These GHD cordless straighteners saved my hair while camping – now I won’t travel without them

I leaned in hard to the cowboycore trend recently, travelling across the pond to Wyoming to stay in a glamping tent on a ranch deep in the backcountry. It meant gorgeous vistas, long days riding beautiful horses and evenings around the campfire with new friends. But there was one downside for a consummate city gal like me – no electricity in the bathrooms or my tent.

This was a problem. I have fine wavy hair prone to frizz, and it really needs heat styling to look even remotely presentable. Given I’d really enjoyed putting together a Western-themed wardrobe for this trip, I didn’t want my hair to look a mess in photos.

The solution? A pair of GHD’s Unplugged cordless straighteners. Bringing these meant I had access to salon-worthy styling even in deepest Hyattville, with its population of 79 and absolute dearth of phone signal anywhere for miles around.

The Unplugged straighteners have a matte black finish with silver accents that feels as premium as you’d expect from the UK’s leading hair tool brand, a decent 45-second heat-up time, the same 185ºC output as the corded models, and ceramic plates that glide through hair without snagging on flyaways.

This new pair’s plates were considerably better at passing over my hair smoothly than my battered old GHDs, which are truly worse-for-wear after near-daily use for around a decade. The plates are narrower than the brand’s classic straighteners, however, which is something to bear in mind if you have curly, very long or very thick hair. However, the heat output is impressive – there was no difference in performance between these and my regular pair, and even a rushed few passes over my hair at the crack of dawn noticeably tamed frizz.

The tradeoff, however, is a relatively short battery life of 20 minutes. Saying that, I think even if I had the ability to use my corded straighteners abroad, I’d choose these instead, as using an adapter can adversely affect heat output – something you’ll avoid completely by using these. If you have short or very fine hair, you might get four or five uses, but those with very long or thick hair might only manage two. The mileage you’ll get out of a charge will depend entirely on your hair type.

I have fine hair but lots of it, and it’s relatively long, hitting just above the middle of my back. I got around three quicker go-overs out of these straighteners, and I was happy with the results, given that I was out in the middle of nowhere. I think if I were to take more time to do a more diligent job, I’d likely only manage two uses.

As a nice aside, I really rate how lightweight they are. Now I have them, I keep them in my tote bag for post-work touchups, which means I look better presented for any evening plans, and my bag feels no heavier at all. This definitely wasn’t the case when I used to throw in my regular corded pair when required.

They’re not cheap, costing around the same as a comparable GHD corded model at £299. However, given how light they are (a tiny 300 grams) and that you can use them anywhere without compromising on power, this price feels reasonable. I wouldn’t reach for them for every day use given the charging requirements – save the battery life for when you’re on the go. But personally, I’ve found that they’ve made a really useful addition to my bag, wholeheartedly earning their place alongside my umbrella and Kindle as a permanent fixture.

For quick and easy touch-ups, camping trips and holidays where you want to pack as lightly as possible, these are a worthy buy. You can find the GHD Unplugged cordless straighteners on the GHD website and Amazon.