Braun Series 5 (8985) Men's Shaver

After complaining for months that I needed to replace my old Norelco electric shaver, my wife bought me the Braun 8985 as a Father's Day gift. Talk about a big improvement - I find that where the Norelco always irritated the skin on my neck, the Braun is much more gentle. I can press down very firmly and still not get the red irritated spots that I used to get before. The razor feels very comfortable in my hand, and although the cleaning stand is somewhat bulky, I really like being able to just drop the shaver in and have it clean the next time I come back. I would definitely recommend this razor.

The braun 8985 shaver performs consistent with the information provided on the Amazon web site. From day one it provided an excellent shave. In my case I transitioned from a Gillette Mach 3 blade razor and after day one the results were very satisfactory. I have found it necessary to clean the electric contacts on shaver and the cleaner/charger contacts once in two weeks of operation. A pencil eraser works well. The last time I used an electric shaver was back in the 1950s. The Braun is a big improvement over my last experience.

I have never had a better shaver, only thing is, the cleaning lube is way over-priced in the stores and essentially still keeps you eating out of "thier" hands. I have to replace the lube way too often. Other than that, the shaver works great with so many extra features that you expect from Braun. No problems yet...

I feel I have to comment because I was happy for a long time with my previous Braun Activator. I've noticed many of the positive reviews are from people who are switching from razors or other electrics...and it doesn't surprise me that this shaver is rated so highly, because I've been a long time user of Braun shavers, which are the best foil shavers out there.

Braun really only made one change with the 360 Complete, and that was switching to Gillette blade technology. I really don't think there are any other major differences. What I've noticed is that the 360 complete is slightly better at mowing through thick hair, especially if I haven't shaved for a day. However, as a daily shaver I simply find the 360 Complete is not as good as Activator, and the basic reason is that it is more irritiating to the skin, especially to area above and below my lips. Despite using it regularly for 2 months, my skin was always irritated after using Activator, and on many occasions I made small cuts. This is a big let down because one of the big reasons to use an electric foil shaver is less irritation. Also, the shave wasn't any closer, and the Activator was quieter.

So, in my opinion, Braun really took a step backwards. The Activator was an amazing daily shaver, and I would definitely recommend it to anybody who has thin and/or sensitive skin. I think I'll be using Activator for awhile, and I see no reason to upgrade to 360 Complete or Pulsonic.

Pros: easy operation, cuts well.
Cons: The liquid for cleaning just too fast and is already stating replace the foil.