Wahl 9818 Lithium Ion Stainless Steel All-In-One groomer Review

Wahl Stainless Steel Lithium Ion+ Beard Trimmer- All in One Men’s Grooming Kit

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We’ve actually already reviewed the Wahl 9818 Lithium Ion Groomer. It came second in our list of top Wahl trimmers and groomers, and we liked it so much that we thought it deserved it’s own review.

The Wahl Lithium ion 9818 is the top of the range beard trimmer from Wahl. There’s only one trimmer that even matches up, and that’s the sister trimmer to this one. Wahl are known for their professional level products and hundred year long haircutting heritage, so when you’re buying their best, you know you’re going to be getting quality.

As it’s their flagship hair and beard trimmer, Wahl packed the 9818 full of features. It comes with enough that you shouldn’t ever need to buy anything else for it, and its strong battery and top quality motor deliver a powerful, consistent cut on a machine that will last you years.

Features and benefits

There’s a lot to love about this groomer, including

The blades are Wahl’s patented precision ground carbon steel professional blades. They should never need maintenance, as they’re self-sharpening, and some people who have owned this trimmer for several years report that it’s just kept on trucking.

The cut is also fantastic. The amount of power the battery delivers means it carves through even the thickest and most tangled hairs with no issues. I found that there was no pulling or snarling like I’d got with cheaper grooming kits.

It’s also got enough options and attachments for any style. No matter how crazy you go with your hair, this will deal with what you need.

Wahl’s Lithium ion 2.0 edition battery design is beyond par. It lasts forever, giving you around four hours of grooming time, and some users have said it took several weeks of use after it came out of the box for it to need a recharge.

Oh, yeah. It comes precharged in the box, which is handy.

The battery delivers twice the torque of a standard battery, which makes a big difference in the level of the trim you get. Just turning it on you can feel the power of it in your hand. It thrums along like an industrial engine, and using it is a dream. You get fantastic trimming time after time, and full power from the battery from full charge all the way down to the last little spurt of juice.

Handily, you can also get 3 minutes of power from just one minute of charging, so if you’ve forgotten to charge your trimmer and you’re panicking because you look like a hobo, you don’t need to worry.

The unit also accepts worldwide voltages, so no matter where you’re traveling to, it’s got you covered.

The body of the groomer is stainless steel, and it’s reassuringly heavy. I got the feeling that I could drop this thing, watch it bounce off of the stone tiles of my bathroom floor and it’d still keep on chugging.

It’s reassuring to know that it’s a solid piece of kit, because as we all know, as much as we might try to keep our stuff protected, in a gym bag or when we’re traveling accidents happen. Even if it does break, the whole thing is covered by Wahl’s 5-year warranty, so you’ll always be able to send it back.

It’s made in America, too. So if you do have to send it back, no waiting 8 weeks for it to get to China. I’ve heard great things about Wahl’s customer service, too. Apparently, the phones are all answered by actual people. Not robots or caller systems. How ’bout that.

The kit comes with four separate detachable heads to deal with every situation.

You get a T-blade, which is good for normal haircuts and trimming. A detail shaver, which is the shaving head attachment and also a dab hand at outlining. A tiny detail trimmer for precise control and detailing of your beard or sideburns, and an ear and nose trimmer.

You also get a charging cable, a bunch of guide combs, an actual comb, cleaning brush and blade oil, and a nice zippered carrying case to keep it all in.

Alternatives

While this is a great grooming and trimming kit, there are other options available that do as good a job.

Braun MG5090 Men’s Electric Shaver / Styler / Trimmer, 3-in-1 Ultimate Hair Clipper, Wet & Dry

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The Braun is a much more self-contained unit. The extra wide shaver head has Braun’s smartfoil coating, which gives a closer, cleaning shave. It’s got a built-in detailing trimmer, which folds out from the unit itself, and the easy to snap on guide comb gives you four settings that give you exact lengths, time after time.

It’s also fully waterproof and adjusts itself to any worldwide voltage. 30 minutes of power and a 5-minute quick charge round out a solid package.

If you’re tired of the cleanup after every trim, then this trimmer by Philips Norelco is ideal. It’s got a built-in hair vacuum that catches up to 90% of the hair it cuts off of your face, making cleanup so much easier.

It’s also got a huge 20 length settings, so no matter what your style, this has it covered. Regarding downsides, though, you only get the shaver and a couple of guides with this kit.

Then there’s this. The number one choice in our Wahl trimmers review.

The reason we picked the Wahl 9916 as the number one? It’s a consistently great little machine that gives excellent trims and shaves, at a really impressive price. It’s so much cheaper than the other systems we’ve reviewed here, so if price is a major issue for you, but you still want to get a decent little grooming set for your money, this is the best choice.

It’s important as men to look sharp. It’s called the Halo effect. If you look good, people assume you are good, and naturally think you’re more charming, competent and likable than you might actually be!

That’s why it’s really important to make sure your hair and beard is on point. A huge part of looking good is being well groomed, and a huge part of being well groomed is having the right tools for the job. As we all know, having the right tools for the job at hand makes it so much easier to get a good result.

That’s why it’s important as a modern man to buy a high-quality grooming kit that will last for ages and make you look as handsome and manly as you deserve.

Things to consider before buying a groomer

When you’re buying a groomer, there’s four major things you want to look at. If you pay attention to these four things, then no matter what you buy, it’s guaranteed to be a good choice.

The blades are what’s in contact with your face. It’s what actually cuts the hair. Sounds obvious, but some people…

So it stands to reason the better quality the blades, the better quality trim or cut you’re going to get. You’re going to want to look for a groomer with high carbon steel or titanium edged blades.

These types of blade hold and edge far longer than conventional steel, and most of the time don’t even need sharpening.

The motor drives the blades. It’s what makes the whole thing work. Just as if you don’t have good blades, you don’t get a good cut, if you don’t have a decent motor driving the blades, you won’t get any sort of trim.

Generally, when it comes to the motor, the more powerful, the better. Bear in mind that the stronger the motor, the more power it’ll need, so a more powerful motor could put more strain on the battery.

The latest tech when it comes to batteries is lithium ion. More and more high-end trimmers and groomers are switching to lithium ion because the difference in performance is huge.

Firstly, you get more power out of it in general, which means you can run a more powerful motor.

Second, despite giving out more power, lithium ion batteries run for far longer than conventional batteries, up to twice as long in some cases.

Third, lithium ion batteries can be quick charged. In some groomers, as little as 5 minutes on charge can give enough usage time to get a quick shave in.

Finally, you’re going to want to pay attention to what comes with the groomer you’re buying.

There’s a lot of options out there, from professional guard comb kits, barbers combs, professional level scissors, and even mini detailing trimmer sets.

Styles vary, and it’s important to know that you’re getting everything you need in your kit, whatever you end up buying. There’s nothing worse than buying a brand new toy, waiting excitedly by the door for it to arrive, then not having what you need to use it.

Conclusion

This trimmer deserves all the accolades and positive reviews it has. It’s a solid, receptive piece of kit that makes trimming easier than ever, never really has any problems, and dare I say it, even makes shaving fun.

It was so simple and quick to use that I found myself looking forward to my daily shave. If you’re in the market for a top class hair trimming/grooming kit that does everything you could ever want it to and does it well, this is the one.

Loved the article? Why not check out more of our beard articles or if you want, you can see more from beard trimmers