I Tried BondiBoost's New $188 AirWrap Dupe, And As A Total Hair Beginner I'm Thoroughly Impressed

Hi, I'm Shelby — an adult woman who (after all these years) still doesn't really know how to do her hair.

My hair is straight and fine, so I'm always wishing for more body and volume so it doesn't look so (and I say this lovingly) flat at times. This is what kickstarted my journey to find a tool that can take my hair from, "OK, you brushed it," to "Wow, some effort was made and it actually looks really good!!!"

We've all heard about the Dyson Airwrap ($599) and its more affordable competitor, the Shark FlexStyle ($299). Both are hair dryers with multiple attachments that dry and style your hair simultaneously.

Dyson/Sephora, Shark

They also claim to be less damaging than traditional hair tools because they use both air and heat instead of just heat. The Dyson vs. Shark convo has been going on for years, and many people actually prefer the FlexStyle over the Airwrap!

But we're not here to talk about those. We're here to talk about yet another competitor who recently entered the game. You see, I was into the idea of getting an AirWrap or FlexStyle because a one-stop shop for a hair novice like me is pretty enticing (why buy 3-5 different tools to learn how to do my hair when I can just buy one?), but I wasn't sure if either would be worth the money. Well, color me intrigued when, during my research, I stumbled upon the BondiBoost Everlast Airstyler.

Released in mid-2024, the Everlast Airstyler costs $188, has similar attachments to the Airwrap and FlexStyle, and claims to deliver similar results. At up to $400 cheaper than its competitors, it seems like a pretty attractive dupe! But I was skeptical. Could the Airstyler actually help me achieve a salon-style blowout at home, with all the bounce and body I could ask for, or would it be better to just cough up the cash for a more expensive option? I intended to find out.

When I opened the the Airstyler's box, I immediately noticed (and appreciated) that it came with a convenient carrying case! I know Dyson includes a case with the AirWrap, and from what I can tell, Shark requires you to buy one separately for the FlexStyle, so this was a nice touch! I also liked that the case is soft-sided, which will hopefully make it easier for storage and travel.

Here's everything the Everlast Airstyler comes with:

Before we dive into my experience with the Airstyler, let me just say that this was my first time using a tool like this, so I'm coming from the perspective of a total beginner. While I wish I had the knowledge of a professional hairstylist and could give tips on how to BEST use this tool, sadly I do not. All I can do is give my honest thoughts on how effective and user-friendly it is for anyone out there who might want to start styling their hair at home, and speak to my particular hair type. If you're looking for a more in-depth review of the Dyson Airwrap and Shark Flexstyle, my coworker Fabiana does a fantastic job in this review.

Okay, here we go! After washing and conditioning my hair like usual, I let it towel dry for about 10 minutes before tackling the Airstyler. Instructions and videos on the Airstyler's product page suggest rough drying your hair until it's about 90% dry before going in with the brushes or curlers, so I opted for the angled dryer instead of the concentrated dryer since I'd be styling it afterward. It clicked into place super easily!

Something to note: The ON/OFF switch for the Airstyler is on the back of the base. It was a little hidden and took me a second to find. On the front, there are buttons to control the air speed and heat level once it's turned on.

Shelby Heinrich/BuzzFeed

For my rough dry, I set both the heat and air to their medium settings. The airflow felt really nice and powerful! It reminded me of using the Dyson Supersonic I once borrowed from a friend. It was also loud but not too loud. In fact, I think it was quieter than my regular hair dryer.

Halfway through drying, I bumped the heat up to its highest setting to try and speed things up, and also see how hot the tool could really get. It felt hot, but not "OMG I'm absolutely frying my hair" hot.

The dryer attachment dried my hair pretty quickly! The whole process took about 3-5 minutes. But, like I said, my hair is very fine, so how long it takes will likely depend on your hair type.

Something I didn't think about, but actually makes a lot of sense, is that after I was done with each step, the attachments were very hot! The Airstyler instructions mention letting them cool before taking them off the base, and they aren't kidding! I had to wait for about a minute before the dryer wasn't so hot to the touch. A little inconvenient, since I wanted to keep this show on the road. When I finally did take it off, it was still hot, but I was out of patience so I took it off anyway and put it down before it could burn me (LOL).

Next up, styling! I was excited to try the round brush attachments and decided to start off with the 32mm one since that's recommended for finer hair. I started at the base of my roots and brushed outward, trying to mimic the countless TikToks I've watched of other people using thermal brushes. There was a bit of a learning curve, and at times my hair got tangled in the bristles. Probably a mix of my hair tangling easily and me doing it wrong...but still, I persisted!!!

On first impression, it produced a little more frizz than I would've liked, so I switched to the larger barrel for the left side of my head just to see the difference. It created even MORE frizz, so I switched back to the smaller barrel. That one seemed to work better for me.

Shelby Heinrich/BuzzFeed

Like the rough drying, this step was also pretty fast! I think it took about 5-7 minutes, and my hair felt bouncy and smooth!

Here's a before and after:

Shelby Heinrich/BuzzFeed

Once it was all said and done, my hair was still a lot frizzier than I hoped it would be, mostly because when I think of blowouts, I think of no strands out of place. But, TBH, my hair is bleached and I'm also WAY overdue for a haircut, so that may have contributed. I'm not going to blame the AirStyler completely here, but the flyaways still stopped me in my tracks.

Once again, the attachment was HOT when I tried to take it off! As a PSA, be careful!!! And make sure you're detaching from the bases and not the tools themselves.

But the work wasn't done. I also wanted to test out the Airstyler's curling barrels. Since there's one curler for each side of the head, I appreciated that they were clearly marked. But a part of me wished I could just switch the direction of the barrel automatically (with a button on the base, for example) instead of having to physically switch them out. But from what I can tell, the more expensive options offer the exact same thing, so I guess that's just the way it is.

This helpful video recommended using a "cool shot" to help set the Airstyler's curls. This meant turning the heat all the way off for a few seconds before releasing the curl. This was tricky for me at first, but I gradually got the hang of it. The curls I got were very defined but a little wild-looking.

Shelby Heinrich/BuzzFeed

I also had an issue where already-curled pieces of hair kept getting sucked back up into the barrel when I was working on a new section. This could've been user error, and maybe I'll get better with time, but still, this was frustrating!! And I think it led to some not-so-great curls.

This step was by far the most time-intensive (probably about 10-15 minutes), and towards the end, as I worked on my left side, I noticed that the curls on my right side were already starting to fall. Not gonna lie, I didn't love that! Even with the Airstyler's lower price point, it was disappointing to see.

When I was finished, my curls looked wild and all over the place! As a final step, I finger-brushed them, added some medium-hold hairspray, and then brushed through everything with a Tangle Teezer comb.

This was the final result, and overall, I liked it! It wasn't quite what I expected —I'd hoped the curls would be bouncier and more defined — but I LOVED the volume at my roots and around my face, and how smooth and bouncy my hair looked. It for sure had more volume than when I used my regular hair dryer and hair brush.

Shelby Heinrich/BuzzFeed

The whole process took about 30 minutes to complete. Did it feel like a long while I was doing it? Yes. But I'd still prefer that over spending and hour plus on my hair. And I think the harsh reality is: If I want to style my hair, I'm gonna have to devote some time to it no matter what.

I probably won't use the Airstyler every single day, but I can definitely see myself doing it when I want to have a really, really good hair day. If anything, I'll probably rough dry and use the round brushes the most, and save curling for special occasions.

I did my hair in the morning, so the final test was whether or not it would hold its style throughout the day. After working inside for about eight hours, here's how my hair looked:

Sadly, it did fall a little. Especially the curls at the ends. That was disappointing considering the price point ($188 still isn't cheap!), but I liked that the volume at my roots stayed intact and even at the end of the day, my hair still felt silky smooth.

Would I recommend the BondiBoost Everlast Airstyler? Yes! I think it's a great entry-level tool if you're a beginner and don't want to spend $300-$600 on the Dyson or Shark systems. The amount of attachments you get for the price feels totally worth it to me, and it's user-friendly enough that I was able to achieve decent results on my first try! In the future, I think I'll need to invest in heat protectant and better hairspray...but all in all, I am pleased!

Note: The BondiBoost Everlast Airstyler was provided for editorial consideration, but I was not obligated to write positively about it. All opinions are my own.

You can buy the BondiBoost Everlast Airstyler at Sephora or Bondiboost's website for $188. If you do, tell me what you think about it in the comments!