My friend has this, so I use it when I sleepover. I have a cheap Cortex flat iron, so comparing the two, Bio Ionic is like owning my Cortex really badly. I mainly use it to style bangs so it doesn't always fall on my face. Bio Ionic doesn't frizz my hair and it only takes me twice to get the job done. My Cortex is 1/5 of the Bio Ionic's price, but it takes me probably double the time to make it right. So if you are investing in a good flat iron that isn't for just style bangs, this one is for you. My friend loves it too and her hair is usually coarse and wavy, but after 5 times in the morning her hair is nice a straight, can't even tell that she straighten it.

--- Written by a gal with TONS of medium thickness hair, never dyed --
-- Have had iron for six months --

I was in the market for a flat iron, and after a bit of research, I settled on and enjoy this particular one for the following reasons:

1) Fast - I hate spending time on my appearance, even though I value looking good. With the claim that it takes only one pass, I was instantly all ears. I think this is accurate, if you don't try to straighten too much hair at once. I can straighten all of my copious amount of hair in under 10 minutes, less if I'm working fast.

2) Smooth - The silicone strips on one of the plates really do seem to make your hair more shiny and smooth. All that nano ceramic negative ion stuff seems to help, too, far more than the cheap ConAir I had in high school.

3) Adjustable temp - you can go pretty low with this iron, and not higher than 400 degrees. I have no need to hit 400 degrees, ever, much less anything higher.

4) Controls out of the way - After experiencing a hair dryer that has incredibly poorly placed controls, I always look for products that you can't accidentally turn off or change settings while using. The One Pass controls are so far down on the handle there's no way you could poke them accidentally.

5) Reliability -- I chose this over a Sedu, because I read so many reviews of Sedu's that had cord problems and quit working. Bio Ionic has a pretty good reputation, as far as I can tell.

Qualms:

-- I'm a bit worried that I'm doing some damage to my hair. My ends are a little more spiky than they have ever been. I do use a Sebastian heat protector (it has alcohol tho, which probably isn't good). I think I may have done some slight damage by not having my hair entirely dry before flattening, on a few occasions. I'm a flat-iron newb, so I didn't realize this was a huge no-no!

-- The insulation on the back isn't great, so if you grab the iron above the plates, it is hot. I don't mind getting my fingers toasty, but some people might. You can also hit the plates and I have slightly burned myself a few times. I think a more ergonomic handle would be helpful. I've been tempted to buy one of those moldable grips you can get from hardware stores to keep myself from sliding my hand up too far.

-- It didn't come with a case. I've been keeping it in a Sephora bag, but it'd be nice to have an insulated travel case included, considering the price. I'll be purchasing a cute handmade one on Etsy. Note: Even though my Sephora bag isn't insulated, I can put the iron in while it's still hot, and it hasn't burned or deformed the bag.