TRIED AND TESTED: How the new $700 Dyson Corrale compares to cheaper cult straighteners.

Mamamia’s Tried and Tested series is your weekly review of the latest to hit our desks in beauty, health and wellness. You won’t find any #sponsored content here, just honest, relatable and independent advice. This week, Senior Lifestyle Writer Amy Clark explains everything you need to know about the new Dyson hair straightener, including whether it’s worth your money.

We’ve got to talk about the elephant in the room. The new Dyson Corrale hair straightener.

Why? Because… it costs $700. Technically, $699. Yep, I spat out my iced latte when I first found out, too.

Seven years and hundreds of millions of dollars in the making, the brand that gave us the ever-popular Dyson vacuums and the fancy Dyson Air Wrap hair curling tool have now released an even fancier hair straightener. So fancy, they say, the Dyson Corrale promises to be the most innovative hair straightener on the block.

WATCH: Here’s a look at the Dyson Corrale hair straightener. Post continues after video.

It has a lot of buzzy claims, like ‘flexing plates’, ‘pioneering technology’, and ‘precision styling with less hair damage’. But I keep coming back to the price. Because for $700, I’d expect my hair straightener to also shave my legs, whip up a plate of pasta and predict winning lottery numbers. Not really, but what I would expect is a product that can save me a lot of time, make my life a lot easier and deliver results no other straightener can.

So, can the Dyson Corrale straightener do all of these things?

When Dyson sent me the straightener to review, I was beyond excited to check out this part-space age, part-80s looking contraption. But I’m also acutely aware of the responsibility that comes with talking about a $700 beauty product very few can afford, a responsibility I take really seriously.

So, I asked you, Mamamia’s You Beauty Facebook group and my own Instagram followers exactly what you’d want to read in a Dyson Corrale review, regardless of whether you have any intention of buying one. The most common questions were:

• Just how different is the Dyson straightener from other hair straighteners?
• What do the results look like on different hair types, including thick hair and tight curls? (Because a straightener tested on straight hair doesn’t say all that much).
• How does it compare to the best and more affordable hair straighteners already on the market?

Keep scrolling for the answers to these questions and more (and lots and lots of photos) in my Dyson Corrale hair straightener review.

How does the Dyson hair straightener work?

The first thing to know about the Dyson hair straightener is, no, it doesn't use air to straighten your hair. I'd hoped it might've, but the Corrale technology is still pretty ace.

This straightener uses 'microhinged plate technology', which means it has flexing plates that gather and hold your hair as you straighten it to make sure every strand is straightened with even heat and tension. FYI this flexing isn’t visible to the eye, so don’t expect to see the plates changing shape.

You will see a difference in how your hair glides through the plates, though. The main benefit to these flexing plates is they can straighten a section of hair perfectly in just one go. This is because the plates keep the hair together - regular straighteners splay hair outwards, forcing you to go over a section multiple times.

In other words, less straightening = faster styling time with less hair damage.

A recap of the main Dyson Corrale features.

You can tell just by looking at it the Dyson straightener isn't like other hair straighteners. Here are the main Dyson hair straightener features:

• The patented flexy manganese copper alloy plates with 15 micro-hinged segments grip, gather and hold hair to apply even heat and tension for one-glide results. They also reduce frizz and flyaways, and provide better, faster styling with less hair damage.
• It’s a cordless, rechargeable straightener powered by an in-built four-cell lithium-ion battery (hence the bulky design).
• Charges fully in 70 minutes on a standing charging dock for up to 30 minutes of use. You can also use the straightener plugged in if you like.
• The straightener has three heat settings - 165°C (330°F), 185°C (365°F) and 210°C (410°F) - that are monitored by the battery 100 times a second, allowing the straightener to maintain a constant temperature.
• It also features an aeroplane safe mode so you can take it on a plane when travelling.

My Dyson Corrale review - pros and cons.

I've been trialling the Dyson straightener on my long, wavy hair, freshly-washed and air dried.

To start it up, you simply turn on the 'power' button and choose your heat setting. It takes less than 30 seconds for the straightener to heat up - it makes a clear beeping sound to let you know when it's ready.

Let's talk about the pros of the Corrale:

• Honestly, it took me less than 20 minutes to straighten my whole head. Maybe even 15 minutes.
• For my hair type, it delivered on the promise of only having to run the straightener over each smallish section of hair once for straight, sleek results.
• I noticed my hair didn't feel as hot immediately after straightening each section - I've had times when my hair is too hot to touch after using other straighteners. I didn't see any steam or visible heat while straightening, either.
• The cord-free handset is easy to handle when you’re straightening the back of your hair, or manoeuvring waves and curls.
• The finish of my hair was really bloody straight, soft, silky and frizz-free after use.
• When I straightened one half of my head with the Dyson and the other with another straightener, I could see the Dyson side wasn't as flat or 'dead straight' as the other.

OK, now for the honest cons:

• Obviously, the price - there are so many great, trusted straighteners on the market for a third of the price, and for me, the differences in technology, user experience and results aren't great enough to justify the $700 price tag.
• The straightener itself is kind of chunky (sorry, Dyson) and weighs almost twice as much as other popular straighteners. It's not so heavy your arms will get sore using it, but it is heavier than other models because of the in-built battery.
• Even though it takes less time to straighten your hair, 30 minutes isn’t a lot of time for a battery life. I noticed the battery dropped to 75 per cent within minutes of me using the product. And if it's completely flat when you want to use it, you'll still have to wait a few minutes after plugging it in before it will heat up again.
• It sounded and felt like my hair was snagging or breaking while being pulled through the plates. This is actually the straightener plates gripping and gathering the hair to apply the even heat and tension, but it was a bit of an unnerving experience. The brand says this can be avoided by applying less pressure when clamping the hair.
• Did I mention it’s $700???

The Dyson hair straightener against the best hair straighteners, on different hair types.

I wrangled three of my colleagues with different hair types into trying the Dyson straightener against other popular brands. Here's how that went.

Dyson hair straightener vs. ghd hair straightener.

• We tested the Dyson straightener against the ghd platinum+ white hair styler, $345.
• Social media executive Ellie has long, thick, curly hair with type 2c curls.
• It took her around 30 minutes to straighten her whole head.
• Mostly, Ellie only had to pass the straightener through each section of hair once with the Dyson. With the ghd, two times did the trick.
• The ghd also made her hair feel considerably hotter immediately after straightening.
• Ellie said she enjoyed the smooth, shiny results and only having to go over each section once, but not enough to spend $700.

Dyson hair straightener versus True Me hair straightener.

• We tested the Dyson straightener against the True Me Wide hair straightener, $179.
• Video producer Renny has short, thick, curly hair with type 3a/3b curls.
• It took about 45 minutes to straighten her hair - it normally would take at least an hour.
• Renny had to go over each section of her hair two to three times to get a straight result with both the Dyson and True Me straighteners.
• Each section of hair felt hotter and produced steam when using the True Me.
• Both the Dyson and True Me delivered straight, shiny results.
• After straightening the rest of her hair with the Dyson, Renny said her hair felt softer and healthier than it normally would after straightening. Still wouldn't spend $700 on a straightener.

Dyson hair straightener versus Cloud 9 hair straightener.

• We tested the Dyson straightener against the Cloud 9 Original Iron, $340.
• People & Culture Manager Alana has thick, shoulder-length hair with slight texture and wave.
• It took her around 30 minutes to straighten her whole head.
• Alana only had to go over most sections with the Dyson once, sometimes twice, to get a straight result. It was more like two to three times with the Cloud 9.
• Like Ellie and Renny, she found her traditional straightener seemed to be hotter than the Dyson.
• Alana said she'd consider investing in the Dyson if she found it gave her fast, sleek results, every time.

So, is the Dyson straightener worth your money?

There's no denying the Dyson Corrale is a very fancy hair straightener. It's also very good. Just not $700 good.

Yes, I love how quickly you can get through straightening your hair and the glossy, straight results look brilliant, but for the average person, the price tag is unattainable. And I’m just as happy with my current, more affordable straightener (my favourite is the True Me).

If you're a professional stylist, or spend a lot of time straightening your thick, curly, textured hair AND have $700 to spare, this tool could be for you. The rest of us can dream, right?

The Dyson Corrale, $699, is available from May 29, 2020. Feature image: Supplied/@theamyclark.

Would you even consider spending $700 on a hair straightener? Tell us about your thoughts in the comments below!

You can catch up on our previous Tried and Tested reviews here:

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• TRIED AND TESTED: I tried Charlotte Tilbury's new serum to find out if it's actually 'magic'.
• TRIED AND TESTED: 4 new supermarket shampoos, including the much-hyped $10 Monday brand.
• TRIED AND TESTED: 7 brilliant tinted moisturisers to try if foundation feels like a lot right now.
• TRIED AND TESTED: 3 new mascaras under $25 that'll make your eyes look alive on video calls.
• TRIED AND TESTED: I slept in this $7 hair mask and woke up with the softest hair of my life.