We had a presentation on Cynosure Elite tonight and have also been considering Cutera Xeo' platform.According to Cynosure the Alex + Yag is all we need for hair reduction and aging symptoms.
He felt there is no reason to consider an IPL.Why don't other laser companies have the Alex. It seems kind of strange that no one has the Alex but them.Please help with our confusion.

Check the Candela web site. They have been selling the 755 Alex forever. In my opinion you will still eventually want an IPL system. You can comb this site for a great deal of discussion on the subject by practitioners.

The alex is a good hair removal wavelength for light skin types and having the YAG combination will only be helpful on darker skin types.

There is no way the Elite will give you skin rejuvenation results that you can get from IPL. Cutera will give you an advantage over Cynosure beucause you can get a system with multiple applications in one unit. Other companies that offer this are Palomar and Syneron.

mmerkin800,

I agree with TexasMD that you will need an IPL at sometime. The biggest problem with the Alex is treating darker skin types. The Alex gets used mostly for LHR in fitzpatrick 1 to 3 and can be used for pigmented lesions but many feel there are better choices for pigmented lesions. So for most companies it is not worth it to go through all the patent problems etc to build them.

The Alex with 1064 yag is a good choice if you plan to only do LHR. It will allow you to cover all skin types safely. If you areplanning to go past LHR then you will want and need more hince the IPL.

So if you plan to do more than LHR take a look at: Alma,Cutera, Palomar, Sciton and Syneron. Remember you get what you pay for and look for hidden costs such as cost of replacement heads, how long the warranty is good for and cost of service contracts. Some companies will not let anyone but their reps get replacement parts. The worst offender I am aware of is Cutera. They have the most expensive service contracts and wil not sell replacement parts to anyone except their repair people.

Make sure to look at everyone of these in your office and do not believe everything the sales person tells you. In many instances, lasers sales people are no better than a used car salesman.

I am looking at purchasing a cutera XEO, and offering hair removal with YAG. Can I expect good results for all skin types, without offering Prowave?

J

In a perfect world, you would want the 755 alex and 1064 yag. This would allow you to treat all skin types. I am not sold on the ProWave at this time. We own the Xeo and looked at adding it. We had it in the office a couple of times and did not feel it had good results. We purchased another system instead.

You may want an Ipl for skin rejuvenation, but overall, I wouldn't advise Cutera for anything. Cutera Xeo or any other for that matter. From speaking with many in the laser spa business, Cutera is one of the worse for customer care, especially if you don't pay for high cost service contracts. Now don't get me wrong, this is a big issue with most all laser companies. Another reason for not buying Cutera is that the design of the laser has production flaws, such has the connector for the handpiece and it's water lines are located directly above the high voltage power supply, which is a high cost item. Rocket scientist you need not be to know why water lines, and connectors above high voltage is bad. The handpiece has a tendency to become worn and leak, especially went removing for service. I had a customer call me saying that she replaced her handpiece with a new one Cutera sent and she hooked it up and it leaked all over insided and fried the power supply. Cutera never put rubber seals on the new handpiece and blamed the customer for not using the old ones, which shouldn't be reused, because of wearing. Nice huh. Even a bigger issue is, available, qualified technicians that can repair the unit for less when your tired of paying high costs of contacts and servive to Cutera, for which there are few if any. What about non oem parts? any available? probably not.

Candela has it's issues, but make decent laser. Being a laser technician, i would advise buying a Cynosure Elite. Don't waste your money buying new, no matter what your told in this economy, recovering the cost of the laser and consumable parts will be difficult in any reasonable time in order to make some profit. If you do your homework, you can find who is reputable in the used laser industry. Read the thread on here called "cynosure laser users anyone". I am first and foremost a laser technician and run my own business. I specialize in Cynosure and some Candela units. My main goal is to gain a trusting relationship and build an ongoing relationship where as business owners we support each other in business. I also sell Cynosure lasers, with warranties. Instead of just making a quick brokered laser deal or selling used lasers site unseen, with no refurbishing, i sell only lasers of the highest quality and I service them, during warranty, and after. The elite is a multi-purpose system, and is very good at many things. As long as it's properly serviced, they can last for a very long time.

All lasers, and IPL systems require consumable parts and or routine repair. If a system lacks lamps and other parts as consumables, it may need to be sent in for repairs when it fails, which usually costs more to fix than a routine lamp change. Some lasers like the Elite, unless your doing 7 days a week nonstop treatments 8 hours a day, lamp changes are maybe once a year.

Be sure that you buy a laser that gives you options if your relationship with the manufacturer goes downhill or costs become too high. Also look into the used market. You can save tens of thousands on good used lasers.

Be aware of Demo lasers. Demos are supposed to be units with very low pulse, a year or less old, with very light use. Many companies sell demos several years old with tons of pules, or in some cases they claim low pulses, because the manufacturer can change those, when the lase has been used hard, and pushed up and down streets in and out of buildings, over bumps, jarred around and thrown in vans running around every type of street and stop and go traffic you can imagine. Company employees don't care about the laser because their biggest profit is selling you a new laser. Demo lasers can be some of the most abused lasers on the market. Yes they'll give you a year warranty, but what good does it do if the laser does break down, and what about after the warranty expires? It might breakdown then, so do you want a laser that you have to pay $12k on a service contract each year, just in case?

Laser sales are crooks in 99% of cases. Anyone selling a laser and doesn't have there own OE< certified and trained technicians who take care of their customers after the sale and warranty is up, avoid. Would you buy a laser from Ford or BMW if they told you that Elmers garage or the OEM who is going to charge a ton to certify the laser are who you have to use, and once they have their money, good luck if it breaks, getting the laser replaced or resolving your troubles, because it will cost more to sue than it's worth and they know it.

In many cases sales, especially used, knows that chances are you don't know much about lasers other than to assume that if it runs and calibrates, it's all good, which is the furthest from the truth. running and running properly and efficiently to prevent catastrophic failure is whats crucial. Sales won't spend money refurbishing a laser because it cuts into quick profits.

Thank You
Leon L.
IndependentLaser.com
608-287-4750

Good Luck
I have 100s of referances for service and sales.

You may want an Ipl for skin rejuvenation, but overall, I wouldn't advise Cutera for anything. Cutera Xeo or any other for that matter. From speaking with many in the laser spa business, Cutera is one of the worse for customer care, especially if you don't pay for high cost service contracts. Now don't get me wrong, this is a big issue with most all laser companies. Another reason for not buying Cutera is that the design of the laser has production flaws, such has the connector for the handpiece and it's water lines are located directly above the high voltage power supply, which is a high cost item. Rocket scientist you need not be to know why water lines, and connectors above high voltage is bad. The handpiece has a tendency to become worn and leak, especially went removing for service. I had a customer call me saying that she replaced her handpiece with a new one Cutera sent and she hooked it up and it leaked all over insided and fried the power supply. Cutera never put rubber seals on the new handpiece and blamed the customer for not using the old ones, which shouldn't be reused, because of wearing. Nice huh. Even a bigger issue is, available, qualified technicians that can repair the unit for less when your tired of paying high costs of contacts and servive to Cutera, for which there are few if any. What about non oem parts? any available? probably not.

Candela has it's issues, but make decent laser. Being a laser technician, i would advise buying a Cynosure Elite. Don't waste your money buying new, no matter what your told in this economy, recovering the cost of the laser and consumable parts will be difficult in any reasonable time in order to make some profit. If you do your homework, you can find who is reputable in the used laser industry. Read the thread on here called "cynosure laser users anyone". I am first and foremost a laser technician and run my own business. I specialize in Cynosure and some Candela units. My main goal is to gain a trusting relationship and build an ongoing relationship where as business owners we support each other in business. I also sell Cynosure lasers, with warranties. Instead of just making a quick brokered laser deal or selling used lasers site unseen, with no refurbishing, i sell only lasers of the highest quality and I service them, during warranty, and after. The elite is a multi-purpose system, and is very good at many things. As long as it's properly serviced, they can last for a very long time.

All lasers, and IPL systems require consumable parts and or routine repair. If a system lacks lamps and other parts as consumables, it may need to be sent in for repairs when it fails, which usually costs more to fix than a routine lamp change. Some lasers like the Elite, unless your doing 7 days a week nonstop treatments 8 hours a day, lamp changes are maybe once a year.

Be sure that you buy a laser that gives you options if your relationship with the manufacturer goes downhill or costs become too high. Also look into the used market. You can save tens of thousands on good used lasers.

Be aware of Demo lasers. Demos are supposed to be units with very low pulse, a year or less old, with very light use. Many companies sell demos several years old with tons of pules, or in some cases they claim low pulses, because the manufacturer can change those, when the lase has been used hard, and pushed up and down streets in and out of buildings, over bumps, jarred around and thrown in vans running around every type of street and stop and go traffic you can imagine. Company employees don't care about the laser because their biggest profit is selling you a new laser. Demo lasers can be some of the most abused lasers on the market. Yes they'll give you a year warranty, but what good does it do if the laser does break down, and what about after the warranty expires? It might breakdown then, so do you want a laser that you have to pay $12k on a service contract each year, just in case?

Laser sales are crooks in 99% of cases. Anyone selling a laser and doesn't have there own OE< certified and trained technicians who take care of their customers after the sale and warranty is up, avoid. Would you buy a laser from Ford or BMW if they told you that Elmers garage or the OEM who is going to charge a ton to certify the laser are who you have to use, and once they have their money, good luck if it breaks, getting the laser replaced or resolving your troubles, because it will cost more to sue than it's worth and they know it.

In many cases sales, especially used, knows that chances are you don't know much about lasers other than to assume that if it runs and calibrates, it's all good, which is the furthest from the truth. running and running properly and efficiently to prevent catastrophic failure is whats crucial. Sales won't spend money refurbishing a laser because it cuts into quick profits.

Thank You
Leon L.
IndependentLaser.com
608-287-4750

Good Luck
I have 100s of referances for service and sales.