Keeping quiet about Project Lion has been one of our biggest challenges. But finally we can reveal that Dyson, the people who have been setting the agenda in domestic appliances for over 23 years, are launching a hairdryer. But not just any hairdryer: a Supersonic hairdryer. Some months back, it arrived at Vogue House under high security and from the moment it was taken out of its padlocked silver security case, we were sold.
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Let's get the trivial stuff out the way first. It looks good. Very good. And nothing like a traditional dryer. For a start it has a hole in the middle (a bit like a huge polo mint) which is part of the design spec but also gives it a sleek, futuristic appearance. And it's ultra-light. Dyson's engineers (apparently 103 of them worked on it) made the "digital" V9 motor minute and located it in the handle rather than the head to create the perfect ergonomic balance: no more blow-driers arm ache. The super-focused, highly controlled jets of air make drying and styling simultaneously easy and quick, and the intelligent heating control measures the temperature twenty times a second so that you're not exposed to excessive temperatures, which means hair will be healthier, shinier and sleeker than ever.
It's also very quiet. As the machine has 13 blades in the motor (dryers normally have 11) the Dyson engineers were able to push one tone in the sound frequency beyond human audible range - hence the "Supersonic" name - and surrounded the motor with silencers, winning the approval of one James Dyson, whose brief was to create a hairdryer over which he could speak to his wife while she was drying her hair.
Launching in Japan today and available in the UK from June, the Supersonic is worth the wait. And as the first product to launch from Dyson's new UK state-of-the-art hair laboratory, we have high hopes for the future of our blow-dries.
£299, www.dyson.co.uk
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