Once best known for its floor cleaners and hand dryers, Dyson has carved out a space in the electrical beauty market over the past decade. Its Supersonic hair dryer was followed by the Airwrap multi-styler, a revolution in hair styling that uses air rather than direct heat to curl hair – and regularly sells out in stores worldwide despite its high price.
The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more.
There have been two updates to the Airwrap since – a 2022 upgrade and the app-driven Airwrap id, which launched last year with variants for both curly and straight hair. This summer’s Co-anda 2x is a completely re-tooled product, with a more powerful motor for faster styling, and new attachments, including an air-powered straightener. I tested the new model to find out if it could really be worth £580.
View Straight + Wavy at John LewisView Diffuser version at Dyson
How I tested
‘I compared the speed of styling and the overall finish with my older Airwrap id.’ Photograph: Lisa Smith/The Guardian
I tested the Airwrap Co-anda 2x right after washing my medium-length curly hair, using the drying attachment to rough-dry my hair before testing each brush attachment, the straightener and the curling wands. I styled my hair before heading out to work to see how long the finished style would last during a day of typical wear.
When testing, I was looking for overall ease of use (how intuitive the Airwrap and its individual attachments are to use); the effectiveness of each attachment in drying, straightening and creating curls; how well each of my styles lasted throughout the day; and the look and feel of my hair after styling.
I tested the Co-anda 2x both with the MyDyson app and without it. On different days, I tried a simple, relaxed daytime style and a more defined party look. Finally, I compared the speed of styling and the overall finish of the curls with my older Airwrap id.
Dyson Airwrap Co-anda 2x: what you need to know
The Co-anda 2x Straight + Wavy comes with six attachments. Photograph: Lisa Smith/The GuardianView Straight + Wavy at John LewisView Diffuser version at Dyson
The Co-anda 2x is the latest in Dyson’s range of multi-stylers, all of which use heated air rather than direct heat to style hair, as mentioned above. This has two key advantages: styling the hair with air means less risk of scorching, dehydrating or damaging it compared with heated curling tongs and wands; and with an air-powered multi-styler, you can style hair from damp rather than having to dry your hair first – a godsend for busy mornings.
As with previous Airwraps, the big selling point here is the curling attachments, which use the phenomenon known as the Coandă effect to create a vortex that attracts your hair, causing it to wrap around the barrel in an impressively foolproof way. The same effect can be found in other products, such as Shark’s FlexStyle and FlexFusion multi-stylers (as well as less glamorous things such as aircraft wings). When you get the knack of it, styling with the Co-anda is almost completely effortless and about as close to magic as hairstyling gets.
Like Dyson’s Airwrap id, the Co-anda 2x comes in two colours and two different variants – one with tools and attachments for straight and wavy hair, and one with attachments for curly and coily hair. I tested the Straight + Wavy version in ceramic pink, which comes with six attachments: a drying attachment, two curling barrels in different sizes, two styling brushes, and a new plate-free air straightening attachment.
The Co-anda 2x can be controlled from your phone via the MyDyson app. You can choose from three different heat and speed settings manually on the handle or in the app, and the temperature settings can also be fine-tuned from the app to give you a slightly cooler “high heat” setting, for instance. There’s also a separate “cool shot” button to finish and set your style.
Dyson Airwrap Co-anda 2x specifications
Power: 1,300W
Motor speed: 150,000 RPM
Temperature settings: three (adjustable using the MyDyson app), plus a “cold shot”
Speed settings: three
Attachments: Straight + Wavy version: drying attachment, two curling barrels, volumising brush, smoothing brush and Airsmooth 2x straightening attachment; Diffuser version: drying attachment, diffuser, wide-toothed tension comb, volumising brush, smoothing brush and one 40mm curling barrel
Weight: 410g (main unit with curling barrel); 716g including cable and power adaptor
Dyson Airwrap Co-anda 2x: what we love
‘My daytime style and party-glam look both lasted a full day without dropping.’ Photograph: Lisa Smith/The Guardian
If you’ve ever tried a Dyson Airwrap, you’ll know there’s something mildly thrilling about watching your hair twist itself around the barrel and pop out seconds later in a perfect ringlet. The curl id program in the MyDyson app takes all the guesswork out of curling by sending the best wrapping, drying and cooling times for your hair type directly to the device, which changes settings automatically so you never have to press a button if you don’t want to.
You can also change the direction of the airflow to the Airwrap’s curlers at the flick of a switch – a neat trick that no other multi-styler currently offers. On rival multi-stylers such as Shark’s, it’s a bit of a pain to have to switch between the attachments every time you want to change curl direction – especially if you’re alternating the direction of the ringlets for a less uniform, more natural look. This is much less faff.
I found the app easy to set up and pleasingly foolproof in use – you can adjust the suggested timings to your preference, for example, to style or cool for a little longer and help set your hair in place. Of course, you can also operate the styler manually, if you prefer. The new handle design with soft-touch buttons is comfortable to hold, and the heat and airflow settings are easy to check and adjust while you’re styling; I found it handy to be able to drop the heat or speed setting for finer sections of hair around my face, for example.
The styling attachments twist easily on to and off the base unit, and contain RFID chips that automatically set the recommended airspeed and heat settings for each attachment. I found these suggested smart settings worked well for my medium-thick, medium-length hair and generally used them as they came. However, as with the suggested timings in the app, you can adjust these manually via the handle should you prefer. The Straight + Wavy version I tested includes two sizes of curling barrel, 30mm for more defined ringlets and 40mm for looser waves and curls. It’s worth noting, however, that the “with diffuser” variant for curly and coily hair includes only the 40mm barrel.
The biggest upgrade is the Co-anda 2x’s new, more powerful motor, which spins at 150,000 RPM – 36% faster than the Airwrap id and faster even than the Supersonic hairdryer. This translates into noticeably faster styling times; I found it knocked about a third off styling times from freshly washed to dried and styled compared with the id. Indeed, the Co-anda 2x completed the initial rough-dry in just a couple of minutes and wrapped hair more efficiently around its curling barrels.
Despite the beefed-up motor, the Co-anda 2x is also impressively lightweight; the main unit and 40mm curler weighed 410g on my kitchen scales. That’s not vastly dissimilar to the Airwrap id, but the Co-anda 2x definitely feels smaller and lighter when you hold them side by side. My hair felt soft and looked shiny and healthy after styling, drawing compliments from passing colleagues. Most importantly, both my daytime style and my party-glam look lasted a full day without dropping, outlasting the same styles created with the Airwrap id.
skip past newsletter promotion
Get the best shopping advice from the Filter team straight to your inbox. The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link.
Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. If you do not have an account, we will create a guest account for you on theguardian.com to send you this newsletter. You can complete full registration at any time. For more information about how we use your data see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
after newsletter promotion
Dyson Airwrap Co-anda 2x: what we don’t love
The Co-anda 2x’s biggest upgrade is also its biggest drawback: the new motor and increased airflow mean any existing Airwrap attachments you already own are not compatible with the new styler. That’s a bit of a blow, if you’ll excuse the pun, especially if you’ve invested in additional attachments for your previous models. There’s currently no equivalent to the Airwrap id’s conical barrel, a versatile attachment that I found I missed when using the Co-anda 2x.
At £580, the Co-anda 2x is Dyson’s most expensive styling product to date and one of the most expensive beauty products on the market. This might feel like an investment too far if you’ve recently bought another Airwrap, particularly given that you won’t be able to use your old attachments.
Despite following the instructions to the letter, I didn’t get on very well with the new straightening attachment, which, like Dyson’s Airstrait stand-alone straightener, uses air jets rather than hot plates to straighten your hair. The full-size Airstrait does a good job on my type 3 curly hair, but the smaller attachment on the Airwrap didn’t seem to grip my hair well enough to fully straighten it. It’s possible the attachment would work better on wavy hair rather than my full curls, but if you’re in the market for an air styler that also straightens, it’s worth keeping this in mind. An alternative option is Shark’s FlexFusion styler (or even more recent update, the Shark Glam), which includes a standard hotplate straightener alongside its air-powered curling attachments.
Dyson Airwrap Co-anda 2x warranty and repairs
Helpful maintenance tips can be found in the MyDyson app. Photograph: Lisa Smith/The Guardian
The MyDyson app has a section with useful maintenance tips to help keep your Co-anda in good working order, and guidance on everything from fixing connectivity issues to cleaning the filter, to hopefully get it going again if it stops working. If you’d rather talk to a person – or have reached the limit of the help the app can provide – Dyson also has a dedicated helpline, which is also how to book a repair under warranty if necessary.
Like all of Dyson’s hair care products, the Co-anda 2x is covered by a two-year warranty under which Dyson will repair or replace your air styler if it stops working. Any spare parts and replacement accessories you buy for your Airwrap come with a one-year warranty. Book a repair and Dyson will arrange for a courier to collect your broken item.
Repaired and refurbished items are also sold directly by Dyson – you can save money and do your bit for the environment by buying a refurbished machine from Dyson Renewed. There were no Co-anda 2x devices in the Dyson Renewed storefront at the time of writing, but other Airwraps were available.
Third-party sites such as Sell My Dyson are your best bet for turning your old Airwrap into cash; and Recycle Your Electricals will help you recycle any non-repairable items.
Should I buy the Dyson Airwrap Co-anda 2x?
The Airwrap Co-anda 2x is an undeniably impressive styling tool – but let’s be clear: the price is very high. It costs £100 more than the Airwrap id and over £200 more than the closest non-Dyson equivalent, Shark’s 5-in-1 FlexFusion, all of which firmly positions it at the top end of the market.
That said, if you style your hair frequently, the Co-anda 2x earns its premium. It’s faster, more versatile, and easier to use than anything else out there, including all previous Airwraps and Shark’s FlexStyle and FlexFusion multi-stylers. The combination of easy-to-use manual buttons and the stylist-in-your-pocket MyDyson app means it’s easy for even beginners to create different day and evening styles that last. It also leaves hair looking shiny and healthy – especially compared with hair styled with direct heat from traditional hot tools. Being able to style directly from damp hair is a godsend for busy mornings.
Still, it’s worth acknowledging that upgrading from a recent Airwrap, especially the recent id model, isn’t the most sustainable choice – and is hard to justify from a monetary perspective too. Unless your current device is genuinely worn out, sticking with what you have will be the better option for both Mother Earth and your pocket.
Ultimately, though, if you don’t already own an Airwrap (or you skipped the last update), the Co-anda 2x is Dyson’s best yet. It’s an expensive product, without question, but if you’re willing to pay a premium, it really does blow the competition away.
View Straight + Wavy at John LewisView Diffuser version at Dyson
For more, read the Filter’s guides to the best hot brushes and the best hair straighteners
Lise Smith is a writer with more than 15 years of experience covering beauty, lifestyle, parenting and the performing arts, and more than 40 years of living with rebellious curls. She’s always on the lookout for products that can make them behave
