Hello
blog space! It's been a while since I've written a review piece, mainly due to
the convenience of doing them on Instagram Stories instead. But after much
consideration, here I am with an unbiased review of the FOREO Play Plus. For
starters, I'm just going to say that this is not a sponsored post and I'm
writing this because I've had several friends from Malaysia ask if it was worth
the money after I posted about it on Instagram. I personally paid €37 while it
was sale to get it from Douglas here in Amsterdam (For my Malaysian readers,
think SASA equivalent), but I believe this model originally retails for €49.
Unboxed.
So
what exactly is a FOREO Play Plus? A friend commented that it sounded like I
was doing a review on a vibrator, and I guess it did sound like that when I
first turned the device on. This however is actually an electronic facial
cleanser brush that promises over 8,000 pulses a minute through its
"T-Sonic pulsations" to help rid your face from oils, dirt,
pollution, and whatever gets stuck on your face. Their words - not mine. It's
supposed to be really gentle on your skin so it doesn't irritate it but at the
same time be strong enough to do what it's meant to do.
A snug fit.
The
FOREO Play Plus is tiny; it's just 64 x 60mm, and weighs in at just 60g so it's
pretty convenient to bring around for travels. As you can see, it fits pretty
snug in my palm and the non-porous silicone ensures that it doesn't slip off my
grip when I'm washing my face. The use of silicone for the brushes also means
it's more hygienic as bacteria doesn't grow on it and the tool dries quickly. I
do however have a habit of wiping the bottom dry because I've read that the
small screws that keeps the batteries in the device do run a risk of rusting
from long term water exposure.
Fuss
free operation, push to turn on and off.
The
device runs on a single AAA battery that's first included with your purchase
and you could easily swap it out when it runs out of juice. My friend Michelle
suggested rechargeable batteries to help save the Earth, though I haven't gone
so far as to need a battery change yet. There's nothing much on the operation
part of things, you just push the button at the back of the FOREO Play Plus to
turn it on and later turn it off by pushing it again. Out of the box, you'll
get the actual FOREO Play Plus unit in any of the 8 colours you pick (I didn't
pick my colour because Douglas only had this baby blue unit on sale, but I do
like it), a user manual, and a warranty disc that doubles as a magnet so you
don't easily lose it. I now use it to stick pictures to my fridge so I'd say
it's a nice touch to not misplace your warranty "card".
And now to the real
deal, is the FOREO worth it?
I've been using the device for approximately 3 weeks now, and I'm pretty torn on whether or not it's the holy grail of facial cleansing devices as it claims to be. Also FOREO suggests that the steps to using the cleansing brushes should be to put your regular cleanser on a dry face, then wet the device and cleanse your face in a circular motion for a minute. I felt that this didn't work too well for me because my cleanser would refuse to foam like it normally does, so I went with applying my cleanser on a wet face then using the FOREO after.
Pros:
- The device is really tiny. It stores so easily, I sometimes forget it exists in my bathroom. I also pray my other half won't throw it out by accident.
- It does feel like the device has gotten rid of most whiteheads and bits of blackheads on my skin, though I don't see remarkable changes to my pores. The curved edges also makes it easy to get to hard-to-reach areas of your face, which brings me to the next point.
- It cleans the corners of my nose so well, it's actually amazing. For reals, the corners of my nose has probably never felt THIS clean ever. I feel like I can now throw my pore strips away, because let's be honest, those things are not exactly good for your skin.
- I haven't gotten a pimple in the past month, which is a feat since I've arrived Amsterdam.
- The silicone bristles are really soft, so soft it's almost therapeutic to just run your fingers through them when you're not using it.
Cons:
- The device is
expensive. It retails at €49 (Approximately RM 250) so it's not something
everyone could afford off the bat. For those looking to buy it in
Malaysia, I believe you could try getting it from the Sephora website.
- The device is not compatible to all types of cleansers, but this is mainly for the care of the silicone bristles. You could find the recommended types of cleansers on the FOREO website, although I remember they've mentioned clay cleansers, exfoliators, and scrubs as the top no-no types.
- My skin feels slightly dry after the first week, so I skipped their recommended twice a day use. I only use the device at night, and this gives me the opportunity to make shower time feel like a short facial session.
So
to buy or not to buy? I'd say if you could afford it, then you should give it a
go! I only decided to splurge because I used to have the Phillips Visapure back
in KL and that really cleared my face up. There are cheaper dupes of
the FOREO Play Plus out in the market for sure, but I can't promise if you'll
get the same effects as the original. If you're not sure about investing several hundred bucks on the device however, I'd suggest you get a manual silicone brush instead and see how your skin reacts to such intense cleaning because it could be too drying for your face. And really that's just it.
And on an important note: You'll find that there's also a FOREO Play on the market which sells for approximately €10 cheaper, but what's the difference between the FOREO Play vs FOREO Play Plus? Essentially the former is just smaller in size and you can't switch out the batteries. This means you'll have to throw out the entire cleansing brush when the original batteries run out, adding to more electronic waste in landfills and then buy another brush after. I personally recommend the FOREO Play Plus as an entry level facial cleansing brush, or if you're into their higher end gimmicks, FOREO also offers brushes that could do things like app pairing and intensity control but do note they're way more expensive than whatever I've just been talking about. But you do you, and happy shopping!
And on an important note: You'll find that there's also a FOREO Play on the market which sells for approximately €10 cheaper, but what's the difference between the FOREO Play vs FOREO Play Plus? Essentially the former is just smaller in size and you can't switch out the batteries. This means you'll have to throw out the entire cleansing brush when the original batteries run out, adding to more electronic waste in landfills and then buy another brush after. I personally recommend the FOREO Play Plus as an entry level facial cleansing brush, or if you're into their higher end gimmicks, FOREO also offers brushes that could do things like app pairing and intensity control but do note they're way more expensive than whatever I've just been talking about. But you do you, and happy shopping!
