ghd Duet Style vs Dyson Airstrait – We put the wet-to-dry stylers head-to-head to see which tool comes out on top
Our curly-haired expert shares her honest thoughts on the performance, price and user experience of both tools
Sennen Prickett
Wet-to-dry tools have gained popularity thanks to their ability to simultaneously dry and style your strands – streamlining your hair routine in half. With a plethora of tools on the market, we put the ghd Duet Style and the Dyson Airstrait to the test to see which is best.
Ghd made history in early 2021 with the launch of the best ghd straightener that also boasted the ability to dry the most stubborn of hair as the same time. Just a mere few months later, Dyson introduced the Airstrait, which arrived with the same smart tech as the brand's hair dryers and the iconic Dyson Airwrap.
No matter which styler you've had your eye on, both will require over a £300 investment, meaning they require some serious consideration before purchasing. As a beauty shopping expert, I've tested an abundance of hair tools frizz-prone, colour-damaged and naturally curly strands, so I decided to put the two wet-to-dry stylers head-to-head to help you choose which is best for you – here's my findings...
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ghd Duet Style vs Dyson Airstrait
Head-to-head
From first impressions the ghd is less expensive but bulkier, with an RRP of £379 that will require some serious consideration before purchase. As for the Airstrait, it boasts an RRP of £449, which makes it more pricey than the ghd offering but ever so slightly cheaper than the brand's Airwrap multi-styler. That said, at first glance, the Airstrait is a luxe and high-tech tool that is surprisingly lightweight.
Styling modes: Wet and dry
Temperature: 80°C, 110°C and 140°C from wet, 120°C or 140°C from dry
Features: LCD Screen, lock mechanism, auto-pause
The Airstrait comes with a slightly intimidating and hefty PRCD plug, but this is designed to take the necessary bulk out of the tool itself, which does result in a more lightweight styler.
It creates an airflow that dries your hair as it straightens, and I found that even my slightly coarse hair glided through without any difficulty, coming out sleek and dry after two or three passes at most. The whole process took about 30 minutes.
Compared to the Duet Style, I struggled to get right up to my roots with this tool, but because you can use it to rough dry I simply targeted the roots before wet-drying the lengths of each section. My hair took less time to style and felt more soft after use. However, it was less effective when I tried to use it as a straightener on dry hair.
Buy it if: need a powerful, user-friendly tool to leave your hair shiny and poker-straight
Styling modes: Wet and dry
Temperature: up to 185°C for dry and 150°C for wet styling
Features: LCD Screen, lock mechanism, auto-pause
With significantly fewer control settings than the Airstrait, the ghd allows you to plug in and go. Once switched on it runs continuously, and you can switch to the ShineShot mode (to be used only on dry hair) which goes up to 185°C.
It's less smart than the Dyson, with no automatic pause between uses, no temperature controls, and a more weighty build which can be a little tiresome if, like me, you've got a lot of hair.
The Duet Style has four narrow plates (two on each side) with air vents between them where the heated air is blown onto the hair. I found that this was better at drying my roots, but less effective for achieving that poker-straight finish I got from the Dyson. Because there are two plates on each side of the styler, it was stronger when it came to adding a wave to my finished hair using the ShineShot mode.
Buy it if: you want a versatile styler that can be used wet and dry, and won't mind a slightly bulkier design
My full review
Formerly Head of Reviews across our portfolio, I've tested everything from hair straighteners to vacuum cleaners. My hair is long, colour-damaged, thick, and curly - a challenge to every hairdresser I've met and in need of seriously intense styling to achieve a sleek look that will last.
I had already been using the Duet Style for around four months when the Airstrait arrived at my door for reviewing, and I've used both interchangeably for two weeks to compare the key differences between these wet-to-dry stylers.
GHD Duet Style vs Dyson Airstrait: Design
The Airstrait (left) and Duet Style (right) with controls shown on each.
Winner: Dyson Airstrait
The Airstrait is more expensive, but I'd say you do get a more premium design with this styler. Not everyone will want the option of switching between temperatures, but it's a nice-to-have when you're trying to protect hair from heat damage. The small but clear LCD screen with this styler allows you to toggle between settings and temperatures. You can also lock the styler closed when not in use, and it will automatically pause between uses when you're sectioning hair or using heat protection spray.
I was initially a bit put off by the bulky plug that comes with the Dyson, but when I learned that this is designed to house some of the weighty tech that would otherwise weigh down the tool itself, it seems like a smart and sensible trade.
The vents on the Dyson only send air downwards, which make it a little trickier to dry roots, but does achieve a poker-straight finish.
The Airstrait can be pushed together, as if straightening, to activate a stream of air that replicates a hair dryer. I used this to rough-dry and target roots before sectioning and styling my hair in sections. The Airstrait dries down, blowing hair straight as you move through the lengths. The Duet Style, by contrast, has plates at the top and bottom of each side, which means you can use it in both directions and also target roots more easily. It creates less of a directional airstream, instead sending air through vents into the area where hair is contained between plates. This means it's a versatile tool that also makes a better dryer styler, but it is weightier and features only two settings - its wet-to-dry setting and ShineShot, which replicates a traditional straightener.
Both are good, but the Dyson is a hair better thanks to its lightweight design and user-friendly LCD panel.
The ghd Duet Style's double plate and vented dryer design.
The Duet Style, by contrast, has plates at the top and bottom of each side, which means you can use it in both directions and also target roots more easily. It creates less of a directional airstream, instead sending air through vents into the area where hair is contained between plates. This means it's a versatile tool that also makes a better dryer styler, but it is weightier and features only two settings - its wet-to-dry setting and ShineShot, which replicates a traditional straightener.
Both are good, but the Dyson is a hair better thanks to its lightweight design and user-friendly LCD panel.
Shark Flexstyle vs Dyson Airwrap: Performance
Millie's hair after using the Dyson (left), ghd (right) and with its natural wet texture (centre) which is long, thick, and wavy.
Best wet-to-dry: Dyson Airstrait
You can see in the picture above that my hair came out shinier and less frizzy after I used the Dyson Airstrait. To keep things fair, I used the exact same products with both tests - a ghd heat protection spray, and a little gisou hair oil on the ends to nourish and remove some of my frizz.
The Airstrait took less time too - only 30 minutes as opposed to the 40 minutes I spent styling with the ghd. I then went over my hair with the ShineShot mode after using the ghd (more on that below), which added another ten minutes, but there was no need to do this with the Dyson.
It's a strong result from both stylers. Like I said, my hair is naturally curly, and after spending years wrestling with hair dryers and round brushes to try and achieve a more sleek blown-out look, I'd resigned myself to a life of heat-damaged hair due to straightening, with the occasional curly day to give my lengths a break. Before I started using the Airstrait, the ghd had already changed by hair drying game and I'd noticed significantly less damage than usual after I retired my straighteners for this tool. However, the Dyson did achieve a less frizzy finish, and it did so in a fraction of the time.
Best dry styling: ghd Duet Style
As our Beauty Editor Jess said in her initial ghd Duet Style review, the Duet Style is capable of creating a good wave if you're not all-in for the poker-straight look. "Using the shine shot, I was able to add a subtle wave to my hair, which made my finished style feel softer and more modern. The plates are wide, so this wouldn’t be possible on short hair", she said.
By contrast, you'd struggle to achieve a curl with the Airstrait. I did give it a go, but because the air flows from the bottom vents whether you're drying wet or dry, it doesn't function like a conventional straightener the way the plates do with the ghd.
Shark Flexstyle vs Dyson Airwrap: Price
Winner: ghd Duet Style
The ghd Duet Style has an RRP of £379, whereas the Dyson Airstrait has an RRP of £449.99. So there's not much in it, but the ghd is cheaper. Not to mention, I've seen it on sale every now and then, which is tricky to find with a Dyson hair tool.
ghd Duet Style vs Dyson Airstrait : The verdict
Although they're both wet-to-dry stylers, the ghd Duet Style and Dyson Airstrait really are very different tools. They're designed differently, and they have different strengths and weaknesses. If, like me, you want a frizz-busting styler that's capable of quickly achieving that just-straightened look, I'd go for the Airstrait. However, if your hair is more fine or less textured than mine, I think you'd get a similar result with the Duet Style, and you'd have the option of adding a wave once you're done using its ShineShot mode, which is something you can't achieve in the same way with the Dyson.
