Rose Gold

simplehuman Rose Gold Sensor Mirror Pro ($250.00) is the latest and greatest in the brand's mirror family. I'm so, so pleased with what they've done to improve in the latest model, because I feel like they addressed the major issue I had with the original as well as a disappointment in a lack of features--and for the price point, I wanted to love it through and through.  It's a large, 5x magnifying mirror that comes with a smaller, magnetic 10x mirror with a ring of light along the outer edge of the larger, 5x magnifying mirror.  It's available in stainless steel as well as a new, rose gold hue (which I'd say is not quite as coppery or as warm-toned as most rose gold jewelry).

You can read my original review here. The quality of the mirror and the light from simplehuman's mirrors is excellent, and it lasts a long time on a single charge, so it really can be wireless most of the time. The biggest issue I had with the mirror was that there was no way to have steady on or increase the sensor timer, so it would shut off too quickly--like if I got up to find an item, it would shut off. I also felt like the price point dictated more features, like dimming, greater magnification, and so forth. I, also, apparently mentioned the lack of side panels, at the time of my original review, which was answered with the Pro Wide.

The newest Pro mirrors use a mobile app to increase the control you have over the type of light, brightness, length of time the light will stay on, add an alarm or timer, as well as capture light from a setting and recreate it on your mirror. The mirror is also compatible with things like the Nest Cam, Alexa, and IFTTT. I like that the app is straightforward and easy to use; I feel like anyone can use it--the app has a lightweight, streamlined feel to it that is intuitive. You can choose from:

• Light Modes:  Sunlight, Overcast, Restaurant, Candlelit, Office, as well as create custom scenes
  • You can also increase and decrease the brightness or have it set to auto-brightness
• Alarm & Timer:  you can set an alarm or control how long it is on (5 to 30 minutes)
• Sensor Settings:  choose from 5, 10, 30 seconds, 1, 5, or 10 minutes for how long until the sensor will turn off (if it does not detect motion)

I like applying with full brightness with the sunlight settings.  I felt like auto-brightness, which will be nice for those who are sensitive to light changes, changed too often within a 30 to 60-minute makeup session (every time I moved away, I felt like it changed a tad).  The alarm and timer modes seemed to function, though they were not modes I personally needed so I did not experiment with them too much!  The sensor settings were what I was most excited for, and I'm just so pleased.  I found that 30 seconds was a good length of time where the mirror never turned off unexpectedly if I ducked over to pick something up or stood up to grab a lipstick from a drawer, but I didn't worry about it staying on too long after walking out of a room.

They also introduced a magnetic, 10x magnifying compact mirror that will adhere to the center of the mirror, and when not in use, click into place behind the mirror.  It's pretty nifty, and it works rather well (though perhaps not quite as easy as just swiveling a mirror).  The 5x magnifying mirror does well for most work, like applying base products as well as eyeshadow, but the 10x magnifying mirror is useful for eyeliner, tweezing/trimming brows, and for lining lips (with absolute precision).

The light actually seemed a bit brighter than before, but the quality and clarity of the light and mirror were the same as before (I really did not feel like either of those lacked in any way).  The overall design is more elegant, as well as taller; the sensor is also on the bottom of the mirror rather than the top (which makes it much better at detecting motion).   The base was wider, while the stem was thinner.  You can flip the larger mirror so that it faces the other direction, which makes the mirror shorter overall, but the proportions look off to me (which may or may not bother some).

simplehuman did a stellar job updating the mirror, and obviously, I'm not jumping up and down for the $50 price increase of the Pro over the original, but they've given me nothing to complain about now--and that's exactly what you want when you're paying a premium price for any product.  Whether the features it offers are "worth it" is always going to come down to the individual.  I use the original simplehuman mirrors I have just about everyday; I use the 8" sensor mirror (5x magnification) for applying makeup and the smaller, 5" mirror (10x magnification) for lip swatches (for photos).  I haven't had the Pro for long enough to really assure you that it will stand the test of time, but I've had the original ones for over two years now and have had no issue, they hold a charge great, clean easily, and function exactly as they did when I got them (the durability rating is based on the general feel of the product, how easy it was to clean, as well as how the past mirrors have held up).

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