BraunSeries 9 Pro Electric Shaver With 4+1 Head, ProLift Trimmer, 5-in-1 SmartCare Center & Leather Travel Case, UK 2 Pin Plug, 9465cc, Silver RazorGreenCircle Certified: Certified Energy Savings

I've always used electric razors since the first fluff appeared 45 years ago! Most of my life I've used Brauns. My last one was a 7 series and that one lasted me 20 years, although my father bought another model in the same series and when he died I transplanted the whole head mechanism into mine because they were identical and mine was starting to vibrate a lot more than normal, and I also replaced the soldered-in batteries on two occasions before finally deciding it would be nice to have a new one. The only strong reason for getting a new one though was because Braun extremely irritatingly stopped making thin-ribbed cutting heads for the 7 series and I've used up all the original thin ones, the newer ones are thicker and much less effective, so it was time to move on even though the old razor still works perfectly. I did look at new models many times in the last few years and put off buying the 9 series because the head is absolutely HUGE! I couldn't see how that would ever work, but I finally took the plunge and now I have a 9 series Pro+ and it's just fine.No difficulty getting a really close shave, no razor burn, no nicks, it's far better than I could have hoped for. The Pro+ head has 3 independently pivoting sections which do a really good job of following all contours. You don't really need the switch that locks the head at an angle for under the nose because you can just poke the head with your thumb while doing that bit, but as the switch is there I find I use it most of the time.Loads of battery power. After a week I was only down 1 power bar out of 5, and I wanted to clean it with the Clean & Charge station which is just like the old 7 series one and even still takes the same fluid cartridges although they've tweaked the design of the cartridges slightly. They're not supposed to be refillable but if you do a decent job of flushing all the gunk out and leaving them to dry then you can successfully refill with the chemicals availabble on Amazon and it works a treat for a lot less money.The shaver is nicely balanced, and the grip section is good. Unlike the 7 series where the power/slider button was right where you need to grip which was silly, and the whole thing had a tendency to slide through the hands anyway, the 9 series has the power button well out of the way so that's a huge bonus, and the grip angles mean it's less prone to slipping through your grip in use.I do miss the option on the 7 series to pop the head partway up and hold over a bin to get rid of the bulk of beard trimmings before using the Clean & Charge station as that reduces the amount of cleaning that the chemicals have to do, I think I will still pop the head off and brush/knock out excess trimmings before using the station as that keeps the fluid cartridge cleaner and there will be less residue in the shaver head after cleaning. You're supposed to be able to wash the head under the tap but I don't fancy doing that as some water is going to eventually get where it shouldn't, and I want this thing to last forever!There is only one gripe really with this kit, and it's the fact that you can't JUST clean your shaver, the cleaning station automatically charges the shaver, you could turn that option off on the series 7. Series 9 has lithium batteries, and lithium doesn't really like to be fully charged, it performs better for longer if you stay within 20%-80% charge level, so I think it's really silly to have a station that charges it regardless. Frankly if you want to keep your razor nice and fresh, you'll be cleaning it every few days, possibly once a week, and that's FAR too soon to be recharging the batterty IMO.One niggle on the numbering system too - Braun have cultivated an extremely precise coding system for their shavers, but something went wrong with this model and they've stuffed it all up! 9xxx is series 9, no problem with that. 93xx is supposed to be the original 9 series, 94xx is meant to be for the Pro, and 95xx is supposed to be for the Pro+. Then the last two digits specify the accessories you get in that particular box, and I was so convinced that I would end up with a Pro instead of a Pro+ from the 9465cc code on this razor that I actually reported the listing for inaccurate description! I'd come to terms with the fact that £225 for a Pro was actually still a reasonable price, and ordered it anyway, and was genuinely delighted when I received a Pro+. And then I saw the code on the box was 9465, so actually Braun messed up on the coding as it should have been a 9565. Never mind, I got a seriously good shaver for a seriously good price on a Prime Day so I'm very happy :o)In use, it sounds to me like a really angry hornet. Grrrrrr! Hehehehe. It's a little bit louder than my old one, but it's not excessive.

Buckle up - this might be a long ride (as I’m planning to update this review later). My first impression, on unpacking, was not wholly positive: the shaver looks smart but the case is not as described (albeit the Amazon description is not entirely consistent) and the instructions are appalling. As others have said, Braun seem to have taken the aphorism “a picture paints a thousand words” too literally. The instructions rely on pictures and few words, and they only make sense if you already know what they’re meant to say. Luckily for me, this was a replacement for my Braun series 7, so I was already familiar with the do’s and don’t.On arrival, the battery was totally flat (it wouldn't switch on - even after figuring out the lock/unlock process) so I put it on charge in the cleaning station. My first shave with it the next morning didn’t impress - the head didn’t glide over skin as well as my previous shaver did, and I couldn’t decide whether or not I should lock the head (and in what position). However, the shave was close enough so I ran it through a cleaning cycle afterwards. Next morning’s shave was much better - the cleaning seemed to have freed everything up and I started to be impressed. It’s now almost a week on and I’m happy with my purchase.When it comes to cleaning, I’ve decided to change from my previous routine, where my series 7 had a full clean and charge after almost every shave. After 7 years, the battery was still giving me over a week of shaves; I’d replaced the cutter block a few times and it was needing a new one now. I'd considered getting another cutter block, but the head of the shaver itself was looking decidedly rough (I’m guessing the cleaning fluid was slowly attacking the plastic) and the head lock had stopped locking (I rarely use that but it suggested that it was getting time to replace more than just the cutter). There’s nothing in the instructions (that I can find) to say how often to run the cleaning cycle: by that I mean whether a daily clean and charge is best. Online searches only offer advice on saving cleaning fluid - not an issue that I see as an issue me as cartridges have lasted at least a couple months with the daily cleans for my series 7. With my new series 9 I don’t think I’ll run it after every shave, nor wait until the shaver calls for a clean, as I think the fluid also provides a useful lubricating function; I think I'll try it as a weekly job. Daily cleans will be with just a brush and puff into the sink.The power adapter has a UK shaver plug, the two pin style that doesn’t fit continental power sockets (my series 7 adapter had a continental plug, which was better for travelling). However, I’ve also bought an adapter, advertised on Amazon, that means I can top up the charge via USB C, using the charger I routinely pack for phones, tablets and laptops.Summing up so far - I recommend it.