Shark’s latest skincare gadget will suck gunk from your pores and rinse them

About two years ago, I tried a facial treatment in Singapore that had left me feeling refreshed and my skin smooth and taut. I found out it was called an “aqua peel” and started investigating how I could replicate the experience at home in the United States. Back then, the available options were either too costly or looked dubious. At the time, devices like the BeautyBio GloFacial weren’t showing up in my searches, and the Dermaflash Dermapore+ Pore Extractor and Serum Infuser just didn’t seem like what I was looking for.

When I first read the description for Shark’s FacialPro Glow, I felt a spark of hope ignite. It sounded like the aqua peel I had experienced, and it wasn’t until I actually was able to try it out recently that I was convinced. The company says its latest gadget is a “hydro-fueled, skincare-enhanced facial device that delivers spa-level results.” Basically, imagine a nozzle being dragged around your face as it sucks gunk out of your pores while also flushing them clean. That’s the refreshing sensation I experienced and was, to use a Singaporean term, “damn shiok.”

There are two parts to the FacialPro Glow system: the “cleanse” or exfoliating attachment and the Shark Depuffi, which will be sold separately starting October 17. Both of these components can snap onto a handle that houses the power unit. The “cleanse” portion is made up of a dual-pump system that applies suction and also sprays water or a hydrator into your pores so it infuses as it cleans. From all the descriptions I’ve read of “aqua peels” or “hydra facials” the FacialPro Glow seems to do pretty much the same thing.

I’ve only had the chance to try it out once so far but I’m already pretty impressed. But before I get into that, a word on the setup. You can choose to use the Depuffi to warm up your skin before moving on to the exfoliating attachment, but I didn’t do so. The Depuffi is basically like a bigger, rounder gua sha (Asian smooth-edged tool for scraping your face to sculpt it) with a much larger surface area. It can either heat up or be cold, and uses similar technology as the undereye plates in Shark’s LED mask that launched earlier this year.

I missed that suggestion as I didn’t see it in the manual and was eager to begin with the suction, but I did use it after I was done with the exfoliation session to relax and cool my face.

The very first step in the process is to apply a thin layer of the included “Derm Detox” exfoliating gel on your face and leave it there for three minutes. It’s a combination of glycolic and salicylic acids that Shark says “gently dissolves impurities.” So far, I haven’t found anything noteworthy about the formulation. It didn’t have any smell or fragrance, didn’t leave my skin feeling tingly and despite being called a gel it had a mostly watery consistency that was reminiscent of facial treatment essences.

There are two tanks on the FacialPro Glow — a smaller one near the nozzle for clean water (or the BHA hydrator that Shark includes) and a larger one behind it labeled “gunk tank.” For your first pass, which is mostly about suction and cleaning, you’ll need to fill the front section with clean, cool water.

Shark includes five tips for the device: gentle wide, gentle T-zone, normal wide, normal T-zone and self-cleaning. Once you’ve attached your preferred head and filled up water to the “max” line, you can turn on the FacialPro Glow and adjust the intensity using the “plus” button above the power button.

Then, as you would with a microdermabrasion device like the PMD or even a makeup brush, glide the nozzle over your skin. Shark also includes a guide on how to do so, going over the types of motion you should use and the general direction (outwards and upwards) to sweep in. As I dragged the machine around my face, I felt a tug on my skin and suction that felt similar to the pore vacuum devices used in salons, and whenever I caught sight of the gunk tank I noticed it slowly filling up with cloudy water. This wasn’t as murky as I was anticipating, and frankly whatever mild coloration I did notice in the gunk tank seemed more like the removal of the Derm Detox essence than any actual build-up from my pores. (I did just have a facial a week prior, so there likely wasn’t a lot to extract.)

The instruction manual suggests using the wide head for about two minutes and the T-zone option for the remaining minute of the three-minute sessions. The device will keep track of the time and simply pause after your three minutes is up, so all you have to do is switch out the attachments when you’re ready. I found this part slightly confusing as I wasn’t sure if I could just hit the power button to pause the machine while I switched out the tips or if there was a time it would stop on its own. Eventually I just went with the former method and pressed the power button again to resume the suction and it did end on its own afterwards.

The next step in the process was to fill the clean tank with the BHA hydrator essence that Shark included, called “Hydro infuse,” and launch another three-minute session with it flushing your face. This was the part I really enjoyed. The gentle stream of liquid swooshing against my skin felt very refreshing and relaxing. I never felt like there was too much moisture — nothing dripped and I performed the whole session standing up without any of my clothes or surroundings getting wet.

It’s worth pointing out that Shark says its two formulas were dermatologist-tested and “developed in a Korean lab specifically for the Shark FacialPro Glow routine.” According to the company’s vice president of design and engineering Chris Hedges, you’ll have to use these products instead of third-party options because “the exfoliating AHA/BHA percentages were carefully managed to balance well with the device flow rate, amount of suction provided and the amount of time the tip is covering your face.”

Hedges added that “this mix of chemical and mechanical exfoliation is the key to the efficacy and safety of the process” and that use of other formulations with the device is not advised “as it could unbalance the system, leading to over or under exfoliation.”

I’m not a fan of being limited to a company’s products, especially as someone who has already found a skincare system that I’m committed to (shoutout to the Jan Marini range of products). Hopefully, Shark might be able to develop a range of offerings or work with third parties in a way that would make it easier to use the FacialPro Glow without needing to consistently repurchase exfoliating gels from the one company. Plus, Shark is selling $50 replenishment bundles that come with one bottle of each, which is quite pricey. Depending on how frequently you perform the treatment, you might find yourself shelling out an additional $100 a year.

Once you’ve finished your three-minute pass with the Hydro Infuse, you’re technically done with your treatment. If you like, you can detach the cleanse module (the one that contains the two tanks and the nozzle) and swap in the Depuffi attachment. After you do so, slap on some moisturizer and turn on the device, you can run the cool plate all over your face for a calming effect. I have sensitive skin that turns red at almost any touch, so having the Depuffi cool my face down was nice. It’s also just very comforting and enjoyable, like running a cold, dry bottle on your skin on a hot day.

Like I mentioned earlier, you can also turn the Depuffi into heating mode, in which case you’d be running a warm plate all over your face. This should help open up pores ahead of your cleansing treatment and might make impurities easier to suck out. Shark offers six temperature levels for the Depuffi, though I should note that when I accidentally left the Depuffi in its warmer state, it took awhile for it to feel cool again after I toggled back to the chill mode.

If you’re only interested in the Depuffi, it will be available separately for $200. The whole FacialPro Glow system, which includes the cleansing attachment, the Depuffi and the exfoliating gel and hydrating essence, will be available from October 6 for $400.