Braun 7 Series Shaver, another mobile experience

I finally got my Christmas present today, yes, on Dec 29th; for some reason, Amazon Prime wouldn't let me get 2-day shipping for this item. Regardless, lets talk about this new gadget I got.

Its the Braun 7 series (790 c.c.) aka model 9595 shaving kit. I know in the world of shaving, electric shavers often fall short of its wet shave brother, however, Braun, along with other makers, have come a long way. Further more, Braun has a huge collection of shavers which makes picking one up quite difficult. Amazon offers a decent comparison chart across the 3, 5, and 7 series on the product detail pages. When I googled "Best Shaver", the first page that pulled up recommended the Braun 7 series. After carefully compared all the bells and whistles amongst the entire Braun product line, the 7 series 790cc model seems to be the best value, given Amazon sold it for $199 (MSRP $269); for the time being, they are offering a $50 Amazon Credit which will bring my actual cost down to $150... not bad for a top of the line shaver from Braun.

The main benefits I liked about Braun 7 Series is because it has the following items which stands out:
* 10,000 vibration Pulsonic technology
* Gilette's technology for the cutter/head
* Charging base that will clean and renewal the shaver
* LCD on the bottom of the shaver which indicates battery and renewal status
* Braun products are mostly made in Germany, this one included. (quality!)

As soon as the package arrived, I opened it, charged it and read the instruction manual completely. The unit is pretty self explanatory. The big thing is Braun recommends to change out the cleaner cartridge every 30 cleaning cycle and buy a new foil/cutter head every 18 months. Outside of that, there is very minimal cost involved outside of electricity costs to charge the device. I did some math in my head; the cost of this will break even after about two years of usage assuming wet shave razors cost $2 each and you change it out once per week.

The shaver gives a pretty good, closeup shave. I've used a low end shaver in the past and it can irritate the facial skin as it tends to tug or pull on the beard. With this unit, I don't feel it at all. I can hear the Pulsonic motor going off at high speeds effortlessly cut away my mustache and beard. The head of the shaver can be locked in a position to cut hard to reach surfaces while a precise trim tool is good to get precise cuts like a side burn.

This shaver is my first real shaver but from a mobile and gadgetry standpoint, it is awesome. The built quality is very solid and I love all the diodes, charging station and features throughout the package. Considering my final price w/ Amazon's credit is $150 (a savings over $100 from its MSRP), I am very happy to have gotten this as my Christmas present this year. Big thanks to my wife.

Update Regarding to Renewal Cartridge and Foil/Synchro Replacement: According to some reviewers on Amazon, the Renewal Cartridge is not required but is definitely nice to get proper cleaning. The big problem is that since the cartridge is made of alcohol concentrate, it will evaporate over time, so long as it is in your charging station opened to air, regardless of how often you clean your shaver, it will probably evaporate within a few weeks. This reviewer has a great solution, simply pull the renewal cartridge out and cap it back up while not in use, he said this lasted up to 6 months... smart! Also, regarding to price, Amazon has a 3-pack from $13-$16. Regarding to the foil/synchro, the cost is roughly $30+ and Braun suggest a replacement every 18 months. Considering you can use this tip to extend your renewal solution, the maintainence to own this electric shaver is drastically reduced!