The Manscaped Beard Hedger Is the Ultimate No-Nonsense Beard Trimmer
If you've so much as glanced at a YouTube video or caught wind of a podcast in the last decade, you'll be familiar with Manscaped. The brand behind what must surely be the world's most-advertised ball shaver, Manscaped isn't exactly shy when it comes to plugging it's gardening-themed body hair solutions. Recently, though, I've been testing the below-the-belt specialist's first foray into facial pruning, The Beard Hedger.
Having reviewed my fair share of beard trimmers for Men's Health's digital grooming pages, I know what makes a winning device. I value trimmers that make shaving as pain-free as possible, in every sense. A beard trimmer should be straightforward to use, gentle on skin and, ultimately, facilitate a near enough barber-worthy result at home. Here's how the Beard Hedger fares.
The Beard Hedger
Shop the Manscaped Beard Hedger at Amazon
Performance and Usability
As many of the best beard trimmers now do, the Beard Hedger features a simple length adjuster – in this case, a "Zoom" wheel – which widens and narrows the gap between the guard and the blade. Offering 20 length settings from just one detachable comb, it means you can incrementally hop between trimming lengths, ranging from 0.5mm up to 10mm, with minimal effort.
As someone with fine, straight hair, I don't have the thickest of beards, but even if I were to, I'd have no concerns over the trimming prowess of the Beard Hedger's "SkinSafe", titanium coated-stainless steel blades. Powered by 7,200 RPM motor, it effortlessly passed through my facial hair and left me with a consistent and level finish after each stroke. As for the skin safe claims, the Beard Hedger passed over my skin without irritation. That said, I'd still err on the side of caution where motorised blades are concerned.
The Beard Hedger is slightly curved in shape. If you've seen Dune 2, it's sort of Harkonnen soldier-esque. But while it'd be pretty useless hunting down Paul Atreides (final Dune reference), it does help to lift up flat-lying hairs and contributes to the trimmer's overall smooth, single-stroke cutting ability. I found this useful trimming around my neck and jaw, where patches of hair tend to grow in different directions.
The only issue I had with the Beard Hedger was trimming my moustache. The head of the trimmer is on the bulky side, especially when the guard is attached, meaning I couldn't get to the hairs at the base of my nose, even with the bare blade. I've had similar issues with other beard trimmers, but it's especially noticeable with the Beard Hedger.
Battery and Charging
Most beard trimmers sit outside the tech world's USB-C ecosystem. However, the Beard Hedger breaks the mould. Featuring a waterproof USB-C port, it meant I could recharge it using the same cable I have for my phone, laptop and headphones. Just remember to dry it properly first if you've recently used it in the shower.
A three-level LED indicator on the front changes at 33 per cent increments to let you know when it's running low on charge. The 1.5-hour charge function gives you a full 60-minutes of power, too.
On the Go
The Beard Hedger retails at a fairly pricey £99, but the included travel case, plus its other premium features, does soften the blow. The shell case securely houses the trimmer and there's a netted compartment on one side for storing a USB cable.
This makes it handy for slinging it in your carry-on. But its simplicity does let it down when it comes to versatility. Rival beard trimmers often come with foil attachments for close shaving, which gets rid of the need to take two separate devices away with you. Manscaped's own super compact foil shaver, The Handyman, is a worthy add-on, but it still leaves you paying extra for a complete on-the-go beard trimming set-up.
Manscaped The Beard Hedger – Verdict
The Manscaped Beard Hedger is simple by design. It does away with multiple attachments, offering 20 incremental trimming lengths from just one clip-on guard and a built-in length adjuster. The USB-C port makes charging it up that much more straightforward and the travel case keeps everything neat and tidy, while protecting the trimmer when you're away from home. For minimal-fuss beard maintenance, this is the trimmer to own. But for a more complete package, you may be better off looking elsewhere.
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