Revlon Perfect Heat 13mm Curling Iron: A Product Review

It's the last day of the year 2014, but before the year ends, let me present a review on the 13mm 1/2' curling iron by Revlon.

I got this product as a gift this Christmas and decided to give it a try last night. In my experience curling my own hair, I've used three different kinds of irons, a generic unbranded non-ceramic one, a Vidal Sassoon 25mm tourmaline ceramic curling iron, and, just yesterday, the Revlon 13mm tourmaline ceramic curling iron.

Here's what I think about this product:

Pros:
* It's very light, which means curling your hair is almost effortless. It is definitely lighter than my old iron.
* It has 40 different settings, and Revlon has recommendations as to what setting will work best for different hair types. Those with fine, thin hair can get away with heat levels 1-10, those with wavy to medium hair should heat it up a notch to 11-20. I think I have thick hair so I fall under the 21-30 levels (I personally used 25), while coarse, hard-to-style hair will require maximum heat levels of 31-40.
* It curls pretty fast. With my old Vidal Sassoon curling iron, I wait around 15-20 seconds before releasing. According to the manual, however, with the Revlon Perfect Heat curling iron, I only need to wait 5-8 seconds for normal hair or 10-15 seconds for thicker hair. Since it was my first time, I waited 10 seconds to be sure.
* It has a dual voltage system, which meant I didn't have to worry about voltage issues even though the product is a Revlon Canada release.
* It comes with a Heat Shield, which you place over the barrel for protection after use.
* The cool tip really stays cool throughout the entire curling process, making things a lot easier. With my Vidal Sassoon iron, the cool tip still gets hot after a while.
* This is a tourmaline ceramic curling iron, which means that it is safe for the hair, and that it leaves the curls shiny and conditioned. This helps reduce frizz both during the curl period and even after, which means it will not leave your hair damaged even with frequent use. (Still, it is recommended that you use a heat protection product before exposing your hair to heat.)

Cons:
* As this is a 13mm barrel, it creates smaller curls. If this is not your style, I suggest you try other products from Revlon's Perfect Heat line. The Perfect Heat line features irons of different barrel sizes so you can create the curls you want.
* Since this is a tourmaline-ceramic curling iron, it is more expensive than plain ceramic ones, ceramic-coated irons, and generic unbranded irons.
* I'm not sure whether it was only because I wasn't used to this iron yet that I didn't do the curls perfectly, but the curls did not hold for too long. I am comparing this to the length of time that my curls held when I use my Vidal Sassoon iron, which made my curls still look great even the next day.

Although, I should say it's a pretty versatile product, since the results still depend on how you use it. In my personal experience, the curls I got were pretty good, although since I was still getting used to the new product, I didn't make them as tight as I think this iron can manage. Since this is a 13mm barrel, this means it can create tighter ringlet curls. This wasn't really my intention when I used the product yesterday since I was going for loose curls; the Revlon Perfect Heat did a great job nonetheless.

All in all, the Revlon Perfect Heat is a wise buy for those looking for a safe, easy-to-use, lightweight curling iron that can create different types of curls, from tight ringlets to loose waves.