Panasonic ES8243 Linear Shaver long term review

Features:

• Linear Shaver (13000 rpm)
• Universal charging (100-240 V)
• Li-ion battery
• Waterproof for wet or dry shaving
• Turbo cleaning
• Time elapsed/battery remaining indicator (LCD)
• 4 blades on foil

ES8243 in blue
LCD displays elapsed time

The shaving performance of the Panasonic ES8243 is great for an 
electric shaver. I've used electrics for over 20 years, and have tried most brands (Philips/Norelco, Braun, Remington) and this shaver is better than those in every way. I've been using it for about 15 months, and here are my impressions on its performance.


The linear motor, which moves back and forth at 13000 rpm is the secret to the shaver's effectiveness. It is simply faster than any other shaver on the market. Shaving is very close, although you might need a few passes to achieve best results. It's worth reading and following the instructions - you must hold the shaver at 90 degrees to the skin, and you should stretch the skin with your free hand to get the closest shave. This is particularly true in the difficult neck and chin areas. No other electric I've tried (with the possible exception of my recently replaced Panasonic ES8095) shaves as close in these areas. I can run my fingers across my chin/down my neck and feel only smooth skin - no stray hairs. Amazing!


I tried rubbing a few drops of King of Shaves shaving oil into my skin before shaving, and this definitely helps reduce friction during a dry shave and therefore reduces the dreaded "razor burn".
I've recently been using their Kinexium product, and this is even more slippery than the original KOS product!
It reduces friction to almost zero and helps prevent razor burn, especially on and around the adam's apple.

I've only tried "wet" shaving twice, and it was a bit slow for my liking. It works fine, but you'll need plenty of time. A "fog free" mirror in the shower would be great for this.

If you haven't used an electric shaver before, or you are switching from another brand of electric shaver, you must give your skin 30 days or so to adjust to the shaver. As the note included with the shaver pleads: "Please stick with it. It's worth it." I couldn't agree more.


The cleaning mode on this shaver is simple, effective and ingenious. I had a good look at the latest Brauns before buying this, and was initially impressed with their docking station cleaning method. Then it occurred to me, do I want to lug all this gear around with me when I'm travelling, or when I go on holidays? And how much does it cost to replace the cleaning solution?
The answers were NO, and A LOT!

With the Panasonic, you just squirt some liquid soap (or even shampoo) onto the outer foil, hold down the "on" button for 2 seconds to engage the "turbo cleaning mode" and hold it under a running tap for 20 seconds. The result - a clean, fresh smelling shaver all the time. It makes the Braun cleaning system (and that found on Panasonic's own ES8249) seem like overkill.


The shaver is not perfect however. Battery life is not fantastic - Panasonic claims a charge will last for 15 shaves (@ 3 minutes each). That might be true if you can shave in 3 minutes - I find that 5 minutes is about right for a close shave. You get about 7 shaves at this rate. This doesn't present a problem if you leave the shaver to charge when it's not in use. This is safe to do, and the battery cannot be overcharged (it's a lithium-ion battery).


The trimmer is only adequate, and is a bit too flimsy in my opinion. It does the job however.

The trimmer - it does the job

The ES8249 is an identical shaver to the ES8243, but it comes with a cleaning station. This may seem like a good idea, but you have to manually clean out the hairs from inside the shaver before cleaning, and the cleaning/drying process takes over 2 1/2 hours. The cleaning stage is also quite noisy, as the machine churns away on the shaver's blades and foil. You also have to use Panasonic's proprietry cleaning cartridges, which is yet another consumable to buy. Personally, I'd save the $100 extra the cleaning system costs and stick with the ES8243.

4 shaving heads. Well, 3 and a long hair trimmer

Panasonic advertises the ES8243 a a 4 blade shaver. This is partially true. There are 4 blade surfaces on the outer foil, but only 2 blades on the unit itself. A sprocket connects the blades to the indented middle foil, which moves when shaving. So, I guess you could give them the benefit of the doubt and say there are 3 blades. This isn't to say they're not effective, but how many blades do you really need?

The key to a smooth shave with this shaver is to run it lightly over your skin. There's a temptation to apply a bit of force, but try to resist otherwise you'll end up with some nasty razor burn. There's a lock switch on the side of the shaver which lets the entire head mechanism "float" so that you can't push hard. It's worth using this setting until you're used to the shaver.

To sum up - I think this is a great shaver, definitely the best electric model I've tried. The price in Australia is very steep - around $400.00 but it currently comes with a 60 day satisfaction guarantee, so if you find it's not for you, just send it back. Give it a try if you're in the market for a new electric shaver, what have you got to lose?

2 blades inside the outer foil

Getting more mileage from your Shure IEM foam sleeves

If you've got a pair of Shure SE series or older E series headphones, you'll know that the foam sleeves provide the best combination of comfort and isolation. Depending on your hygiene standards, you'll also realise that they get collect earwax quite quickly, and lose their "sponginess" as more wax accumulates.

Just throw them in with your wash!

The solution? Well, you could buy some more, but have you tried washing them? Seriously, just put them in a zippable washing bag, and throw them in with your delicates cycle. They'll come out rejuvenated and will be good for a few more months. Of course, they'll still wear out eventually, but you'll get more use out of them than you would have without washing.

Remember, just wash the sleeves, not the headphones!

Xbox 360 Slim and Wireless N - no 5 GHz support

I'm sorry to have to start my blog with a rant, but this sticks in my craw.
I've been using the Xbox wireless n adapter on my old Xbox 360 for about a year, and it's been great.
My wireless network is set up to allow b/g devices to use the 2.4 GHz band, and faster n devices to use the 5 GHz band. The 2.4 GHz band is rather crowded in my area, so anything that I can get on to the 5GHz band is a bonus. This includes the Xbox 360, as its wireless adapter supports both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz wireless n bands. And it flies!

I recently had the opportunity to upgrade my Xbox to the new "slim" model. As well as being quieter, slimmer and more power efficient, it has a wireless adapter built in - with wireless n! Great, I thought. No more dongles hanging off the box, and more free USB ports.

The problem however, is that for some strange reason Microsoft decided to offer single band 2.4 GHz support only. Sure, it has wireless n, but only on the 2.4 GHz band, which even according to Microsoft's own Xbox engineering team, is not ideal, due to the aforementioned congestion issue.

Don't throw this out just yet!

Given that the Xbox 360 slim has been redesigned, why would Microsoft choose to omit dual band wireless? (The old adapter even had wireless a for goodness' sake!) Too expensive? Wouldn't fit? They forgot? Let me know what you think.

The bottom line is that I've gone back to using my Xbox wireless n adapter so that I can use the 5 GHz band. I discovered that it has little swing-out feet too, which I'm now using, because Microsoft removed the wireless connector port from the back of the new Xbox as well. Consequently, the adapter just sits on top of the Xbox, or hangs off it if you choose not to use the feet.
Don't get me wrong, the new Xbox 360 Slim is great, but don't throw out your old dual band Xbox wireless n adapter just yet.