Amika Double Agent Straightening Blow Dryer Brush Review

Blow dryer brushes are the most powerful and versatile hair tools in recent years, and 90% of them are designed with an oval round brush. Surprisingly, we found Amika just announced an innovative blow dryer that is for straightening hair, and the new dryer brush looks like a paddle brush instead of a round brush, which is not something you can see every day.

So, what benefits will this special straightening dryer brush bring? How does it compare to regular hair dryer round brushes? Here’s a brief review based on my experience.

Is it easy to use? Yes, but it’s not perfect.

The biggest benefit of the Amika straightening brush is to its versatile features, with two types of bristles and air vents able to provide enough tension and heat. This makes it a very unique product on the market for those who don’t want to use several hair tools to straighten their hair.

The straightening brush from Amika comes with a pretty thick handle. The handle is comfortable to hold and doesn’t slip off your hand easily. Just like regular hair dryer brushes, the Amika Double Agent two-in-one dryer straightener offers multiple settings at the bottom of the handle.

However, the settings are not exactly the same as other blow dryers. This Amika blow dryer brush has 3 settings – blow dryer, thermal brush, and combo, you are not able to adjust the temperature of the airflow but you can make it a heated paddle brush instead.

Overall, the Amika is pretty easy-to-use and versatile as a two-in-one styler, it works as a heated paddle brush and a simple blow dryer. But it’s not a perfect tool as it doesn’t allow you to change the blow dryer’s temperature and speed either.

Styling Performance – Blow Drying & Straightening

When using it as a blow dryer, the Amika straightening brush actually dries hair pretty fast because it gets closer to your hair than most dryers. Compared to traditional handheld blow dryers, the paddle brush keeps your hair intact and the gentle airflow of this product won’t make your hair messy and crazy.

According to Amika, this straightener brush can go up to 410 degrees to make your hair tame. You get an improved and simpler straightening process than using a flat iron, and the Amika hot paddle brush straightens your hair effectively with its powerful bristles and hot air. You only need to select the thermal setting and give your hair sections a few passes, and your curls and waves will get completely straight.

But there’re some problems as well, especially if you are planning on using this tool as the only hair dryer. I found it’s kind of hard to dry hair roots and create volume with this paddle brush because hair roots easily get weighed down by the bristles and the heat. Another thing is that the blow drying result is not quite polished, it might cause some frizz and a few strands might be pulled off because of the inner hard bristles, even though Amika says there’s an ion generator inside the handle. Lastly, to be honest, it’s a loud and noisy hair tool.

Price and Availability

The Amika Double Agent 2 in 1 straightening blow dryer brush is available to buy now for $150, and you can buy it on their official website or Sephora. Unfortunately, there’s no any discount currently, and a $150 blow dryer brush is not affordable at all. And Amika allows people to pay in installments on their site.

Final Verdict – Should You Buy It?

In my opinion, the Amika Double Agent 2 in 1 dryer brush is a nice choice for traveling as it can be used as a blow dryer and a straightener at the same time. It’s safer than those flat irons with hot plates, and it doesn’t need you to dry your hair first before straightening hair. It spontaneously dries and straightens hair decently and you can use the tool on wet hair without any problems.

However, I wouldn’t use this straightening brush as one of my main hair tools. Its styling results are far away from perfect. Your hair is likely to get stuck in the brush bristles, which can cause damage to your hair, making hair unhealthy and frizzy. And you are not able to change the styling angles and temperatures freely because of the paddle brush design. On top of that, the paddle brush can’t go deep enough for people with thick curly hair. Honestly, I still prefer the round brush version from Amika.