We get it: the phrase ‘wet-to-styled’ no doubt fills you with dread, a reminder of the tools we saw in the early Noughties that did nothing except cause a vast amount of hair damage – and that’s before we even start to remind you of the sizzle and smell.

Now, though, more than two decades later, ghd has launched a duet style hair tool. While the idea might be similar, the technology has undoubtedly, and dramatically, improved.

The brand claims this is the first two-in-one hot air styler that works to transform hair from wet to styled, with no damage, promising up to 48 hours of ‘unprecedented’ softness. But how, exactly?

The ghd duet style appliance uses air-fusion technology, combining hot air flow and four smart, heated styling plates – which allow the hair to be dried and styled simultaneously. The plates contain infinity sensors that predict your hair’s needs, to maintain an optimal low styling temperature as you work your way from the root to the tip.

The heat is monitored every five milliseconds, according to ghd, with the vents on the sides of the styling tool in place to emit warm air as you dry your hair, for quick and even results. But is it really as good as it sounds?

To find out, we managed to get our hands on a sample of ghd’s new tool ahead of its global launch, so we could put it through its paces properly.

Keep reading to discover everything you need to know about the technology, how it works and – importantly – what the results are like.

How we tested

We received our ghd duet style in the first week of January, so we were able to incorporate it into our usual hair-drying and styling routine. Hair was washed as normal, and then in place of a hair dryer and straighteners, we used the duet. We kept a note of how easy it was to get to grips with and to use, the results it produced, how the hair looked and felt afterwards and how long the style lasted.

Ghd duet styler

Cord length: 2.7m

Wattage: 410W

The technology

Claims on this tool are big: not only is ghd saying that users will get up to 48 hours of unprecedented softness in hair, but there’s a no-damage promise, too. The duet style features technology that has never been used before and comes in the form of airfusion. The brand says this combines the power of airflow with the performance of actively heated styling plates in order to deliver a sleek, glossy finish from wet hair.

The so-called airfusion technology is made up of five different elements: first, the airflow filter that promises to help dry hair quickly and powerfully. Then there’s the internal aerodynamics that control the noise and temperature to let the user dry their hair at the optimum temperature to avoid causing damage and at low sound levels – perfect for those of us who are early risers.

Next up is the hair drying mechanism: the cleverly designed air grilles work in synergy with four low-temperature plates that simultaneously dry and style hair. Plus, there’s ‘expertly angled root-drying vents’ which means that, even though the tool itself is quite chunky, it is able to dry right at the root.

Finally, there are in-built plates that heat up when you switch it to ‘shine shot’ mode that enable you to straighten hair to add extra shine if needed.

Additionally, ghd is calling its duet styler eco-friendly thanks to its aerodynamics which are said to reduce energy waste, which means there is up to 45 per cent less energy consumption overall.

Buy now

Usage

After initially hearing about the product our tester wasn’t really sure what to expect from the duet styler. She’s somebody who’s devoted to rough-drying and then straightening her slightly curly caucasian hair. So, on paper, this seemed like the ideal product for her – but is it too good to be true?

On taking the tool out of the box, we noticed that it was quite big and felt heavier than both her usual hair dryer and straighteners. However, the first use was extremely successful: after washing hair and towel-drying it, our tester prepped with ghd’s sleek talker (£35, Ghdhair.com) styling oil – it helps smooth hair and offers heat protection – and then got to work.

She has fine hair but there’s a lot of it, so she split it into sections and dried it methodically from the bottom layer – something she always does with a hairdryer and straighteners. Once turned on, the duet styler takes a few seconds to heat up and for the fans to kick in, but the familiar beep signals when it’s ready to use.

Then, in the same way that you’d use straighteners, the duet styler is clamped to the top of hair – the instructions say to hold it at the root for around three seconds before passing it slowly down the lengths. Our tester found that her hair was thoroughly dried from root to tip after around two or three passes.

Once hair is dried properly, it can then be switched to ‘shine shot’ mode which turns off the dryer and instead heats up the plates. Take our advice though and don’t try to switch between modes halfway through styling – the plates have to cool down properly before the dryer switches back on in order to prevent burning or singeing wet hair.

In total it took our tester around 30 minutes from start to finish – slightly longer than her usual method – but the results are far superior, the shine is impressive (even without shine shot mode) and her hair looked and felt super healthy.

Back to top

The verdict: Ghd duet styler

Overall our tester is super impressed with the ghd duet styler. As somebody who never quite nailed a professional blow-drying technique, instead using a hairdryer to rough dry and then following with straighteners, this tool really does replace the need for both. However, it is quite heavy and on first use felt quite cumbersome to use, but that’s something that definitely got easier with time.

In some respects it does feel like it has quite a niche audience because, realistically, users can only create one (straight, smooth, sleek) style with it rather than it being versatile. It is expensive at £379, but it does replace two existing tools and the promise of reduced heat damage is a huge selling point, too. For our tester though, it really is perfect and is something she definitely didn’t know she needed.

From poker-straight looks to cascading curls, check out out round-up of the best hair straightners