We buy all the products we test, there are no freebies or sponsors. If you purchase through our links, we may earn a commission, which helps support our testing.
Home / Hair Styling Tools / Hot Air Brushes / Amika Hair Blow Dry Brush 2.0: Performance Review

Amika Hair Blow Dry Brush 2.0: Performance Review

Amika’s second-generation hot air brush is for the ones who prioritize shiny and frizz-free hair and fast results

Amika Hair Blow Dry Brush 2.0 Review featured

Amika Hair Blow Dry Brush 2.0

Price: $100
Heat Settings: Low: 152°F / High: 193°F
For Which Hair Type: All Hair Types, Medium To Long Hair
What We Like: Seriously Shiny And Smooth Results
What We Don’t Like: Not Durable Material, Heavy
Rating: 4.1/5


Amika puts good amount of effort into perfecting their tools and the second generation of their hot air brush shows their success. This tool combines the sleek and smoothness of a perfect blowout and the speed as fast as it can get amongst others. It has a large (2.85”), oval-shaped barrel which is perfect for medium to long hair and for boosting volume. It does sacrifice on durability and the sturdiness of the material. It’s also quite heavy (heavier than they advertise). But it’s overall a quality option since it provides one of the smoothest sessions on our list.
Below we share our experiences with “Amika Hair Blow Dry Brush 2.0”. If you’re curious about the competition, check out the article about Best Hot Air Brushes of 2023.


Table of Contents


Features

Barrel Size And Shape

Amika, with 2.85”, has one of the largest barrels in the market. (Conair The Knot Dr. All-In-One Oval Dryer Brush has the largest barrel size which is 3″) Like all other large-sized hot air brushes, it’s superior at providing the fastest results since it can cover a large area at one go. This makes it perfect for longer hair. If you have short hair, on the other hand, you might want to consider another option such as Drybar The Half Shot instead. Because this tool won’t be able to come very close to your roots and will fail to successfully style your pixie or bob cut.

This is an oval-shaped tool and oval equals to volume. It successfully boosts volume and creates salon quality styling. If you want to curl your hair though, oval shape is not the best and a round barrel will do a much better job. There are many round-shaped barrels in the market such as Drybar The Single Shot that are worth checking out in case you would like to have beautiful curls from time to time.

Bristles

“Bristles” is a small yet important aspect when it comes to choosing the perfect hot air brush. While the long and soft ones are great at detangling, short and hard ones provide great style. We measured every single detail for you and we found out that, with 0.75″, and 0.56″, Amika has relatively short bristles and they’re harder than most brands that we tested. These qualities make Amika an effective styler. But if a good detangler is needed for your hair, there are many other hot air brushes in the market such as Infiniti pro link that will fit your needs better.

Temperature

– Heat Settings

Amika, like most hot air brushes, comes with 3 heat settings (high, low, and cool). While the high setting goes up to 193°F, the low one stays at 152°F. This range makes this tool effective and safe for thick and fine hair both. While the high setting is high enough to tame unruly hair types such as thick and curly hair (especially afro styles), the low setting will smooth your delicate strands without damaging them. We give Amika plus points on versatility in terms of fitting different hair types.

– Handle Temperature

The handle temperature is 86°F, which is an average temperature which won’t hurt your hands even in long sessions.

– Cool Tip Temperature

The cool tip temperature, on the other hand, goes up to 135°F, that is on the higher side of the spectrum and might get tricky after a while for delicate hands.

Performance And Durability

Performance is not Amika’s strong suit. First of all, the wattage, with 950w, is lower than most hot air brushes on our list and users complain about the tool not working as strong after some time. Another aspect that is worth mentioning is the fact that it doesn’t have a sturdy and durable material. Don’t get us wrong, it will provide a salon-quality blowout, but it might not last as long as many others on our list. So, if you’re planning to use your hot air brush for many years, you might want to consider a more durable hot air brush like CHI Volumizer 4-in-1.

Ergonomics

– Weight:

Even though it’s advertised as 15 oz on the package, it actually weighs 18. 56oz on our scale which is misleading. This number is the highest on our list and it’s important to mention that it might cause arm fatigue, especially if your session lasts long. You can go much lighter with a hot air brush like CHI or Revlon One-Step Plus.

– Handle Size:

The diameter of the handle is 5”, which is average and fits all, even smaller hands.

– Length:

Shortest hot air brush

– Noise Level:

It’s also average on the noise department with 89.7 dBA, so you don’t need to worry about hurting your ears while using it.

– Cord:

It has a 8.4 ft swivel cord which is above average and it would come handy in case you don’t have a plug right next to your mirror.

Price And Guarantee

With a cost of $100, this is not a cheap tool but it’s one of the most effective ones which provides the smoothest possible results. it’s worth the investment if these qualities are your priorities. But we have to say that it’s not very durable and you’re not paying for a long-lasting material. The 2-year guarantee is also not the longest among hair tools. So it’s up to you to decide what you value in a hot air brush and choose accordingly. If a durable tool is a must for you, we recommend Drybar The Double Shot, which is more expensive but will last much longer.

Competition

Amika’s a highly efficient hot air brush with great styling qualities but Drybar The Double Shot is our favorite hot air brush this year and for good reason. It outweighs Amika in many ways such as built-in quality and performance. It has higher wattage and it’s very sturdy to hold. They both create similar results as Amika also is definitely a favorite in terms of creating fast and sleek results. Drybar is Amika’s biggest competitor. It’s more expensive though, costing $150, and the decision will be about budget and priorities.

Revlon One-step Original is another hot air brush that has similar qualities but it’s much cheaper than Amika, with only $39. They both have similar-sized and oval-shaped barrels. But Revlon is known to be less versatile as it gets very hot and may damage fine hair, but it also provides a fast and smooth session like Amika.

Compare: Amika Blow Dry Brush 2.0 vs Revlon One-Step Volumizer PLUS

Sources:

Amika Hair Blow Dry Brush 2.0

Leave a Comment