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Medicube is really on a role with their AGE-R devices ~ they recently introduced two more facial devices and I received both of them for review purposes. Currently, the Medicube AGE-R device line up consists of
- AGE-R ATS Air Shot: Pore Care
- AGE-R Ussera Deep Shot: Wrinkle and Skin Rejuvenation Care
- AGE-R Derma EMS Shot: Elasticity Care
The latter two AGE-R devices do take more time to return results, but the ATS Air Shot doesn’t! Let’s find out what this is device is really all about.
Skin Type/Concerns: oily, blemish prone, aging concerns, pores, fine lines/wrinkles, hyper-pigmentation
I received these products complementary to review and was not paid. All reviews are my own honest opinion and I never have been asked to write copy for a brand. This blog post might contain promo codes, affiliate and referral links, which using my links will help generate a small commission that helps support my blog at no extra cost to you.
ATS Air Shot is needle-free pore-care derma-pen. Medicube calls it MTS (micro-needling) but this device doesn’t have any visible needles ~ it uses high voltage, electrical stimulation to obtain non-damaging skin passageways and accelerate skincare product absorption. It will have improvement with pores, skin texture, dead skin cells, glow and hydration. If you use a vitamin C product afterwards, this will help better absorb the product and help maximize the brightening and anti-oxidant effects. There are no needles, hence no bleeding ~ meaning no recovery time.
image from medicube.us
The Age-R ATS Air Shot is a slim device, 35 x 168 x 35mm (1.38 x 6.6 x 1.38 inches) and weighs less than 3 ounces. The device comes with a USB charging cable and the user manual, but really, once you use it one time, you won’t really need to refer to the manual again. For those interested, this is made and produced in South Korea, along with a business that specializes in lasers, high frequency and ultrasonic waves devices. This has been certified by KC (Korea), CE (Europe), FCC (USA), RCM (Australia) and PSE (Japan).
image from medicube.us
The design is both ergonomically efficient and safe, with an 120 angle probe head that can reach all areas of your face and one button to control all functions ~ press firmly to turn on or off, press lightly once the device is on to select the level you want. It weighs only 80 grams, which is less than a smartphone, and has an automatic block system to prevent over voltage and overload.
This device has 5 LED intensity levels and an audio guide that tells you which level you are at, plus that voice will also tell you how many minutes you have used the ATS Air Shot. After five minutes, the device will shut off automatically. According to the Age-R ATS Air Shot penetrance calculation test report, after one use of ATS Air Shot, the application of skincare had an increase of 432% in absorption into the skin. The ATS Air Shot will not create scarring on your face, so there is no recovery period. You might still feel some stimulation, but it will disappear after 1 to 2 days, so this is nothing to worry about.
There are three ways to use this device and you should try each one before determining the most effective one for you
- Tapping: Tap the probe head lightly on your skin
- Sweeping: Gently make contact with your skin with the probe head and then swipe upwards in one direction
- Brushing: Do not make direct contact with your skin and the probe head, but hover about .2 inches above your skin and move it around as if you were using a brush
Medicube is inconstant with their advice on how to use this device, as in one area, they say you must use the Brushing method, yet in other areas, they instruct that you pick one of the 3 methods I listed above. For the face, you want to start at the center and move outwards. This is also great for the neck, just start at the inner portion of the neck and move upwards and out towards your ear.
image from medicube.us
Medicube recommends that you start off at level 1, but I am a daredevil and went straight to level 5. Make sure your skin is clean and dry, as that will help improve the efficiency of the device in obtaining the passageways on your skin. I used the tapping motion, as that gave me the best “tinging” feeling out of the three methods. I did try the hover and sweeping, but the tapping was the best one for me. There is a slight zap with the taps, but nothing painful at all. I also noticed a very faint scent of burning hair, but that is natural, as ATS Air Shot does remove the peach fuzz off your face ~ an extra benefit ~ hahaha.
I just tapped around my face, targeting areas that I wanted to improve ~ around and on. my nose, my jaw line, forehead, and sides of my eye area ~ tapping is a quick motion, letting the probe head touch my skin for just enough time to feel that little zap and then I move on to the next area. I will repeat this all around my face, so I will go over those areas again as I do have 5 minutes to “micro-needle”. I can use this directly on blemishes, as I am using the tapping method ~ keep that in mind if you wish to use this on your pimples directly.
After 5 minutes, the device shuts off and I then apply some serums that I feel will best address my concerns and will be enhanced after my ATS Air Shot session. Medicube recommends using their products after the session
- Zero Pore One-Day Serum: For pore care, hydration & skin brightening
- Deep Vita C Ampoule: Antioxidant vitamin C brightening for pigmentation, blemishes and latent melanin (see my review here)
- Collagen Serum: Elasticity care with triple collagen
- Super Cica Cream: Moisturizing and soothing skincare for sensitive skin
Two skincare products I really love to use are the Medicube Zero Pore One-Day Serum and NIOD Copper Amino Isolate Serum 3 1:1 (CAIS3). Both of these products deliver different results and I feel that the Air Shot really enhances the results ~ I have used the NIOD already for a while and I feel that with the Air Shot, I am seeing results faster. The Zero Pore One-Day Serum is helping to reduce the appearance of my pores and gives my skin a nice smooth glow in the morning. Read on if you want to know more about the skincare products or skip to read my final say for the ATS Air Shot.
If I am doing this treatment at night, I use the Zero Pore One-Day Serum, as that is an overnight exfoliating product with 15.2% triple acids +α. This has 1% AHA complex of citric acid, lactic acid and glycolic acid to help whisk away surface debris, such as dead skin cells, leaving skin smoother and more refined; .2% BHA salicylic acid for pore case as it goes deep into pores, unclogging them by removing dead skin cells, debris and excess sebum.
14% PHA gluconolactone is similar to AHA’s, but less irritating, as it is more gentle and mild ~ the molecules in PHA are larger and do not penetrate deeply into the skin. PHA’s also have hydrating and moisturizing benefits that can help strengthen your skin barrier function and they contain anti-oxidant properties, making it a good choice for anti-aging skincare products. PHA’s also can be used with other products such as retinol and skin lightening hydroquinone. PHA products can be used on all skin tones as well and help reduce photo-aging.
2% antioxidant niacinamide acts as an anti-inflammatory, improves your skin elasticity, enhance the skin barrier function and also it helps to even out skin tone and reduce post-inflammatory hyper-pigmentation. Yeast derived adenosine provides anti-wrinkle and anti-inflammatory benefits, while CICA care is provided by centella and madecassoside: centella asiastica is rich in saponins and is an anti-inflammatory, calming your skin and aid in wound healing, but also derivatives of centella asiatica. Centella extracts will helps minimize the appearance of pores, and since it stimulates collagen production, it will make your skin more supple and firm. This formula contains a component extracted from centella asiatica, madecassoside which helps soothe, reduce redness and inflammation and helps heal your skin.
Finally, to help hydrate the skin from the outer layers and deep into the inner layers of your skin, there is a 7 hyaluronic acid complex made of varying molecular weights. HA not only attracts moisture to you skin, it binds the moisture to your skin.
Ingredients: Water, Gluconolactone (14%), Methylpropanediol, Glycerin, Propanediol, Tromethamine, Polyglycerin-3, Niacinamide (2%), 1,2-Hexanediol, Citric Acid, Dimethicone, Butylene Glycol, C12-14 Pareth-12, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Salicylic Acid (.2%), Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/VP Copolymer, Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, Lecithin, Allantoin, Lactic Acid, Glycolic Acid, Ethylhexylglycerin, Adenosine, Dextrin, Indigofera Tinctoria Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Hyaluronic Acid, Sodium Citrate, Hemerocallis Fulva Flower Extract, Gardenia Florida Fruit Extract, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Trisodium Phosphate, Myosotis Sylvatica Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract, Pentylene Glycol, Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hyaluronate, Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate, Centella Asiatica Extract, Madecassoside, Lactobacillus Ferment Lysate, Taraxacum Officinale (Dandelion) Leaf Extract cosDNA
This serum will help all 3 different types of pore issues: O-shaped pores, caused by excess sebum and blackheads, Y-shaped pores, caused by aging and loss of skin elasticity and U-shaped pores, caused by dry and dehydrated skin.
image from medicube
I have both O and Y shaped pores. BHA helps with O-shaped pores as it reduces sebum and clogged pores, niacinaminde helps with Y-shaped pores as it improves pore elasticity and PHA helps with U-shaped pores, filling in the pores with moisture.
This is a pale blue shade with a slight herbal scent ~ all dyes and fragrances come from the ingredients themselves, as there are no added fragrances or colorants. It is a watery serum and it absorbs nicely into my skin. With the Air Shot, there is no pain or stinging when I apply the serum. As mentioned, this does seem to help reduce the appearance of my pores and with the Air Shot, my skin is more glowing.
NIOD Copper Amino Isolate Serum 3 1:1 (CAIS3) is an award winning copper peptide serum, which helps repair and boost collagen in your skin. Containing pure and undiluted 1% GHK-Cu (copper-binding peptide glycyl-l-histidyl-l-lysine) and 1% peptide GHK (glycyl-l-histidyl-l-lysine), this serum will improve tissue repair, reverse thinning of aged skin, repair skin barrier proteins, reduces fine lines, improves skin elasticity, smooths skin, helps reduce hyperpigmentation and overall, just improve your skin’s appearance.
This also has additional collagen supporting peptides, moisture binding humacants hyaluronic acid and glycerin.
Ingredients: Water, Glycerin, Tripeptide-29, Tripeptide-1 Copper Acetate, Tripeptide-1 Acetate, Myristoyl Nonapeptide-3, Trifluoroacetyl Tripeptide-2, Acetyl Tetrapeptide-2, Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Glycogen, Propanediol, Pentylene Glycol, Dextran, Dimethyl Isosorbide, Ethoxydiglycol, Isoceteth-20, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Phenoxyethanol, Chlorphenesin cosDNA
This is a very watery product, with a blue shade from the copper peptides and it doesn’t have any fragrance. It is not greasy or sticky and leaves no residue.
This has always been a tough product for me as it is so watery. Some people swear by it, but for me, this took a long time to produce results ~ and those results were finally noticeable to me after I used this serum in the morning after I used the ATS Air Shot. This serum does need time for firming results, at least 2 to 3 months. However, for skin healing, such as pimples and PIH (post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation), this really does shine and I can see how quickly those fresh scars and dark spots go away. I have noticed some slight subtle lifts around my jaw line now. Considering my age, I take this to be a plus that I haven’t visibly AGED but pretty much stayed the same with some enhancements. Just a quick note ~ if you are going to use the NIOD product, don’t combine in the same skincare routine the following ingredients: retinol, vitamin C and AHA’s. That is why I use this in the morning right now.
Final Thoughts
The AGE-R ATS Air Shot device is fantastic! It is so easy to use and it is goof-proof. I love it as I am seeing results and it provides the micro-needling benefits without scarring or fear of scarring. I tried micro-needling years ago and decided it wasn’t for me ~ it dried out my skin and quite frankly, home micro-needling doesn’t give you the same results as professional micro-needling as the pros really go hard on your skin and cause bleeding. That is how it is supposed to work with micro-needling but many home users do not go that far. There is no risk in infection either with ATS Air Shot and you can control the intensity of the treatment. It also is a 1 to 2 times a week treatment, not needed for daily use.
My skin feels smoother, my skin care products do absorb better and I do feel that this device is helping my skincare products “work faster” as I created new passageways for my skin care to be absorbed and these passageways will also trigger my skin to create new collagen. If you do micro-needling or you wanted to, but were afraid of the needles, you should give this one a try. It is a bit expensive up front, but it will last a long time with proper care. You can use this with Age-R Derma EMS Shot. Use the EMS Shot first, then the ATS Air Shot.
Where to Purchase
Medicube USA! If you find that you love this line of skincare products as much as I do, it pays to join their M-Club program. You can save 40% on products, plus free shipping. There is an annual fee of $39.00, which the fee is given back to in payback coupons, so in a way, it turns out to be free. You also get credit for how much you spend there, which can be converted to coupons that you can use at Medicube. To learn more about M-Club, read here. Currently Medicube is having a 4th of July Sale, so the regular prices have been crossed out here in this blog post. Medicube does have ShopPay for 4 interest-free payments or 3-6 month payment for qualifying accounts with Affirm
You can also purchase some Medicube products at Amazon USA
For international shipping, you can find Medicube at BeautyBoxKorea and Medicube also has websites for Korea, Singapore, Japan, China and Vietnam
NIOD Copper Amino Isolate Serum 3 1:1 (CAIS3) can be purchased at The Ordinary for $90.00 for 30mL or $60.00 for 15mL
disclaimer: products were sent to me for review purposes. all opinions are my own and are unbiased
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