LONDON, Oct 10 — British vacuum-cleaner maker Dyson is making a second push into the high-end beauty market with a US$500 (RM2,077) hair styling tool that it has engineered to create curls, waves and smooth blow dries without extreme heat.

The Dyson Airwrap Styler harnesses a phenomenon known as the Coanda effect, whereby a high-speed jet of air attaches itself to a surface, to curl, wave or smooth hair, Dyson said.

The company, which was founded by entrepreneur James Dyson in the 1990s to make his revolutionary bagless dual-cyclone vacuum cleaners, is one of Britain's most successful manufacturing start-ups of the last three decades.

It reported an annual profit of more than £801 million (RM4.35 billion) last year on £3.5 billion of sales of products like its air purifiers and its battery-powered cleaners.

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Dyson entered the hair market two years ago with a dryer powered by one of its digital motors. The Supersonic dryer — which is priced at US$399 — had been a “runaway success,” it said.

“We have been obsessively manipulating airflow for more than 25 years,” James Dyson said today.

“Harnessing the power of Dyson's digital motor we have engineered a unique styling tool which prevents extreme heat damage when styling.”

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Dyson, which is working on its first electric vehicle, said it had taken six years and £24 million to develop the Airwrap Styler.

The Airwrap will be available in two variations priced at £399.99 in Britain and US$499.99 in the United States, or in one package that includes all accessories for £449.99 or US$549.99. — Reuters