Review: The Revlon One-Step Hot Air Brush Gave My Hair Serious Lift

We purchased Revlon One-Step Hair Dryer and Volumizer Hot Air Brush so our writer could put it to the test. Keep reading for our full product review.

Doing my own hair isn’t typically where I like to spend a lot of my time, so when I got asked to test the Revlon One-Step Hair Dryer and Volumizer Hot Air Brush, it was an easy yes. Hot brushes are a 2-in-1 user-friendly option for getting a salon-quality blowout from the comfort of your home in little to no time. It also leaves out the learning curve of using two hands at once with a round brush (something I realize is an extremely foreign feeling if you aren’t a hairstylist like myself). That alone is enough of a selling point in my opinion, but this particular brush also claims to offer volume.

Keep reading to see what I discovered.

About My Hair: Wavy and frizzy

I recently cut my own hair and said goodbye to at least five inches. Despite the shorter length, my wavy texture always seems to frizz up when it naturally dries—my usual experience with longer hair. Now that my hair is a little shorter, I suspect I’ll want to do some minor touch-ups to keep my hair looking manageable and help my waves find their new groove and place. I also suspect that I’ll be doing a little more heat styling, because a chic sleek lob is always on point. 

Performance: Heats up fast

When trying this hot brush for the first time, one of the first things I noticed was how extremely fast it heat up. The moment I turned the temperature dial on ‘high’, it was instantly hot! No waiting period. In fact, if you have short hair and wear jewelry around your neck, I suggest taking some caution because this high heat will burn if you’re not careful. The ceramic coating on this brush allows for even heat distribution and its ion generator promotes faster drying. Let me tell you, those two features definitely made themselves known.

The only part of my experience I wasn’t a fan of was the noise level. This is an obnoxiously loud tool, in my opinion. But it wasn’t enough to sway me from its overall performance and the results I got from using it.

Design: Easy to hold

This brush has an oval shape, which is a part of its great design, enabling volume with minimal effort. The large, rounded edges help to re-create the work you’d be doing with a round brush to get lift. Nylon pin and tufted bristles also help with their extremely soft and flexible movement, making it easier to dry close to the scalp. These bristles move in and out of the hair with ease, never tangling or getting caught like a round brush, yet never causing any static to hair as it dries.

And the grip on this brush isn’t as uncomfortable as some of the other larger hot brushes I’ve tried. This one slims down in the center for a more comfortable grip. Either way, I’m sure it’s way more comfortable for the average consumer than using two hands at once with a round brush. 

How to Use: An easy blowout

With a barrel of this size, you’re mostly going to get a smooth straight blowout. You can get a lot of volume from root to ends, and even a subtle curl on the ends (especially on longer hair). But note, if you want a wavy blowout with some bends in your finished look, a large oval-size barrel probably isn’t the hot brush for you. (More on that below.)

When it comes to adding volume, you always want to be intentional with your mohawk section—from the front of the hairline all the way back to the crown of the head. This is the area where you want volume most.  I recommend using the cool tip on the end of the brush for control and added tension, brushing the hair forward and up toward the face to get maximum lift. 

What’s great about this Revlon hot brush, in particular, is that you don’t need to be super clean with your sections. The bristles are so soft and flexible that they don’t tug at the hair if you’re freestyling your sections, which is what I did. These bristles also allow you to get in much closer to the scalp to help speed up the dry time at the roots. But don’t linger too long—this brush gets hot! 

The Results: Healthy, volumized hair

The Revlon Salon One-Step Hair Dryer and Volumizer gave me a quick, easy-to-achieve, salon-quality blowout in mere minutes. I used it on my partially air-dried hair, though it was mostly damp. This brush made my frizz vanish, and didn’t require me to go over my sections multiple times to get the job done. My waves had no problem smoothing out with ease, and the lift I got was awesome.

After using this brush, my hair looked healthier, shinier, and full of life. I truly loved the results I got from using this hot tool.

The Value: Unbeatable

This One-Step Hair Dryer and Volumizer is an unbeatable find at around $60 on most major retailer sites. That may roughly be around the price of going into a blow-dry bar, but with this brush, you can recreate the look multiple times a week for at least 4 years. I say at least 4 years because this product offers a 4-year limited warranty. So you can depend on getting any malfunctions (should there be any) properly addressed by the company. That’s hard to beat. No need to leave the house, no tips to be included, no learning curves for getting it done at home. For the convenience this tool offers, I can’t think of a reason not to own this hot brush. 

Competition: You’ve got options

Hot Tools 24k Gold One-Step Dryer Volumizer ($75): Similar in size and weight, this hot brush also offers ion technology and ceramic coating to help heat quickly and distribute through your strands evenly. It’s a few bucks more than the Revlon, but it offers a 7-year limited warranty.

Conair Titanium Ceramic Hot Air Brush ($60): This hot brush has a much smaller barrel size which makes it great for a finished style with waves or blown-out curls, and also makes it great for anyone with finer hair. The Conair Titanium Ceramic Hot Air Brush can be a great refresher for second or third-day hair but might take some extra work if you’re taking your hair from wet to dry. If you have thicker hair, a lot of hair, or a very limited amount of time, I think you’re better off with the Revlon brush.