Would I Buy It Again?
This post is part of Would I Buy It Again?, a series about things I’ve used for at least a year. I paid for everything myself, and there are no affiliate links.
I’ve just ordered replacement blades for my Panasonic ES-LS9A. Paying to keep a two-and-a-half-year-old shaver going, rather than replacing it, already answers this series’ question. But it comes with a correction to what I’ve written about it before.
What I said before
On this blog, the ES-LS9A has only ever appeared as the alternative, in my Braun and Philips reviews and my wet shaver roundup. I didn’t hold back, though. I called it the best electric shaver for wet shaving and a very good one for dry shaving, and I still stand by both.
Where I went too far was how much beard growth it can deal with.
Two days, not seven
It can shave a seven-day beard. Technically. In practice, a beard that long takes many more passes, and the shave is uncomfortable, to say the least. Like other reviewers, I find flat-lying hairs on the neck need extra passes. If you shave only once a week, you might as well get a rotary shaver, like a Philips. Some reviewers point to a Braun instead, but in my experience a Braun isn’t much better with those hairs.
It shines every two days or so, wet or dry. At that rhythm, it shaves nearly as close as a safety razor, at least for me, and it still amazes me that an electric shaver can get this close. Go longer between shaves, though, and each one takes noticeably longer.
Dry shaving
Dry, it’s more comfortable than my old Arc 5 (an ES-LV9Q) and just as close. It’s nowhere near as comfortable as a Braun, though. But a Braun doesn’t match it for closeness either, and closeness is what tips it for me: I’d still rate the Panasonic higher.
The flexible head
Panasonic advertises a head that moves in 22 directions to follow the contours of your face, and for some people that can be a great feature. For me, it loses precision, or maybe it just has too much give for my taste, and the shave isn’t as close. I have a tough beard and somewhat sensitive skin, so I usually lock the head. In my experience, that gets me a close shave in fewer passes.
It isn’t just Panasonic, either: I lock the head on Braun shavers too. The best flexibility I’ve found is on a Philips, where each rotating cutter moves on its own, and the head moves too, with less give than a Braun or Panasonic.
Trimmer and noise
The pop-up trimmer is first class. I even use it for my sideburns, and I find it a much better solution than what Braun offers.
The motor is noisy, but no more than you’d expect from a shaver, and I didn’t find it much louder than a Braun. It never bothered me enough to notice.
The battery
This is the worst part of it. Panasonic rates the battery at 50 minutes, but with longer beards that’s only two or three shaves per charge, maybe four. Philips shavers do better here.
The cleaning station
The cleaning station, on the other hand, is a very good solution. It doesn’t use alcohol, so the cleaning liquid doesn’t evaporate while it sits there. The trade-off is that you refill an open tray by hand, which isn’t as elegant as swapping a sealed cartridge. That tray can spill if you’re careless, though that shouldn’t be a problem once you’ve used the station a few times.
Where it’s more likely to spill is when you travel. If you don’t have a separate charging cable and leave the station at home, you have to unplug the charger, and the plug fits so tightly you’ll probably tilt the station to pull it out. Empty the tray first.
One thing I wouldn’t do is run it late at night. It can be quite noisy, and the little fan that dries the shaver afterwards runs for a long time.
Fresh blades
Panasonic recommends replacing the blades and foil every one to two years.
I do not shave with it every day, and the original blades lasted two and a half years before I felt they needed replacing. The new ones feel sharp, which makes the shave both more comfortable and quicker. A set costs about €80, or roughly €32 a year at my pace. Panasonic’s guidance is a new set every one to two years, but even at one set a year, I wouldn’t call that expensive next to cartridge razors, especially since a cartridge razor can’t shave dry.
Is it worth the money?
On price alone, no electric shaver comes out on top, and nobody claims it should. What you pay for is flexibility: you can shave dry or wet, treat yourself, and have a little extra time. It also beats even cartridge razors on comfort, since it’s basically impossible to cut yourself with it. I think it’s good value, but it’s still a luxury item.
In one way, though, it’s less premium than my old ES-LV9Q. That model had metal panels where the ES-LS9A uses high-quality plastic, and its display showed how long each shave took, which the ES-LS9A no longer does. It’s a pity to see a flagship swap metal for plastic. Braun deserves credit for going the other way: its new flagship, the Nevo, has a stainless-steel body. Now it’s Panasonic’s turn.
A cheaper alternative
If you want to spend less, the Arc 5 offers about the same closeness, but with more discomfort when shaving dry. The ES-LV9Q itself has mostly disappeared from shops, though Panasonic still makes replacement blades for it. New, the line continues with the Series 900 ES-LV9U, which I haven’t used.
Would I buy it again?
Yes. The blades I just ordered say as much. I’d pay for the shaver again, though I’d wait for Prime Day, Black Friday, or a similar sale, when it’s usually cheaper.
But I’d now recommend it more narrowly than I used to. Its two biggest weaknesses feed each other: a longer beard takes more passes, and more passes mean fewer shaves per charge. If you shave every day or two, my earlier praise still holds. If you shave once a week, it will get the job done, slowly and uncomfortably, and a rotary makes more sense.
On a two-day beard, it’s hard to beat. On a week’s beard, it’s the wrong tool.
Written with AI assistance.
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