4.3.2009

Background you can skipI am a guy, in his late 30's, heavy (I mean HEAVY) beard growth. By the time it hits noon, dry or wetshave, the shade starts to slowly show.To make matters worse, I suffer from THE most sensitive skin.I tried everything, from upgrading my foam to ultraglide superconductor foam for inflamed skin (by Gilette) to going from 2 blades to 3 blades to 4 blades-with-lubra-wd40-strips. You get the point.Over the years I learned that the very best thing to do for me was to actually do a wet shave under the steamy shower: brush my teeth while I soak under the shower and then after 2.5 minutes of brushing teeth my skin would well prepped to take sensitive skin foam and I could shave infront of my precious fog-free shower mirror.However,gradually, as the week passed the skin around my neck would get increasingly irritated from the combination of wet shaving and stiff shirt collars and ties which I must wear for work. So I ended up NOT shaving on saturdays and sundays just to start the gradual irritation cycle all over on Monday morning. Much to wifey's dismay as she complained about my homeless look and expressed a deep desire not to be kissed by cactus-face Rick.Anyways, call this facial viagra, or my salvation: I found the Panasonic ES8109 (also on Amazon). A wet(!!!!) and dry shaver that would supposedly not get my skin irritated and I could use it immersed in water.I tried it and LOVED it. Read my Amazon review of it elsewhere. It takes about 2 to 3 weeks to get used to but once you have got it down, being a shower shaver like myself, you will find it competes with the best of the Mach III or IV or Final Episode... the thing works.And instead of using foam with it I found that spraying on Lectric Shave with a little 1$ spray bottle COMPLETELY removed any irritation.Also, my shave would hold as long as the manual shave did and in the end this turned out much cheaper...About the actual item listed here: ES3831KWhen I travelled for work I now wanted to have my ES8109 with me and did so a few times but it really is not a travelling shaver. It was too heavy/bulky and I needed to unplug power cables etc. and sometimes the button would get accidentally pressed and my shaver would be empty. Anyhoo, not a good travelling companion.I knew I wanted a wet/dry electric and I already knew the more expensive 8109 workes magic. So I bounght this one, on a whim, during a sale.When I use it with Lectric Shave in the shower it does a great job of getting me de-stubbled. It is really good and certainly not a 10$ shaver: the shave is smooth and the blades are sharp and seem to stay sharp.All 3 Panasonic Traveling wet / dry battery shavers use the same head and replacement parts. The white one, though, has a trimmer (don't need that on a trip!) and the bigger black one is rechargable. But they have the same shaving hardware. I wanted one where I could rreplace / bring batteries separate and did not need a trimmer. I also did not want to carry any extra cables.ConclusionI guess I talk too much (its getting late here). The shaver is great travel value. Buy this as a companion to the best electric wet shaver I could recommend , the ES8109 (for an electric best dry shave go for the Braun) but again: you have to be a shower-shaver with extra sensitive skin and heavy beard growth to appreciate my recommendation.Good luck in finding your own personal shaving ritual. I am happy I found mine after well over 20 years of suffering.

19.2.2017

Update 08May2020:It fell apart in Feb 2020 (3 years later) - the plastic stubs holding the foil in place somehow broke off, and it immediately became unusable. So I guess my wildly enthusiastic original review was off the mark. And my original comment on build quality is not valid. One star off (from 5 to 4) for this. [Heck, it cost less than 15 bucks, lasted 3 years, and did a decent job until it died.... not bad.]Another point to note: It shaves short stubble, but NOT grown out facial hair. Because you always miss a tiny bit of stubble, that unshaved stubble will, after a few days, grow out, and therefore remain unshaved. So every once in a while, I needed to do a couple of quick (dry)swipes with a conventional manual razor - usually on the underside of my chin.... a few seconds of extra work.Original Feb 2017:Original title: "Not just superb for the price, but superb, period"I have always had a problem with using manual razors on my rough skin - they leave my face a bloody mess. For this reason, I have shaved with dry electric razors most of my life, and simply lived with the less-than-perfect shave that comes with them.Enter this little gadget, and the wet shave leaves my skin feeling like a baby's bottom. Much better than the other products I've used with multiple, pivoting cutter heads - I think now that all of that crap is marketing hogwash. The ES3831k seems to do the job perfectly with it's single, simple cutter head. And for 15 bucks, it's ridiculous. Just close your eyes and buy it.It seems to emit an unusual crackling (but not displeasing) sound when the blades encounter stubble - something I've never heard from an electric razor before. Either something is wrong or that's the sound of stubble being cut much more deeply than with the other razors I've used - I suspect the latter, because it does an amazing job.Note that there is NO TRIMMER.Four days into it since my first use, things are going well. Blade vibration is very vigorous with the two AA batteries. Cannot comment yet on its use of battery energy, or the longevity of the blades; I will update this in a month to let you know whether the blades retain their sharpness / it continues to cut as well, and whether the batteries last reasonably long.Good build quality, feels solid. Although marketed as a travel razor (which most people assume would be an inferior compromise to their more bulky but usually better principal razor), I have found this to be the best razor I've ever used. The only reason i still have my old electric razor (a bulky Braun) is as a backup, in case the Panasonic doesn't live up to its early promise, or if I somehow damage it by accident.Update on 29Nov17: My water supply is hard (high calcium content) and I noticed that cutting performance degrades significantly over time. Guessing that it was because of a buildup of calcium deposits on the blade edges, I immersed both the blade and the foil in vinegar for a few hours, scrubbed them gently with the accompanying brush, and then rinsed and dried them. The improvement in performance was amazing - not quite back to the original level, but still pretty good.

29.4.2019

First off this is a Travel Shaver and while it can certainly be used for daily use and do a fine job, it is not a $100+ razor. People expecting it to be such for currently less than $15 are simply being naive. If you have whiskers that give even an expensive shaver a workout, don't bother buying a battery operated travel shaver. You are not going to be happy. I'm not trying to be terse here, I'm just trying to keep it real.Now if you want a Travel Shaver that is lightweight, easy to clean, and does a very good shave for at least average whiskers, this is the one. Just don't expect it to be stellar at mowing down 2 or 3 days growth of your then brier patch of a face.Most shavers and especially travel shavers are not designed for this; so don't expect them to excel in this area.I have neither steel wool for whiskers nor peach fuzz. I would, however, guess my whiskers are a little greater than average for being problematic. As a result I normally like to shave with a blade and shaving cream, but I will once or twice a week give my face a break and shave with my full size electric razor. When I travel, however, I like to go as light as possible and decided I wanted a lighter Travel Shaver rather than my full-size electric. I wanted a foil razor (closer shave) and decided on the Panasonic ES3831K.I had a day and half worth of growth when I received it. I began with a splash of Pre-Shave (which is a must for a good electric shave) and started under my neck. I made sure my movement was against the grain and slow enough and light enough for the blades to do their work. I was amazed. While not as fast as my older full-size corded Panasonic ES8249, this shaver was giving me a surprisingly good shave in just a few minutes.Clean up is a breeze. At home I usually rinse the foil and blades under water; apply some foam soap from a pump to the inside of the foil head; reassemble and then run for 20 seconds; disassemble, rinse and let dry for the next use. Easy Peezy. I never use the brush that came with it.Many battery operated razors labor to cut even half a day's growth let alone a full day's. For my beard this is no problem at all for this higher speed shaver. While the Braun M90 has some cool features and one I strongly considered, it's blade speed pales in comparison to the Panasonic; is slightly heavier and more expensive. In the final analysis I thought the most important feature of any travel shaver should be how well it shaves and how long it takes to do it. If it falls short in this area, it really doesn't matter what other features it has. I wanted the best shave possible out of a travel shaver.So I'll end where I started, this is not a $100+ electric shaver, but for less than $15 I couldn't be more thrilled with the convenience and performance of the Panasonic ES3831K. If your expectations fall somewhere in the realm of the realistic, I am confident you will be thrilled too.

6.8.2017

Fantastic electric foil shaver!! I bought this and a couple other more expensive brands/types to find out which would give me the closest head shave. This one wins hands down. It's better than the high dollar multi-blade foil razors that are 3 times the price, way better than the skull shaver, and better than a good multi-blade Mach razor. I like my head to be as smooth as a baby's butt.........and this guy can do it quickly. The reason it works so well and shaves so close is that it only has one foil. It's one big flexing foil with a blade that cuts over the full semi-circle, so it cuts no matter which part of the foil the hair comes in contact with. The multi-foil razors only cut over a small angle of the curved foil,

13.4.2015

For many years, I’ve been using one of those well-known electric razors with the three floating heads. I’ve always been satisfied with the clean shave it gives me, but I’ve also been annoyed by the amount of time it takes to get it. Seems like it’s necessary to go over the same area again and again to finally get everything shaved off clean. For me, shaving has always been a necessary nuisance and I had hoped that changing over to an electric razor would lessen the daily drudgery. It didn’t.Then, on a whim, I bought one of these little Panasonic battery-operated razors. I knew that the cutting technology was different from what I was using and I wanted to see how well it performed. After all,

12.4.2014

I have shaved with a razor for nearly 40 years. I've seen razors go from single blade to twin blade to triple blade, and even more. Every year the blades get more ridiculous in price. Considering the price of my triple blade razors, I decided to try an electric shaver. I was really surprised to find a highly rated shaver that cost less than a pack of my triple blades. But with the Panasonic name on it, I had to give it a try.I not only shave my face, I shave my entire head, except for my goatee and eyebrows. So this little shaver gets a good workout. And I'm used to baby smooth shaves. I shave against the grain, so I leave no stubble at all. The directions with this shaver tell former blade users to use the shaver a while,

20.9.2017

VERY GOOD product. The power is excellent.PROS:- Waterproof, great to shave dry, wet or in the shower- Very easy to clean (Read the instructions!!)- Very powerful, surprinsing for using 2 AA batteries- You can use 2 AA Ni-Mh Rechargable batteries (most economic way)- Very handy and portableCONS:- You need to learn how to use it properly. The user guide tells you it takes a little and you should shave about 30 days to get used to it (your skin too).- If you don't shave regularly, and the hair is a bit long, you will find difficult to shave perfectly. It has some troubles to shave ALL hairs in such case. So some will remain. If you shave always when your hair is starting to come out or very short,

6.10.2017

***EDIT AFTER 15 MONTHS***EDIT AFTER 30 MONTHS (SEE BELOW)This is still the best shaver I've ever owned—never irritates my skin, never pinches, and still going strong after 15 months. I use rechargeable batteries, top them up every few days, and the shaver keeps on keeping on. The foil and heads are still in excellent condition. I thought I'd have to chuck this after a year (or less) and buy a new one, which wouldn't be a big deal, since this entire shave costs one-third of what it used to cost just to replace the foil on my old shaver. But no. It's still working like new.***I love this little guy! I have owned many different electric shavers over the years, from Norelco revolving blades to whatever was the latest thing.

24.11.2013

I've been frustrated for some years at the high costs of running an electric shaver. None of the reviews mention the price of replacement foils and cutters which you will need within 6-12 months, and which turn out to cost 30-50% of the price of the original shaver ! If it's a rechargeable with an inbuilt battery, then that will also pack up within 2 years and probably be non-replaceable. The resulting total cost of ownership is over £50 per year.Assuming you don't want to revert to wet-shaving (extremely cheap by comparison!) then one answer is to dispense with all the frills, and buy the cheapest razor you can find that does a reasonable job. This ES3831 portable from Panasonic does the trick for me !

6.9.2015

I used to have an $80 electric razor/shaver that was just such a pain to use - it took forever to get a shave in, didn't get all of the hairs and actually pulled from time-to-time. After about 2 months of it, I went back to blades. That was a few years ago. Then one day recently I was browsing Amazon & noticed this little Panasonic for about $20 - I figured I'd give electric shaving a try again (as, for some reason, I started getting a lot of ingrown hairs after shaving with the 'next generation of blades', which, in my opinion, get WAY too close).Shipping was on time (as per usual with Amazon). The product came well packaged, with no damage - inside the box was the shaver, little cleaning brush,

2.1.2021

I thouht that when I would receive this shaver, it would last a few months, no more. Well, I was wrong. I have been using this shaver in my office 5-days a week for several weeks now, and I am very IMPRESSED. It takes a few shaves to get used to the idiosyncrasies of the unit and I have not been disappointed in the ease of quality of performance. It took me a while to figure out how to open the battery bay, and I am really happy on how secure the batteries are and, I think, how they are protected from water contamination. Quality of manufacturing is outstanding. The shaver is put together like a precision instrument. Everything fits with no gaps or flimsy fasteners.

4.7.2013

I have a rather heavy beard, and hate shaving. Every two years or so I shift from either electric or blade to the other. The overall best shave really comes from the outrageously expensive Gillete Fusion blades, but as with any blade, occasionally I cut myself. The Panasonic wet and dry shavers have long been my preferred electric, but, like ALL electric shavers they are just not quite close enough. I have tried everything out there over the past 45 years or so.I decided to try a travel shaver for a month long trip to Europe, and based on reviews bought one of these. I was stunned! The is probably the most comfortable shave of any kind I've ever had, and while still not as close a shave as those expensive blades,

17.9.2015

A few months before a four week trip to Africa, three of which I would be without electricity along with my absolute distaste for shaving with a razor, I researched battery-powered shavers. There weren't many to choose from and reviews seemed to reflect what could be expected of 'cheap, battery-powered' shavers, but the need overpowered the lack of confidence in the products.I decided to buy the cheapest one first and see how it worked. If it was ok, I'd keep it. If not, I'd try a more expensive one.But, thankfully this one worked fine over a few days of testing so I checked one more item off the packing list for my trip.Ok, so the hopes were reasonable, but honestly, I was floored by how long the batteries lasted.

10.4.2012

I've had this little shaver for more than a year now, and it has never let me down. The single blade does an adequate job of removing most whiskers. It's not the quickest or the best shave you'll ever get, but for what it is it's great. I keep one in my car and shave on the way to my destination. This multitasking saves me time if I'm running late. I use it on a typical day, and shave with a razor one in a while to get what it missed. It's a good system for me, as it gives me a balance of performance and flexibility.The ability of the shaver to use AA batteries means as long as you have or can purchase a few batteries, you are good to go. Personally, I prefer rechargeable AA batteries,

11.12.2017

I have had many battery operated shavers of different brands over the years and this is without a doubt the best one yet. I think it shaves as well or better than my full size Norelco triple head rechargeable that cost many times more. I purchased it for traveling and to keep in my car for "touch ups" when I run out of time and "forget" to shave in the mornings. I have no complaints and may purchase a second one to keep in my other vehicle. The small "button" in the indention on the front is a lock to prevent the switch from accidentally sliding up and turning the razor on. A really nice feature none of the others have had. There is a clear plastic cover to protect the foil.

Panasonic ES3831K - Reviews

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