The hair tool that gets you out the door in 11 minutes flat.

There are certain smells that take you right back.

Peppermint tea reminds me of pregnancy. Britney Spears' 'Fantasy' perfume brings me back to the Year 12 formal. And the smell of burning hair? That takes me straight to my first job.

Think corporate Barbie, but with a 2010 twist: peplum tops, "smart" cardigans, Alannah Hill headbands, wedge heels and poker-straight side-parted hair. My poor, poor hair.

Every morning I’d wake up, wash my hair, blow dry it and then straighten the living daylights out of it. Every. Single. Day. My hair was fried, and the routine took up my entire morning. 

Fast forward a decade and a half, and I’m a multitasking queen. I have to be. My husband and I both work full-time, juggling three different school drop-offs for our three young children. There’s a lot going on, so I’m always looking for ways to be more efficient.

That’s why I jumped at the chance to try the Dyson Airstrait wet-to-dry straightener. The package arrived in the office like something from James Bond movie, creating lots of excitement amongst the Mamamia team. Naturally, everyone had questions, so I happily took home my futuristic assignment to investigate.

Image: Supplied. 

It’s a Dyson, so of course there’s some sexy science behind it. 

The Airstrait combines two steps in one — drying and styling — so it saves time without compromising style or hair health. The high-tech haircare technology uses high-pressure airflow at a precise 45 degree downward angle, instead of hot plates, to create the tension needed to straighten hair as it dries. No hot plates equals, no heat damage. 

I couldn’t wait to wash my hair and give it a go. While my hair was wet, I set about sectioning it the way I usually would and gave the roots a quick blast of air. 

Before. Image: Supplied. 

To do this, I just clamped the "wings" together and it blows air out like a long and thin hairdryer.

It felt odd putting a straightener on wet hair after years of learning that it’s a sin, but once I turned the Airstrait on, it sounded like a gentle hairdryer — rather than the awful sizzle of wet hair on a hot plate.

Physically, it was a lot lighter than it looks. It’s all curves, so it just glided through my hair and it was easy to create a gentle curve at the bottom, which I think looks more natural.

Instantly, I could see my hair looked soft and felt so silky. With the precise temperature control, I was able to skip my usual heat protection product, so my hair wasn't weighed down by that and I managed to go three days before washing my hair again.

Halfway (left) and finished result (right). Image: Supplied. 

Any tips for using the Airstrait?

Read the instructions. There are five buttons, which threw me for about three seconds until I read the handy instruction sheet. The buttons allow you to turn it on, switch between wet and dry mode, adjust the temperature and switch up the airspeed.

That’s it.

Everything else is so intuitive. It’s been designed to look like a straightener, so just do what you’d normally do and end up with healthier, naturally straight hair, faster.

Of course, I tried to make it more complex… First, I pulled it through my hair slower than I would with a heat-based straightener just to make sure it was completely dry. There’s literally no need to do this. The air is blowing so fast in such a concentrated way that it’s dry almost instantly.

I also went to the effort of sectioning my hair at first, the way I always would to blow dry or straighten. But I didn’t bother on the second side — the air stream is so strong it could handle all my hair at once.

Does your hair end up looking flat?

I’m a huge fan of the Dyson Airwrap. I’ve had mine since 2018, and I use it to achieve a home blow-dry look most weeks — I won’t travel without it. So yes, I like a bit of volume and live in fear of limp locks.

However, unlike traditional heat-based straighteners, the Airstrait has a special root-drying mode to gently pre-dry roots, which means no damp scalp feeling and lots of nice, bouncy volume. It gave me a natural straight style, rather than that lifeless look an old-school hair straightener would give.

Verdict: I’d feel confident leaving the Airwrap and all its attachments at home and taking the Airstrait on my next trip to save luggage space.

How fast is it, really?

Image: Supplied. 

Dyson claims you can achieve naturally straight hair from wet in 25 per cent less time, and it’s designed to work on all hair types — from coily to thin. Here’s how it performed in my personal roadtest. 

My hair is medium thickness. I have a lot of it, but it’s all super fine. It normally takes me 10 minutes to dry my hair and another 10 minutes to straighten it.

Time trial results: I went from dripping wet to naturally straight in 11 minutes. We’ve established I’m not great at maths, but even I know that’s a good amount of time saved — AND I didn’t have to switch between multiple devices, making for a much simpler routine.

Surely it’s better to dry and then straighten?

I thought so too, but it turns out… no. 

According to Dyson’s experts, when hair is wet, its hydrogen bonds are more pliable and easier to 'reset'. Using a combination of moisture and airflow, hair can be styled effectively — without extreme heat. Using lower temperatures and resetting the hair's bonds from wet means its internal structure is protected, maintaining natural shine and it doesn’t leave your hair feeling frazzled and dry.

Nerd fact: The Airstrait uses the same technology found in the Dyson Airwrap and Dyson Supersonic, measuring temperature 16 times per second to prevent heat damage and protect hair’s natural shine.

Can you use it like a normal straightener on dry hair?

Yes. The Airstrait is designed for both wet and dry hair, so you can do touch-ups. I did this on the second and third days to the front sections of my hair to keep that clean-girl look. It was as simple as switching to dry mode and then choosing between the pre-set temperatures.

Would you buy it?

I love it. My hair loves it. My hair feels so healthy and looks sleek. Yes, it’s an investment ($749), but Dyson products are built to last for years, making it a no-brainer for my Christmas wishlist. 

Shop Dyson's Airstrait to streamline your hair routine and achieve a naturally straight style with a smooth, shiny finish.

Feature Image: Supplied.