Device Guides
What Is IPL?
IPL stands for intense pulsed light. It is the technology behind most at-home hair removal handsets, and it is widely misunderstood — partly because it is often called a laser, which it is not.
How it works
An IPL handset fires a broad spectrum of light into the skin. That light is absorbed by melanin, the pigment that makes hair dark. The pigment converts the light into heat, and that heat damages the follicle enough that it grows back finer, slower, and eventually in some cases not at all.
The key word is pigment. IPL does not detect hair. It detects contrast between dark hair and lighter surrounding skin.
Why it does not work for everyone
This is the part most marketing skips. Because IPL targets pigment, two groups get poor or unsafe results:
- Light hair. White, grey, red and fine blonde hair contains too little melanin. There is nothing for the light to target, and no amount of extra sessions changes that.
- Deep skin tones. When skin contains a lot of melanin, the skin absorbs the energy rather than the follicle. That risks burns and pigment change rather than hair reduction.
Every handset we sell carries a skin-tone sensor that reads the area before each pulse and refuses to fire outside its validated range. That is a safety feature, not a limitation to work around.
IPL against diode laser
A diode laser emits one wavelength, usually 808 nm, rather than a broad spectrum. That focus lets it reach coarser and deeper hair in fewer sessions. IPL covers ground faster over large areas. For most people IPL is enough; for coarse or stubborn hair a diode is the better tool.
What to expect
Hair grows in cycles, and light only affects follicles in the active growth phase. That is why a single session does very little and why spacing matters more than intensity. A typical schedule is weekly for eight weeks, then monthly to maintain. Most people notice slower regrowth after three or four sessions.
Before you start
Shave rather than wax, patch test at the lowest setting, wear the supplied eyewear every time, and avoid sun for 48 hours either side. Read Device Safety in full first.
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