An electric shaver was patented in the US in 1900. Yet it was not until 1931 that the first successful model was produced. The foil shaver version has a head with a perforated foil. This component is positioned over a cutter which has the ability to shift from side to side with the assistance of a vibrator. The vibrator itself is operated by electric coils.
The foil shaver is slightly less popular than the rotary shaver due to the fact that the friction caused by the cutting head on the underside of the foil eventually wears it away.
Many foil shavers are now battery powered making them suitable for use away from the home or abroad where its normal operating voltage may not be available.
The rotary shaver is a device which encompasses a fine screen, where the hairs can protrude through as the shaver glides over the skin. The screen has the ability to grip the whiskers so that the cutting blades underneath can rotate and cut through them. Each circle of blades is pushed against the screen by a sprung drive shaft. To a certain extent rotary shavers are self sharpening by the simple action of friction of the blades against the underside of the foil screens.
The rotary shaver can be run from the mains or nowadays from batteries, this serves to make it extremely adaptable.
