Philips Norelco Bodygroom 1100 Review

Part of the Series 1000 line, the Philips Norelco Bodygroom 1100 (BG1026/60) is a compact and inexpensive body trimmer powered by a single AA battery.

Designed specifically for trimming the hair below the neck, the Bodygroom 1100 could be the ideal groomer in several situations.

However, it does come with a few caveats and depending on your needs, it may not be the best choice.

In this review, I will share my experience after thoroughly testing the Philips Norelco Bodygroom 1100 (BG1026/60), showing its pros and cons and also presenting a few alternatives.

Without further ado, let’s dive right in.

Features overview

My Series 1000 review unit is the Bodygroom 1100 BG1026/60 model, which is the black & grey with blue accents variation.

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Depending on where you buy it, it may come in a different color and have a different model name.

For example, in Europe there’s also the BG105/10 version that comes in a black and red color scheme.

But other than that, it’s identical to the BG1026/60.

With that out of the way, let’s quickly check out the main features of this groomer.

Bi-directional trimmer

The BodyGroom 1100 has a trimmer head with two rows of shearing blades, allowing you to shave in both directions.

There are two guards included with the groomer and you must always use one of them when trimming the hair.

The default one is called Skin Protector, and it’s precisely what the name implies.

It attaches to the trimmer and acts as a guard, preventing the blades from pinching the skin.

It doesn’t however affect the closeness and you should use it whenever you want to cut the hair at skin level.

As mentioned previously, you shouldn’t use the bodygroomer without one of the two attachments as the blades aren’t beveled as in the case of other Philips trimmers and you can get cut.

The second attachment is a trimming comb that you should use when you don’t want to cut the hairs close to the skin.

With this comb in place, the length of the hair after trimming will be approximately 3mm.

It’s also useful to pre-trim the hair if it’s too long before using the skin protector attachment.

Waterproof

The Philips BodyGroom 1100 is fully waterproof, so you can use it in the shower if you choose to.

But the main benefit is that the groomer can be easily cleaned with water.

Battery-powered

This trimmer runs on a single, disposable AA battery.

Depending on how dense and thick the hair is, it should last for up to 50 minutes of use before needing to be replaced.

We’ll see later on how it performed in that regard.

Two-year warranty

The Philips Norelco BG1026 comes with a full two-year warranty. It does not however cover the combs or the cutters.

There’s a 45-day money-back guarantee as well, so you can send the groomer back for a full refund if you are not satisfied with its performance.

Build quality and ergonomics

Weighing a measly 80 grams, the Philips Bodygroom BG1026/60 is a very compact and lightweight body trimmer.

The OneBlade Intimate is probably the only groomer out there that’s lighter at 54 grams.

Despite this, the Bodygroom 1100 feels sturdy and well put together.

Apart from the glossy black trim on the front, it is completely covered in this rubber-like grey colored material that offers excellent grip.

On the front, there’s only an ON/OFF switch, with no battery level indicator of any sort.

The shaving head is also extremely thin, which makes it very easy to use, and it’s angled just right, so you only need to hold the body of the trimmer at a 45-degree angle during use.

This again improves the ergonomics and really makes it effortless to use.

The battery compartment is accessed by twisting the bottom part of the groomer to the left so that the two arrow markers are aligned.

The cover just slides out, revealing the battery.

You can remove the shaving head as well by twisting the body to the left and again aligning the two arrows.

You can put them back together the same way and simply twist in the other direction to lock them in place.

They fit really snugly, with a reassuring click.

Everything looks good so far, but there are some negatives as well.

Specifically, the two guards seem rather fragile.

I always took extra care when using and especially when removing them.

The 3mm guard looks particularly flimsy and bendy.

Also, both of them have this cutout (seen in the image above) that must be aligned with a notch on the head, so they will only fit one way.

That’s something to keep in mind and do not force them the wrong way as they will break.

As mentioned previously, you cannot use the bodygroomer without one of the two attachments, so if they break, that would render it useless.

I don’t think you can buy the parts separately either; at least right now, they’re not listed on Philips’ website.

Included accessories

The BG1026/60 comes in a rather difficult to open blister pack.

As far as I know, Philips is the only brand that still uses this type of packaging for their inexpensive (travel) shavers and groomers.

Inside you’ll find the following items:

• BG1026/60 trimmer
• Skin protector attachment
• 3mm guard
• Cleaning brush
• Shower strap
• Instructions leaflet
• Philips AA battery

Battery life

With battery-powered trimmers like the BodyGroom 1100, the main concern is whether you’ll be able to get all your trimming done before the battery runs out.

Philips states that you’ll get approximately 50 minutes of use out of a battery.

During my tests, it exceeded this claim by quite a solid margin.

To be more precise, I got almost 100 minutes of use before the battery ran out.

That was with the included Philips battery, so it may vary slightly depending on the quality of the battery.

For the first hour or so, I didn’t notice any drop in power during use.

After that, I noticed a change in the sound as the motor was becoming slower and it also felt a bit more sluggish, especially when using the skin protector attachment.

But despite this, I could still use it without any problems for another 20 to 30 minutes.

During the last 20 minutes, the groomer was really beginning to struggle, almost choking when shaving areas with denser and thicker hairs.

To summarize, I’d say that for 1 hour and 20 minutes the experience was good, with a drop in power for the last 20 minutes.

But overall, it exceeded my expectations.

The results may be different for others, though. For example, I don’t have particularly thick or dense hair on my legs, arms, and chest.

Someone with more body hair will likely go through the battery faster.

Unfortunately there’s no indicator, so you’ll have to rely on sound or, better yet, always have a backup battery at hand.

You can get AA batteries anywhere and they’re also cheap, but it wouldn’t be fun to go and buy one with one hairy leg.

The battery is really easy to replace, you just twist open the cover, swap the battery with a new one, then put the cover back in place and lock it.

Performance

I was actually very intrigued to see how a single-battery Philips Bodygroom would perform.

I’ve used quite a few body groomers from Philips over the years, but all of them had rechargeable batteries and beefier motors.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised and even impressed with the BG1026/60. It wasn’t all good though and I’ll get to that as well.

First of all, I will admit that I was skeptical about using the skin protector. Precisely, I thought that it would impact the closeness.

I was wrong. In fact, this tiny trimmer was actually able to get almost as close as a foil body trimmer.

The comfort was outstanding as well.

I would go as far as saying that the Bodygroom 1100 is one of the most comfortable body trimmers I’ve ever used.

Even when shaving sensitive areas like the armpits or groin area, it never pinched the skin and didn’t cause any noticeable discomfort.

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The plastic attachment has rounded comb tips and it’s very smooth and glides easily on the skin.

And because the groomer is light and slim, it is so easy to use, especially when you come from the chunky Bodygroom BG7030 for example.

The 3mm guard was another pleasant surprise.

The first thing that struck me was how easily it glides on the skin.

I usually have to use some baby powder or talcum when trimming the hair on my legs as even the slightest dampness will cause a trimmer to get stuck and skip and hop over the skin.

But with the BG1026/60, I never needed any.

The plastic used on the two attachments just glides on the skin and really makes the experience effortless and even enjoyable.

This, plus the very ergonomic design of the groomer, allowed me to finish a full-body trim quite fast.

Again, I was expecting this to take ages with a tiny battery-powered trimmer, but it was the exact opposite.

I used the 3mm comb on my legs, forearms, and abs. I don’t like to shave body hair on those areas completely, so the 3mm attachment worked perfectly.

The comfort was again excellent and I didn’t get any irritation afterward.

I switched to the skin protector attachment for pubic hair and armpits and I was again happy with the results; the shave was close and very comfortable.

I also have to mention the low noise during operation; this groomer is significantly quieter than all the other ones mentioned throughout the article.

It also vibrates a lot less than a body groomer that uses a foil head like the Body Groomer 7000.

Let’s now go over the not-so-good parts of the Philips Norelco Bodygroom 1100.

First of all, even though using the trimming comb resulted in a very fast trimming session, that wasn’t the case with the Skin Protector.

Yes, the result was more than adequate, but it took longer to complete compared to using other trimmers (more details in the Alternatives section).

I had to stop multiple times to remove the attachment and tap out the hairs that would get caught between the cutting head and the Skin Protector.

Also, getting the flat-lying hairs wasn’t as easy compared again to using a body trimmer with exposed blades (like the Body Groomer 7000).

This wasn’t a problem with the 3mm guard that didn’t seem to clog and worked perfectly.

So for shaving the groin area and armpits with the Skin Protector attachment, I would rather use some of my other body trimmers (with exposed blades plus foil head).

Another gripe would be with the build quality of the two attachments. They are very fragile and flimsy and seem like they would break easily.

They’re also very small and easy to misplace.

And as mentioned previously, you will need them in order to use the Philips BG1026/60.

UPDATE: I managed to break two Skin Protector guards, even though I handled them with care.

Finally, this is a wet/dry body trimmer, so you could theoretically use it in the shower.

But take my word for it and just don’t. It is impossible to use if your skin is wet.

Cleaning and maintenance

The Norelco Bodygroom 1100 is really easy to clean and basically maintenance-free.

Since it’s waterproof, the best way to clean it is to simply give it a rinse with warm tap water after every use.

Once you remove the attachment, rinse the exposed blades, shake off the excess water, pat dry with a cloth, and let it air dry completely.

That’s pretty much it.

Please note that the Bodygroom 1100 BG1026/60 is waterproof only if the battery cover is in place and in the locked position.

Do not use water to clean it otherwise, as it will get inside and damage it.

Philips also includes a small brush, but I personally didn’t use it much.

It could be useful if for some reason you can’t or don’t want to clean the groomer with water.

I actually did use it to remove the hairs that stuck to the blades, as you can’t just tap them out.

Philips says that there’s no need to lubricate the blades.

I personally use a Philips cleaning spray every once in a while, as it’s quite effective for a more thorough cleaning, and it also removes water mineral deposits.

But again, it’s not absolutely necessary.

Replacement parts availability

Usually, with body groomers, you’ll need to change the shaving head once the blades and/or foils have worn out.

The blades of the Bodygroom 1100 are however not replaceable. You cannot remove them and you cannot buy them separately.

Philips says that they are self-sharpening blades, but they will eventually get dull.

From previous experience, I can say that they last for a long time and after a few years of constant use, I would personally be more than happy to simply buy a new groomer.

And given the price, not having replaceable blades is not by any means a deal-breaker.

My main gripe is that you cannot buy the attachments separately. And without them, the Bodygroom 1100 is basically useless.

As mentioned previously, they are rather fragile and they’re easy to misplace.

It would be a real bummer to lose them or break them during use.

Takeaway: Should you buy the Bodygroom 1100?

I’ll be perfectly honest and admit that I didn’t expect much from a small single-battery powered body trimmer.

But I can confidently say that the Norelco Bodygroom 1100 (BG1026/60) is a great little machine.

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While you could use it as your main (and only) trimmer, I think it makes more sense as a complementary/backup/travel body groomer.

It’s really compact and lightweight, making it ideal for your travel toiletry bag.

And not just that; as I mentioned in the performance part of the review, I found the BG1026/60 more enjoyable to use in several situations than the full-size Body Groomer for example, which is one of the most capable trimmers you can currently get.

The 1100 is supremely comfortable and easy to use, the guard glides effortlessly over the skin and in terms of ergonomics, I would choose it over any other body groomer to trim the hair on my legs, arms, chest, and abs.

For the groin and the armpits, I didn’t find it quite as good as other more expensive foil groomers in Norelco’s lineup, but it’s still adequate.

It shaves really close and comfortably with the skin protector attachment, but it’s not as fast or as good at dealing with flat-lying hairs.

It must also be cleaned regularly, as it will clog with hair.

I think women can use this groomer too, even though it’s marketed specifically toward men; for example, it could be useful during vacations to maintain a bikini line or shave the armpits.

To summarize, I would strongly recommend the Philips BG1026/60 to anyone.

Just make sure to consider its shortcomings as well if you decide to use it as your main trimmer.

UPDATE: Despite the excellent ergonomics and satisfactory performance, the two guards are not very durable. Therefore, definitely check out some of the other options below.

Alternatives

As mentioned throughout the review, Philips (Norelco) has a few models in their Bodygroom line that feature a foil head plus two exposed blades with beveled edges.

In my experience, these are better when used without a trimmer comb, so if you need a groomer that you’ll use mainly to shave the hair at skin level, these may be better options.

Do keep in mind that these are significantly larger, heavier and not as travel-friendly. They also cost a lot more.

In 2026, my pick would be the new generation Body Groomer 7000.

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It has a foil + blade head for a close and comfortable shave (including in the private areas) and a trimmer blade plus adjustable combs.

The battery life is solid at 120 min, and it’s a lot nimbler than the old Bodygroomer 7000 it replaces.

It’s also more powerful than the Bodygroom 1100 reviewed here (which is to be expected).

It works great on those areas where the BG1026 may struggle, especially the armpits and groin area.

It shaves close and fast and doesn’t get clogged with hair easily.

You can also source the foil heads and they’re widely available and durable.

The extra-long handle will allow you to shave hard-to-reach areas like your back and shoulders.

Again, going for this trimmer doesn’t make the Bodygroom 1100 redundant; as mentioned previously, I think it will complement it perfectly.

For more details, make sure to check out my review of the Body Groomer 7000.

Braun Series XT5

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Finally, I think the Braun Series XT5 would be a better compact/travel groomer than the Bodygroom 1100.

Despite not being quite as small and nimble, it’s more powerful and comes with a lot more attachments, which are sturdy and durable.

The trimming head features two rows of shearing blades and a foil element for a close and safe shave, but it’s not quite as effective as the one on the larger Body Groomer 7000 above.

Unfortunately, for some reason, Braun stopped selling the XT5 in the USA.

It is still widely available in Europe and the price is reasonable.

If you live in the USA, the next best thing would be the Philips Norelco OneBlade60 Face + Body (QP2834/70).

I would not recommend the new OneBlade Intimate, as that one is slower, has a poor battery life, and comes with only two guards.

That pretty much concludes my review of the Norelco Bodygroom 1100.

If you have any questions, please leave a comment below.