"New" Personna Reds

These are the same as the Platinums sold in the UK.

I find them an ok blade but nothing special.

I can squeeze a third shave out of them if I forego the ATG on the last shave.

ATG isn't good for me with this blade as it seems to drag.

Overall a disappointment as I had high hopes for this blade.

I'm reviewing these as the UK "Platinum Chrome" Personna blades.
These are very good value as they offer a really comfortable smooth shave. Ok, not quite as sharp as Feathers or some of the Russian blades, but far more comfortable in my opinion.
They last a good 4 shaves for me. Could probably squeeze a 5th out of them, but when they're so cheap why risk a bad shave?
I got 100 for less than £10. Superb!

These blades are very smooth for the first shave.. actually perfect. Because these Israeli blades don't have the staying power I'm used to getting with Personna USA blades, the best way to use these Reds, IMO, is to use just one side of the blade for a VERY NICE first shave. Then, use the other side of the blade for the 2nd VERY NICE shave.. it's like two first shaves with one blade. Then you can use both sides for the 3rd shave and toss it. You will need to look at the markings on the blade before starting to know for sure, but once you put the blade to your face for the second shave you will figure it out anyway if you've lost track. People with thick beards tend to not like these too much because of their lack of staying power/sharpness, but these are definitely geared towards smoothness.

Price: At about 10-16 cents per blade these puppies are a steal!

Quality: Overall a 9 as an average, I have yet to have a blade I would rate a 10.

Sharpness: Not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but maybe the 3rd sharpest.

Longevity: I grade that in passes and with my thick beard I got 7 passes, flipped and got 2 more. 9 passes! Mach 3 used to last me 2 passes both WTG.

Smoothness: This is the shinning star in the land of irritation for me. No burn, very forgiving, styptic pencil can stay in the cupboard longer now.

Packaging: Some say cardboard isn't good packaging, but I like how compact it is and the fact that I have less waste with cardboard than with a plastic dispenser.

All in all, these blades are hands down my favorite so far. I've only tried 8 so far though, so don't take me as some kind of expert.

I got a free sample of the "new" personna reds from a forum member, iamdarkangel2005, and told him I'd do a review of these blades.

I really cannot tell the difference between the "new" and the old ones, I think all they changed was the box, but like the old ones, they are a near perfect blade.

Price:
Dirt cheap. iamdarkangel2005 has an ebay store where you can get 100 for about $14 shipped.
http://myworld.ebay.com/iamdarkangel2005/
14 bucks for 100 blades is pretty good considering how much others go for.

Quality:
Great. Sharp, smooth, and just an all around great blade. I have a very hard time going ATG with many blades, but these are one of the few who let me do it without any nicks or cuts at all. I love them.

Sharpness:
They may not be the sharpest blades made, but for me they are just fine as they get the job done without any hassle at all.

Longevity:
I've got 4 rock solid shaves with one blade and could probably get a 5th...maybe a 6th. Still, 4 shaves per blade seems to be the golden number and these blades had no trouble getting there.

Smoothness of shave:
This is where these blades really shine. They give me the smoothest shave I have ever gotten. These are quite definitely the smoothest blades I have ever used.

Packaging:
A red cardboard box...seriously how much can I elaborate about a red cardboard box? It is a nice red cardboard box tho, perhaps nicer than the old red cardboard box they used to come in. As far as red cardboard boxes go, I give it a 10.