Review: T3 Aire 360 Air Styler Blowout Kit

When Dyson released its Airwrap (8/10, WIRED Recommends) in 2018, the beauty world went wild for its revolutionary take on a multi-tool—and its equally wild $600 price. Since then, we've seen impressive interpretations that cost half that, including T3’s brand-new Aire 360.

This multi-tool has one base that acts as the motor and handle, along with four attachments: an oval brush, a SoftAire drying concentrator, and two curling barrels. T3 is one of my favorite hair brands, and it's used this multi-attachment method before with the Switch Kit Curl Trio, our favorite curling iron, and the AireBrush Duo. The brand's tools just work well and are typically aesthetically pleasing. If you're a fan of blowouts, I think you'll love this one too.

Let Your Hair Down

Photograph: Medea Giordano

People love blow-dry brushes because they make blowouts easier. Rather than trying to style your hair with a round brush in one hand and a dryer in the other, you just need one tool. I generally find them to be more work than I'm willing to put in, because with very thick, very coarse curls, it takes many, many passes to get a somewhat smooth look. I typically still need to flat-iron my hair afterward, so it's not just a puff ball.

That being said, T3's brush does work well. It took the curl out and it wasn't as puffy as with some other ones I've used, but it still took a long time. I tried it on my mom's curly hair too, which is similar to mine except now that it's gray, it's a bit coarser than it was before. I had much better results on her, but it could be that it's just easier to do on someone else.

The Airebrush comes with a drying attachment so you can rough dry before going in with the brush, as this typically works better on damp rather than soaking hair. For our hair, it was better on nearly dry to completely dry hair. For my sister who was lucky enough to be born with silky strands, she could get a bouncy blowout in 20 minutes.

You might be done after this step, but I prefer to add curls—whether I'm flat-ironing or doing it this way, my hair looks a little better with some wave as to not draw attention to the crispy ends. Like the wands you might be used to from Dyson or with the similarly impressive Shark Flexstyle, T3 auto-wraps your hair around the curler and keeps it in place with airflow, no clamps needed. One thing to note, though, is Dyson went from needing two curling wands to go in each direction to just one, with a switch at the top to change direction. So far, Shark and T3 still need two.

Photograph: Medea Giordano

The first thing I noticed upon unboxing the Aire 360 was how much nicer the wands are in construction than the others I've tried. They're ceramic rather than plastic, so they're sturdier but also distribute heat evenly. There are three heat settings (and three speeds), and it gets hotter than others, reaching 237 degrees Fahrenheit. You can't touch these barrels straight away, but there are cool tips on top so you can still take them off and switch between the attachments. I like that there's not a separate cold-shot button cluttering up the handle. Instead, you just long-press the heat button, though I did think it didn't get as cool as hair tools typically do.

Even being hotter, it's significantly lower than the temperature I'd need from a traditional curling iron, which I usually crank up to 400 degrees or more. It's hot air, but it's not a scalding hot plate, which means you're not singeing your hair. Though I wasn't willing to confirm this with my own hair, I can't imagine you'd accidentally burn a piece of hair off if you left it too long.

High-End Finishes

Photograph: Medea Giordano

For about the same price as the Shark Flexstyle, you get fewer attachments. There, you can choose between different types of brushes, a wide-tooth comb, a diffuser and concentrator for drying, a frizz smoother, and two different thicknesses of wands. That one is a total tool, in my opinion, because I can own just that and diffuse curls on the days I wear them natural or blow them out other days. However, depending on your hair type and needs, all those attachments could be overkill. If that's the case, I'd go with the T3 that looks and feels higher-end.

T3 usually uses plastic that makes its tools uber-light. They don't feel cheap, just incredibly easy to maneuver—its hair dryer weighs as much as a feather. This tool is constructed a little differently, so it feels a bit more hefty in hand, but I wouldn't call it heavy either. It's just well made. I love the pink and gold colorway too.

Something we don't talk about enough is packaging. Most hair tools I've tried either come in just a cardboard box you'll likely throw away, or another container that's entirely too bulky to store under a sink. T3's box is more attractive, sturdier and smaller than your average cardboard box, which makes it ideal for storage. Or you can keep it in the faux leather bag that it comes with (this is also an easy way to pack it for travel). Either way, there's way less bulk and plastic to throw away, and I appreciate it.

My hair is thick and coarse enough that I usually need two tools to style. I personally found the best and fastest method is to use the RevAir (another very pricey tool I love) to take all the curl out, and then a flat iron to get rid of whatever puff remains. Then I curl it with the flat iron or a separate curling iron. Now that I have the T3, I can use the curling wands instead. It gives the finished look more bounce, without completely frying it with even more direct heat.

Sometimes going with Dyson is the best option, but when it comes to its Airwrap, there's no need to spend the money when tools like this one exist. I'm still not convinced I can switch entirely to blowouts, but if I did, T3 would have my heart.