Panasonic Series 900 (ES-L580U) review: A close-shaving five-blade foil shaver that finally gets USB-C

It's been over four years since Panasonic launched the Series 900+, better known as the Arc6, which I reviewed back in 2022 and came away impressed by thanks to its six-blade head and the super close shave it delivered. It was a bit of a beast, mind, with an enormous head that made it rather top-heavy, but it set a high bar for what a foil shaver could do, and it's remained Panasonic's flagship ever since.

Now the brand has turned its attention to a five-blade offering. Still part of the Series 900 moniker, the all-new ES-L580U model brings a bit of a refresh with an upgraded blade system, a smarter beard sensor and, finally, USB-C charging (hurrah!).

While it looks almost identical bar its dark grey casing over the original black, the new shaver is essentially a slimmed-down take on the Arc6, with two titanium-coated thick stubble blades and three redesigned finishing blades that Panasonic says are twice as efficient as its previous five-blade model. This is all powered by a linear motor the company claims is capable of 70,000 cross-cutting actions per minute. With a new six-blade flagship confirmed for later this year, the Series 900 has been positioned as the more accessible premium option in the meantime.

I’ve been using the ES-L580U, which comes with Panasonic’s self-cleaning charging station and a hard carry pouch, as my main shaver for the past few weeks to see whether five blades really are enough. Here’s what I think.

Price and availability

The Panasonic Series 900 ES-L580U is available to buy now in the UK direct from Panasonic and Amazon, priced at £429.99. There’s also an ES-L550U version that ditches the cleaning station, although rather oddly it’s listed at the same price at the time of writing, so the L580U is the obvious pick. I couldn’t find any official US or Australian pricing, but for reference, £429.99 works out at roughly $575 / AU$870 minus any import costs, of course.

That’s still a lot of money for a shaver, and it’s a price tag that puts the Series 900 up against category heavyweights like the Braun Nevo, while sitting well above compact alternatives such as the Laifen P3, which will set you back about £170 / $200 / AU$250 RRP.

It’s only a tad cheaper than the larger Arc6’s £500 RRP, though, and you’ll also need to factor in running costs, with a three-pack of Panasonic’s cleaning sachets costing around £12 / $16 and replacement blades adding to that further down the line.

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Design and build

Lifting the Series 900 shaver out of its box, the first thing you’ll notice is how well put together it feels. It’s every bit as premium as its flagship sibling, with a solid build that feels like it’ll last for years. It’s almost identical in design to the Arc6, too, but at 180 x 72 x 57mm and weighing 215g, it’s a little more manageable in the hand. Plus, the head doesn’t feel quite as top-heavy as its six-blade relative, which made all the difference - especially during longer shaves.

The head is still on the larger side, though. It’s great for covering a lot of ground in one pass across the cheeks and neck, but when it comes to those tighter spots like directly under the nose, it takes a bit more effort to get the angling right. I did discover that you can lock the head in place by half-pulling the trimmer slider, which helps a lot in those areas, although it’s not something Panasonic makes obvious.

There’s a pop-up trimmer on the back, which has 45-degree blades, and is handy for tidying sideburns and works well enough for quick touch-ups, but it’s not going to give you as close of a shave as the foil shavers on the head.

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The headline design change on the Series 900 is the USB-C port, and as far as I’m concerned, it’s a big deal. My biggest gripe with most shavers has always been having to rely on a two-pin bathroom shaver plug, whereas this Type-C port means I can top up the Series 900 with the same cable I use for my phone and laptop, which makes it far more travel-friendly.

As for the self-cleaning station, it does an excellent job, and is much smaller than those I’ve seen on rival shavers. And rather than using disposable cartridges like Braun, it relies on a sachet of cleaning fluid that you mix with water in a removable tray, which is cheaper and less wasteful in the long run. Although the down side here is that filling it up is a bit of a fiddle compared with simply slotting in a cartridge. There’s a clever pop-up button, however, that gives access to the tray for emptying used fluid, which is a nice touch.

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Performance and features

When it comes to performance, the Series 900 made a strong first impression. Whether I was using it wet or dry, it sliced through my stubble with very little effort and felt every bit as comfortable on the skin as I remember the Arc6 being.

Much like its bigger sibling, the shave is impressively close. On my cheeks and jaw in particular, it left my skin smooth after just a few passes, and because you don’t need to push down hard to catch shorter hairs, there was very little in the way of redness or irritation afterwards.

Panasonic says this is because the redesigned finishing blades are angled diagonally to catch more hair with every stroke, and while I can’t say I noticed a dramatic difference in the number of passes compared with the Arc6, it certainly feels just as smooth f a shave despite having one less blade.

Where it stood out was how it munched its way through slightly longer stubble. After leaving facial hair to grow a couple of days, I found the shaver’s two thick stubble blades cut through the growth super easily, and the motor kept its pace well across my jawline rather than stuttering like many cheaper shavers do. It’s not flawless, mind, as it did occasionally miss the odd longer, flat-lying hair on my neck, and the further you push it beyond a few days’ growth, the more likely it is to snag. If you shave every day, though, I doubt you’ll hardly notice.

The Series 900’s Beard Sensor+ tech is worth a mention, too. Panasonic says this works by scanning your stubble up to 233 times per second, automatically ramping up the power over thicker areas as needed. While I can’t say I ever heard it working, the fact that the shaver never seemed to pull at my stubble suggests it was doing its job.

Panasonic also says the motor holds its power regardless of battery level, which must be correct since I never noticed any drop-off as it ran low. Speaking of battery life, Panasonic quotes the Series 900 as 50 minutes from an hour’s charge, which got me through over a week of almost-daily shaves.

My biggest bugbear, however, is the noise level this thing kicks out. It’s noticeably louder than most rival shavers I’ve used, with a high-pitched buzz that’s hard to ignore, so it’s probably not one to use early in the morning if you don’t live alone.

Verdict

The Panasonic Series 900 is an excellent shaver that gets surprisingly close to the performance of the six-blade Arc6, while being a little lighter, a little cheaper and, crucially, far more practical thanks to its long-overdue switch to USB-C. The shave itself is close and comfortable, it copes well with thicker stubble, and the self-cleaning station keeps everything fresh without much effort on your part.

It’s not without its niggles, though. It’s loud, the large head can be awkward around the nose and mouth, and, more importantly, at £430, it’s a serious investment, especially with a new six-blade flagship just around the corner.

Still, if it’s in your budget, you shave every day and want a reliable, premium foil shaver that’ll deliver a close shave for years to come, the Series 900 is a no brainer.