Chi X Barbie On The Go Travel Kit Review (2023): Compact and Capable

Even if my feelings about my wild, wangly hair are complicated, I love hair tools. But why get them in boring colors like black and gray when you can get pink Barbie ones? Everything is better when it’s pink.

Barbie-branded accessories aren’t precisely new, but as you may or may not know (we knew) Greta Gerwig’s Barbie is coming out soon. We’re seeing more collaborations with the famous doll, which includes Chi’s latest line of hair tools. This travel kit includes a mini flat iron and foldable hair dryer, which is sadly not quite small enough to use on Barbie herself. Each is adorned with Barbie’s adorable doll head logo and packaged in a cute pink, blue, and green case.

All Pink Everything

The Chi X Barbie mini hair dryer reminds me of the cheap ones you might find at a hotel. Obviously it’s cuter in bubblegum pink, but if you’ve used one of those, you’ll recognize the power compromise. It’s not as powerful as a full-size dryer, but you can fold it up and throw it in a bag or a packed bathroom drawer without taking up prime real estate. It works well for its size, but it doesn’t have separate heat and speed settings. Instead, there are just two settings: medium heat uses medium speed and high heat uses a higher speed.

You’ll find a small concentrator attachment in the bag, which is for targeting air flow and is especially helpful for blowouts. There’s no diffuser. That’s the norm with most travel dryers, although we recommend the Paul Mitchell’s compact handle-free dryer that comes with a collapsible diffuser. That’s a perfect option for traveling.

I just think diffusers need more love—us curlies need them. You could pair this with the Rizos Curl’s pink collapsible diffuser to match or any other portable one—even a cheap Hot Sock would work, though I don’t think they’re as nice to use as an actual diffuser. The best scenario is to pair it with a bonnet dryer hood.