there are many counterfeit GHD flat irons out there. If you decide to get it from Amazon, make sure it says "Sold by Amazon" not some other random sites. Once you receive your iron, the best way to check if it's authenticate is to register on ghdhair.com by entering the serial number. As long as it says "Sold by Amazon" the product should be authentic. If that's not the case, Amazon would accept the returns.
I have been using my GHD for the past 4 months or so and I LOVE it! It doesn't damage my hair at all and makes my hair smooth and shine. :-)
