Philips Norelco 6948XL/41 Shaver 2100 (Packaging May Vary)

After 2-1/2 years of ownership, I'm raising my original two star review to five stars. This is an inexpensive shaver that performs well and so far is holding up well.My biggest complaint about this shaver when I bought it was that the battery is not replaceable. I really hate it when a product needs to be discarded simply because the battery died. However the shaver shaves so well, is holding up so well, and the price is so low that I'm no longer as critical about the battery, as I was although I still dislike disposable electronic products in general and wish I could replace the battery when the day comes..The batteryhowever is lasting longer than I feared it might, although there has been a definite loss of strength. When I first bought the shaver 2-1/2 years ago, it went 20 days between charges. It now lasts 10 days.I've replaced the heads once and they are probably due to be replaced soon. It's easy to replace them and to clean them. When cleaning, be very careful to keep each head's parts separate from the others.This is an excellent shaver at an excellent price. My only complaint is that the battery is not replaceable, but considering how good the shaver is, I'm no longer knocking off any stars for that.Original Review:============I've only owned this six days, so I'll wait a few months before posting a complete review, but after reading the users manual for this shaver, I need to post a warning. I would not have bought it if I had read the owners manual first. The only reason I'm not returning it is that I don't have time now to research alternatives.My big concern about buying it was that it's been so hard to replace the battery in past Norelco's. After I'd been using it for two days I read the user manual, hoping that I'd find that Norelco had begun using a more easily replaceable battery. Instead, I found just the opposite: Norelco says that when the battery can no longer recharge, the owner should discard the battery properly and then THROW AWAY THE SHAVER!!!!The manual (page 19) says "Do not attempt to replace the battery ... Discard your razor .. Do not attempt to plug the power cord into the outlet ... after the battery has been removed." There's no mention of taking it to a repair facility to replace the battery.This not only is environmentally and fiscally terrible practice, it means that Norelco probably has not designed this shaver to last much beyond the 30 month warranty. (the standard two year warranty is extended six months if you register online).On the positive side, it shaves better than I expected. I've been using a Gillette Fusion Proglide and only switched to the Norelco to save water during the California drought. It doesn't shave as well as a manual, but it comes close. Also positive: I've shaved six times and haven't had to recharge the battery yet.I'll write a more complete review after I've owned it longer.

I've been using this thing for about a week now, and I love it. An important thing to note when reading reviews about shavers, razors, etc., is that everybody has different skin and hair types. What works for one person may not work for another.For me, this razor works. My skin isn't rough and my beard hairs aren't made of steel. I read a couple 1-star reviews from people saying using this razor was like holding a weedwhacker to their face and I can happily say that this is far from the case. It glides smoothly across my face, and like magic my facial hair disappears. I don't have any problem getting the "hard to reach places" around my jaw bones and under my neck, it works fine in those areas if I hold my skin taught and shave in gentle circles.I used to shave with disposable razors, so this is the first electric shaver I've ever used. It's so easy to use, and so much faster than a razor! The instructions say it may take up to three weeks for your skin to adjust but I can say that my skin has felt perfectly fine throughout the past week of use. In fact my skin would get far more irritated using a razor as opposed to this.It is a little inconvenient not having any sort of battery indicator other than a green light to show that its charging, but it's simple enough to just charge it overnight when it starts to wind down. The popup trimmer is pretty handy though, but I've only used it once.Since this is the first electric shaver I've ever used, and I'm a cheap college student, this thing is amazing to me. It doesn't feel cheap at all. That being said, I'm sure there are nicer ones out there, but I can't imagine how they could possibly be THAT much better than this because this one gives me a pretty damn close shave. In some areas of my neck, particularly spots that were hard to get at with a razor, this shaver outperforms the razor. In other areas, the razor did a better job. But overall, this thing cuts down shaving time by about 90%, and if it gives me a smooth enough shave for my girlfriend to be happy, then I'm happy.