This is not a fake Apple product even if the packaging design and materials are nearly identical to what Apple uses for its watches and iPhones, complete with pull tabs on the heavy cardboard box and paper ties on the braided white USB cable. It’s a Laifen travel shaver. I unbox a lot of Apple products, and this is WILD. This goes way past best practices or homage to something else — and as much as it helps Laifen stand out today, it’s inhibiting the company from developing its own identity.
What about the product itself? Well, it’s expensive — I paid $220 for a blue version with travel case — but it’s not as expensive as some of the competition (this category has soared in price). The stubby shape makes it a bit awkward to hold, and I wish that it had a trimmer and battery charge indicator, but the industrial design is otherwise excellent. The motor is treated like a piece of art, with a little window showing off the copper coils inside. Attention to detail elsewhere is good, too: the Laifen P3 Pro has an airplane mode to avoid accidentally turning on while traveling, and when you invoke the mode there is short tone that plays that sounds like it came from a 16-bit video game. There is a plastic cover for the blades that attaches magnetically, and the head pops off magnetically as well for cleaning.
I wouldn’t buy this shaver for travel without also getting the form-fitting case; even with the blades covered and airplane mode on I wouldn’t feel comfortable tossing it in a bag. However, even when ensconced in its case, the P3 Pro is extremely small, and it charges via USB-C, making it an ideal premium travel shaver — it takes up very little space and there’s no need to bring a separate proprietary charger. And it shaves! As long as you don’t have too much hair growth (where you’d want a trimmer first), shaves are quick, close, and comfortable. I won’t be replacing my Braun Series 9 at home, but this will be going in my travel bag.
Disclosures: Devices View purchased the Laifen Pro at retail. Devices View does not accept paid posts, does not participate in affiliate link programs, and Laifen had no editorial control over this article. Laifen is not a Techsponential advisory client.
