I think it is fair to say that shaving, as an activity, is critical to humans, as a species. And as we have all been conditioned to believe, Gillette is the best a man can get to address this most pressing of problems.
I beg to differ.
Allow me to bring to your attention the series of innovations Gillette has “pioneered” in the past three decades or so (courtesy Wikipedia):
- Double-blade razor: 1971
- Triple-blade razor: 1998
- Battery powered razors: 2004
- Razor with five blades: 2007
- Razor with rear trim blade (for a total of six blades!): 2007
Notice a trend? Going from two to three blades took nearly three decades. Going from three to five blades only took three years. Thats an exponential growth! If the trend continues, I predict that we will see a new razor from Gillette later this year that will have 6 blades or more.
No seriously, think about this for a second: the only real innovation shaving products have seen in the past 50 years is increasing the number of blades. And somehow we should believe that this is the best we can get? And this company is actually making money?
I’ve been using Gillette for more than a decade now and I can tell you that my shaving experience has not gotten one bit better. For a long time, I used the two blade Sensor Excel and I was very happy with it. Until Gillette executed what is known as planned obsolescence. I could not find blades for my razors anywhere. I was hence forced to “upgrade”, and I went with the latest Gillette Fusion. Even with 5+1 blades and the satisfaction of a tiny AAA battery buzzing the razor, shaving has not gotten any better.
I did use a Shick Quattro one time and I actually think their blades are a lot better and long lasting. As soon as I have used up all of my Fusion blades, I am going to give the Quattro another try. This is an industry that could use some serious innovation.
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Try this for innovation: ShaveMate Diva All-in-One Razors have 6 Blades and real shaving cream inside. Check it out – you will like it! There is a men’s version too called the Titan.
You really believe that putting shaving cream inside a razor is a real innovation and value add for end users? I grow a fairly hard beard, so for me, a comfortable, painless experience is the biggest factor. As long as you can give me good blades that don’t die after being used 2 times, I’d be a happy user. I couldn’t care less about shaving cream in the razor.
You know what gives the closest shave?
http://anandolan.sulekha.com/mstore/anandolan/albums/default/Old%20Men1.JPG
I’m sure it does. Somehow I’m very scared with those “ustaras” though …
http://www.theonion.com/content/node/33930
the absurd has become reality.
Yes, bladed shaving has gone rapidly downhill since 1998. I’ve tried most and have had to settle for the Disposable Schick Xtreme 3 Comfort plus, with the flexable heads. Despite all the added tech the actual cutting blades seem worse than those I used a decade ago.
… and given Brent’s Onion link ( read it first ) and this blog’s affiliations I can do one better …
http://linux.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=170148&cid=14179983
Haha, that was hilarious. My dad used to have this single razor Topaz blade thing in which you could replace the blades on your own. I have a feeling that worked better than the razor I have right now.
I’ve tried them all: 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 blades. 4 and 5 blades seemed about the same to me, but the very best razor I have ever shaved with is the Shavemate Titan6 razor. It has 6 blades, more than the rest but the best thing I like about the Titan razor is that it has shaving cream inside. Titan razors shave very close and smooth and I like that everything you need to shave with is all inside the razor itself. It is all-in-one. I spend a lot less money using Titan razors compared to all the other stuff I used to buy to shave, and the Titan makes shaving a lot easier. You can find Titan razors on http://www.shavemate.com .
Some years back, I gave up on shaving entirely and got a cheap electric trimmer/clipper. I’m on sort of a continuous cycle between substantial beard and vague-appearance-of-5-o’clock-shadow. My face no longer looks like I attacked it with sandpaper, most days I don’t even have to think about my facial hair situation, and I can’t remember the last time I dropped a dime on razors, shaving cream, or aftershave.
Also, I write code for a living. I will freely admit that I’m not working very hard to overturn any stereotypes here.