- I hate this.
So now, I just have a greasy neck for no reason.
I have a necklace on.
Maybe I shouldn't have a necklace on.
Cruel. Cool.
Cruel? (chuckles)
Hey, I'm Jennimai, Mashable's tech reporter,
and this is Beauty, Hacked
where we're breaking down the science and tech
that makes beauty innovation exciting.
(upbeat music)
Today, we're talking about microcurrent devices.
What is a microcurrent device, you ask?
Fantastic question.
Because before doing the research
and trials for this episode,
I actually had no idea either.
Microcurrent devices are at-home beauty gadgets
that use low level electrical currents
to tone and lift dull or sagging skin
by stimulating the muscles on your face.
Sorry, but does the idea of electrifying your face
freak anyone else out or it's just me?
Apparently though, electrical current therapy
has been used to stimulate muscles for centuries.
One of the earliest cases was in 1748
when Swedish professor, Jean Jallabert,
used electric shock sessions to alleviate paralysis
in a locksmith's arm.
In 1980, Dr. Thomas Wing introduced a
FDA-approved microcurrent device
that stimulated muscles in Bell's palsy
and stroke patients with facial paralysis.
And in 1990, microcurrent technology
made its way into cosmetic procedures
as a non-invasive, pain-free, anti-aging regimen
used in both salons and at-home devices.
That all sounds great,
but I'm gonna need a little bit more info on how
exactly electric those microcurrent electric shocks are
before I put them on my face.
So we talked to an expert to figure it out.
- So a microcurrent therapy,
it's a low level electrical current that really
mimics the the body's own electrical current.
So it's a gentle current.
It was initially designed to help with pain,
and then the science evolved.
And in the 1980s,
I think Carol Cole, who was the founder of NuFACE,
was one of the first aestheticians
to really launch it into skincare.
- I created NuFACE because my clients
were tired of looking tired.
- And then it just sort of caught on from there.
So really, the '80s was when it was first introduced.
And now, I would say almost every place you go
is going to incorporate microcurrent
into one of their facials.
But when you go into an aesthetician
and have a professional treatment,
you can really customize the wands.
The handheld pieces are going to be different.
And then, what you use at home is going to be more general,
so it's not going to be as specific or as detailed.
So it helps increase the production of ATP,
adenosine triphosphate,
which is really the cell's currency, current, currency.
And so, it makes everything work better, you know?
Like, things slow down as we age,
so it kind of kicks that up.
And then, it also will help then increase
the production of your protein sentences,
your collagen, your elastin.
So it helps with that as far as anti-aging,
which I don't love that term,
but then it also helps increase product penetration.
And when you increase microcirculation in the skin,
you're getting, you're helping bring
good stuff in and bad stuff out,
and you're just increasing that turnover.
So if you've got stagnation that's leading to breakouts,
if you're someone who's younger,
it can help just kickstart that whole process
to flush some of that and get everything moving.
Does it last?
You need to do it again, you know?
Like, you need to keep it up,
just like any kind of workout,
but you see, you see a difference.
Most people see a difference.
What I find is that if someone's really dehydrated,
you won't see as much of a difference
because water, current,
you know, they play really well together.
I hear people are a little worried about it,
they're scared of it.
Like, they hear current and they're like,
"Oh, it's gonna hurt."
It's not, it's relaxing.
And I think any time that we can take
five minutes out of our day
for that additional, you know, self-care
and, again, with all of us being on camera so much,
I think it's a lovely way to just refresh the skin
and does help you look a little bit tighter, more toned.
And I would say lean into it and don't be worried about it.
It's a really, it's a lovely treatment.
- Even though I was mildly terrified
at the thought of electric shocks on my face,
I buckled on my boots and tried out
some of the at-home microcurrent devices just for you.
I've been using both of the devices here
for a few days each at home,
and I'm going to show you how they work
live and in-person today.
We have the ZIIP GX series
which does come with a conductive serum bottle
and device itself at a whopping $495.
We also have the FOREO BEAR
which has just the device and a small serum sample for $245.
Let's break 'em out and talk about the pros and cons,
similarities and differences between each one
and see what they can do.
So first up, the ZIIP GX series.
Gorgeous.
So like we mentioned, you get the ZIIP device
which is actually pretty small
and then this full size, ZIIP Golden Gel serum.
It is the gel that you have to put on
to be able to use the microcurrent device.
So that's a little bit annoying, in my opinion,
because then it's not something
you can, like, really casually do.
Like, if you're working from home and you're like,
"Oh, let me just electric shock my face real quick."
It's more of a mindful thing
because you do have to put the serum on.
But here's the device.
It's really pretty.
It's a nice, like, white and gold color scheme.
It fits, like, in your hand pretty nicely,
but I don't know,
I think it's an interesting shape to maneuver on my cheek
but we'll see how it goes.
And then, this is the Golden Gel, like we mentioned.
Heavy bottle, honestly.
It feels like there's a lot in there.
Directions say apply a liberal amount of gel
over the entire facial area
to be treated by your ZIIP device.
And the device pairs with an app.
So when you're in the app,
there's, like, a ton of different treatments
that you can choose from
and they range a lot in terms of how long they are.
They can go anywhere from,
it looks like 2 minutes to 14, 15.
Jowls, the jawline pick-me-up, for three minutes.
I feel like that's a fun one
and I feel like maybe we could see immediate results.
This is what my jawline looks like (chuckles) currently.
So ideally after this, it'll be even more carved out,
so, like, maybe the shadow won't be as apparent.
It'll be a little bit more snatched.
Who knows? We'll see.
I'm gonna turn on the device by pressing this.
It beeped and it vibrated to let me know that it was on.
I'm gonna click Jowls on the app.
And it does tell me how long it is and how intense it is,
so it's a three-minute routine and its intensity is a 3.
Okay, then it said to apply the gel.
- [Tutor 1] Pull up right to that attachment and hold.
(Jennimai groans) We want to tone that attachment
that's pulling this up.
- Okay. (laughs)
- [Tutor 1] Wait for the vibration.
Do the same thing again.
- Okay. I moved before the vibration because...
- [Tutor 1] Side of the mouth (Jennimai groans)
and hold that attachment.
We're really working this attachment right here,
so it'll hold the area up.
- It's not exactly comfortable. (chuckles)
I really do feel like it's shocking me.
- [Tutor 1] Double up here for the very end.
We're gonna do the beginning three more times.
- Again? Okay.
- [Tutor 1] Okay, this is double intensity.
- I hate this.
Do I look any more snatched on the side?
- [Tutor 1] Three. All done.
Jowls, be gone.
- Mine never beeps, but she said jowls, be gone.
Okay. Also, it told me to apply gel to my neck
and then we just didn't do anything on the neck area,
so now I just have greasy neck for no reason.
Anyways, that was honestly more intense (chuckles)
than I anticipated.
And I feel like this area in my face
was so much more sensitive
and it really felt like I was getting shocked (chuckles)
by literal electrical currents,
which I guess is what I signed up for.
But this was the after result.
Does my jaw look any more defined?
I feel like I was doing more of,
like, my cheeks than my jawline.
It's funny that they call it a facial workout
because I did feel like, flashback to my high school,
like athlete days.
I was, like, fighting with my coach to be like,
"No, I don't wanna do this,"
but she was pushing me to work harder.
But this was just me shocking my face,
so a lot less athletic.
You feel something, that's for sure,
but I powered through it.
And apparently, that's important so...
All right, next up, we're gonna try out the FOREO BEAR,
which is very cute that it's called a bear
because it's quite literally
shaped like a little teddy bear.
So we're gonna open it up.
I think it comes in a couple different colors too.
Here it is.
It's also rechargeable,
so it does have a port here
and it comes with an outlet as well,
so as the ZIIP.
We love rechargeable things
because if I had to put a battery in here,
that sounds like disaster.
It's similarly, it's a different design from the ZIIP,
but it's the exact same idea with the two nodes here
that you have to keep on your face at all times.
I'm curious how that would differ as well.
But I like how this feels in my hand
a little bit more than the ZIIP.
I just like how it feels in my hand.
And it's made of, like, a silicon material
which feels a little bit less, like, messy to me,
personal preference,
but I enjoy how this looks and feels.
So this also has an app, the FOREO app.
We're gonna fire that up.
All right, and then it gives me
three different treatments to choose from.
There's only three,
which is I think the biggest difference
between the FOREO and the ZIIP.
The ZIIP just had, like, dozens and dozens
of facial workouts to choose from.
Whereas every time I click on this,
I kind of expect it to give me more.
I thought it was maybe an algorithm thing,
but there's only three to choose from, it looks like.
There's the Total Facial Knockout,
the Contour Cardio, and the Gentle V-shape Yoga,
and all of them are 2.1 minutes,
2.5 minutes, and 2.5 minutes.
So they don't have the length
as much as some of the ZIIP ones do.
So I don't know,
if you're looking for a longer facial workout,
this is not really for you.
But honestly, I was already struggling
with the three-minute one. (chuckles)
So I think two to two-and-a-half minutes
is gonna be great for me.
Okay, fine.
We'll do the Total Facial Knockout
just for you.
My entire face, it's gonna be knocked out, so...
Okay, I'm gonna put on some serum all over my face.
Hey, wash my face.
Ew, it just feels so gross.
All right, my face is prepped and ready.
I'm gonna hit Start Treatment
and see what it tells me to do.
All right, I'm gonna start this treatment.
Oh, that's the unique thing with the FOREO BEAR
is I do get to choose my microcurrent intensity.
I'm literally gonna bring it up one notch.
I'm gonna bring it to a 5.
It's on a scale of 1 to 10.
- [Tutor 2] Line the microcurrent spheres
under the natural contour of the right cheek
and upward towards your hairline.
- Okay, this one doesn't feel like little needles.
(upbeat music)
It's actually kind of relaxing.
Oh. - [Tutor 2] Put those hands up.
- The vibration was different. - [Tutor 2] Top of your brow.
Slide the microcurrent spheres - Oh. Oh.
upward toward your hairline.
- This, I can... (groans)
Why can I feel the current, like, so much more
when it's near my hairline?
What is that about?
(upbeat music)
Crowd is going wild, baby.
I can feel it so much more when I'm at the edges of my face.
I don't know why.
- [Tutor 2] We hope you enjoyed your facial workout.
Feel free to apply any other skin care products...
- I did it.
That one was so much more enjoyable
because the intensity was just not nearly as much,
and I could really only feel the electric currents,
like, when I was near the edges of my face.
Can't tell if I'm making the results up in my head
or if they're actually there,
but you tell me.
Maybe there's a drastic difference,
and I'm just not seeing it.
But I do think, I feel like there's a little bit
of lift right here and perhaps a little bit in the jaw,
but maybe that's just from staring at it for so long
that I'm making it up once again.
All right, now that we've seen what
both of these microcurrent devices can do,
let's talk about the overall experience.
First up, the Did It Work scale.
I think with both of these devices,
the effect was very subtle.
It is recommended for aging skin.
I feel like you're gonna see the most immediate difference
on someone who's slightly older than I am,
but for someone who's my age,
you're using it more of as a preventative measure.
So it's a little bit harder to see those immediate results.
I do feel like depending on which facial workout I did,
I could see slight little bits of lift
and contour and definition.
But between these two,
which one did it better?
I feel like for my face
and the, like, physical shape of these devices,
the FOREO BEAR tended to do it better,
but the ZIIP does have more
facial workout regimens in its app
and it felt like the intensity was a little bit stronger,
but the FOREO BEAR does let you actually
adjust that intensity.
So pros and cons to both.
But from my personal experience on the Did It Work scale,
I think that the FOREO BEAR did better.
And overall, I'm gonna give microcurrent devices as a whole,
I think a 3.5 out of 5.
We're gonna go a little conservative
just 'cause I can't see immediate results,
but there was something there
and I could see how it would be
even more drastic on aging skin.
Next up, on the Simplicity scale,
how easy was it to use each of these devices?
I think that the FOREO BEAR,
the shape of it kind of just was more of a natural fit
in my hand and it was easier to grasp it in my fingers
and move it around.
The, like, kind of telephone shape of the ZIIP
was a little bit weird for me to maneuver
but it was a little bit bigger.
So I think if you have, like, more surface,
more real estate on your face to work with,
it could be more beneficial to use the ZIIP.
But again, for me, I think that the FOREO BEAR
was a little bit more simple.
But overall, it's actually not that hard to use it.
You're just following a video tutorial
and moving something on your face,
making sure that it's touching your face at all times.
So all of that to say,
I think microcurrent devices on the Simplicity scale
are 5 out of 5.
Next up, on the Cost Effectiveness scale.
Both of these are not exactly budget-friendly items
with the ZIIP being even more so.
Like we mentioned earlier in the episode,
the ZIIP GX series cost $495.
That does come with a full-size serum bottle.
Remember that.
And the FOREO BEAR costs $245.
That does not come with the serum,
but ideally you should be able to use it with another serum,
but it does have to have those conductive ingredients.
So if you want to purchase the FOREO serum specifically,
you're gonna have to buy that as an additional cost as well.
But as it stands,
the FOREO BEAR is almost half the price of the ZIIP.
So I do think that the cost effectiveness
is a little bit better on the BEAR.
I just don't, I don't love to drop $500 at a time,
but you know,
maybe if I really wanted to see drastic results,
it would be worth it.
But it is pricey,
and I think that for someone like me,
the results aren't super dramatic.
So on the Cost Effectiveness scale,
I will give both of these devices a 3 out of 5.
And lastly, as we always love to do, the Coolness Factor.
Both of these are quite literally super different
from anything I have ever used in my skincare regimen.
It is literally electric shocks on my face,
and I was a little bit terrified to try them out.
But once I got over that, I kind of felt cool.
I even got some of my friends to try it out
and they thought I was really cool for having these
and using it on them.
So even though they're pricey
and even though they're like a little bit crazy,
I think all of that novelty makes it cooler
and more of an experience to try out.
So I think on the Coolness Factor,
I will give the ZIIP and FOREO a 4 out of 5.
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(relaxed music)