Review of Philips Norelco QC5170 180-Degree Hair Clipper

For more than one reason, I haven't seen the insides of a hair-cuttery in more than a decade. Flowbee was my trusted hair-management solution for all these years until I had the opportunity to try out Norelco's 'Philips Norelco QC5170 180-Degree Hair Clipper' and Philips Norelco QC5055 Power Hair Clipper. Now, I'm sold on these two.

Focusing on the QC5170, it lets quickly and efficiently do the back of my head and the sides and, thanks to the pivoting head feature, I can do it all by myself.


Operation:

Once charged, all you need to do is attach the proper comb (see below), select the desired hair length and proceed with cutting.

Hair-cutting tends to be a borderline traumatic experience for me - I'm a long hair type person - but this was a near-painless experience. I am looking forward to more future haircuts. It goes fast, smooth and easy and, in my case - I was only doing some advanced styling on the back and the sides following an initial cut - I didn't even need to clean the comb when I was done.

This may not apply to everyone but, speaking for myself, I can use either hands to hold the clipper. Even with both hands available, self-cutting would have been an awkward and difficult operation with a traditional tool but, on the QC5170 all I need to do is pivot the comb 90 degrees clockwise or counterclockwise and I could reach any spot on my head easily and comfortably. As for technique, I go against the direction of hair growth first then, for a nice finish, I go in the opposite direction to even things out. In the end, I'm pretty close to what most would get from a professional hair stylist in exchange for maybe $20 or maybe more.


What you get:

- The hair clipper body hosting the rechargeable batteries.
- The clipping attachment
- Stainless steel, self-sharpening cutting blades
- Precision cutter for contouring
- Large comb - .51-.83in. (13-21mm)
- Small comb - .12-.43in. (3-11mm)
- Charger
- Cleaning brush
- English/Spanish instructions
- Registration card with $20 coupon offer


Some specs:

- Battery life is rated at up to 60 minutes.
- Charge time is 8 hours.
- Cuts hair from .12 in./3 mm to 1.61 in./41 mm.
- 10 length settings between the 2 combs (5 on each of the large and small combs)


Returns and warranties:

There's a 45-day money back guarantee promise if the customer can provide proof of purchase and ships the item, insured, to Norelco at own expense.

The 2-year warranty promises to replace defective products for as long as the customer didn't do anything 'unreasonable' and he/she paid for shipping the item to Norelco, preferably insured. Proof of purchase of course, is a must.


What I liked:

Other than the surprising ease of use and operation and the quality of the haircut, I liked the easy cleaning and maintenance and the fact that, if needed, it can operate in a 'corded' mode. The easy grip makes self-cutting easy, efficient and confident.

The brief manual is written in good English and is very good at illustrating cleaning and assembly and has very good advice on maintenance, preserving battery life and even some haircutting tips.


Issues:

My big problem and the only one so far is the lack of some case or storage box. With so many parts of which some are small and/or fragile, not providing some way to store them, protect them and keeping them organized is inexcusable.

I am also having an issue with the maximum length. .83in. is too short for me. I can use this at the longest length setting for my back and sides but, for the rest, I will be using the QC5055. I understand that most men will be happy with the maximum length on this clipper so, for most, the QC5170 is all that may be needed to achieve hair-clipping peace of mind or even happiness.


Rating:

This would have been an easy 5-star if it came with a case. Since it doesn't, it gets 4.

I still recommend the QC5170 most highly but be prepared to supply your own box or pouch - I did - or risk losing combs or the cleaning tool or maybe misplace the all essential charger.

Product Description
The new 180� Pivoting Head Hair Clipper from Philips Norelco simplifies the hair cutting process at home. Designed for do-it-yourself cutting, the hair clipper combs closely follow every contour of your head and turns 180� so you can reach every spot on your head, including those you can't see. A special safety lock secures 10 different length settings from two combs for maximum flexibility in style (up to 7/8 inch). Snap on the precision trimming element, and you can further detail your cut or finish up the cut on the neck and near the sideburns. Cutting your own hair has never been so easy.

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