I Finally Found The Most Amazing Travel Steamer

My search for the best travel steamer is finally over.

I have been a very frequent traveler for the past 25+ years and it’s hard to explain just how happy this makes me. I really wish I had discovered this product a long time ago because a travel steamer has always been a must-have part of my packing list.

As a member of the US Army for over 20 years, my job was to travel around the country roughly 100 days each year representing all current and former Soldiers as well as serving as a spokesperson to media. So as you might imagine, having a neat and perfectly pressed uniform every night was absolutely essential.

And then, of course, there is the matter of being a devotee of tailored menswear. Let me tell, no matter how well you pack your clothing or how nice your fabrics are, there’s no getting around the fact that you’re going to have to do a little maintenance when the time comes to get suited up.

For the longest time, I used a mini travel steamer, which was certainly sufficient but did have some limitations and one big problem. Although the vast majority of my travel was domestic within the United States, I also did a fair amount of international travel as well, which was the cause of that one big problem I mentioned.

Now, it could have been that the travel steamer I used was eventually recalled, but any time I went overseas and plugged it in — even with an international power converter — it would burn out, making it completely useless and instantly better suited for the garbage can. Sometimes it wouldn’t even work at all.

Eventually I discovered what would immediately become the most amazing travel steamer I’ve ever used — the Conair Power Steam Handheld Travel Garment Steamer. In this post, I’ll provide the following:

• An overview of the steamer and all of its features
• A detailed review of its performance, speed, ease of use, and portability
• Pros and cons
• Comparison with a few popular comparable steamers
• An honest opinion on price and value

While you can likely already guess where I come down vis-à-vis the last bullet on my list above, I hope that this review will help inform and guide you if you happen to be in the market for an awesome travel steamer. This review is not sponsored in any way and is based solely on my own personal experience and extensive testing and research.

Let’s dive in.

Quick Take: Conair Power Steam Travel Steamer

Handheld Travel Garment Steamer

Conair

The Conair Power Steam Handheld Travel Garment Steamer is hands-down the best travel steamer I have ever owned. Combining exceptional performance and ease of use, it is also relatively affordable at just under $50 at the time of this review. While priced slightly higher than other mini travel steamer options, its durability, performance, and dual voltage capability more than justify that “premium.” Buy with confidence.

Product Overview: Specs & Features

Before getting into my in-depth review of the Conair Power Steam, let’s get ourselves oriented by taking a look at the basics, including all of its specs and features.

Specs

• Dimensions: 6.14” length x 4.13” width x 10.47” height
• Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Cord Length: 8 feet
• Power: 1200 watts
• 120/240V dual voltage — perfect for international travel
• Warranty: Limited 1-year warranty (US and Canada only) – Conair will repair/replace (at their option) the unit free of charge for 12 months from date of purchase if the appliance is defective in workmanship or materials.

Features

• Available in three colors (green, pink, blue)
• Dual voltage for worldwide use — there is a manual switch on the bottom of the unit
• Kills 99.9% of bacteria. This statistic is based on a third-party test report for efficacy on E. coli when used in accordance with enclosed instructions. Bacteria reduction rate was measured after exposing the tested samples to steam for 2 minutes at a 1/2 inch distance from the garment steamer head.
• Produces high heat and high-velocity steam
• Easy-to-fill water reservoir. Recommend using distilled water to prevent mineral deposits in the boiler that can reduce performance or clog the water system
• Heats up in 35 seconds
• One-touch continuous steam for four minutes with a full tank
• Adjustable steam head for maximum versatility
• Folds flat for easy packing

Detailed Review: Conair Power Steam Travel Steamer

Now that we understand the product and all of its features, let’s take an in-depth look at the Conair Power Steam Handheld Travel Garment Steamer’s overall performance, speed, ease of use, and portability along with some pros and cons.

Performance

The Conair Power Steam Handheld Travel Garment Steamer provides an exceptional level of performance. Given the fact that, by nature, a travel steamer is small, one of the biggest questions you may have is how long will it steam for? In my testing, I found that a full tank will provide roughly four minutes of continuous steam — more than enough time to steam out a jacket and trousers.

One other aspect of the steamer that has a positive effect on its performance is the shape of the opening from which the steam is emitted. The vast majority of comparable travel steamers have a series of four to six holes evenly spaced. However, the Conair has a two and a half inch slit, which helps to focus the steam and create a wider and more even application, resulting in a more efficient performance.

Speed

The Conair Power Steam Handheld Travel Garment Steamer heats up and is ready to use in just over 30 seconds. In my testing, once plugged in and powered on it was ready to go in 35 seconds — absolutely spot on with what is promised in the specs.

As noted above, the wider and slimmer opening for the steam creates a more focused column, greatly enhancing efficiency and reducing the time necessary to steam a garment.

Ease Of Use

This steamer is incredibly easy to use. The buttons — power on/off and steam on/off — are intuitive. The water tank easily pops on and off and is simple to fill. And the entire unit is quite ergonomic and feels pleasing to hold.

One of the Conair Power Steam’s nicest features is its tilting steam head. It has three separate positions — straight up, a roughly 45-degree tilt, and an in-between tilt — which allows you to choose what is most comfortable for you. It’s worth noting, however, that the steam head only locks off in the straight up-and-down and 45-degree positions. It still produces steam when positioned in between, but you run the risk of bumping it into either locked position.

Portability

The Conair Power Steam’s design and form factor both contribute to it being very portable. In its upright and locked position — sorry, not sorry, for the air travel pun — it lays relatively flat, making it easy to arrange and pack in a suitcase, carry-on, backpack, tote bag, or even a briefcase. Many other comparable travel steamers have a much rounder form factor, which I always found to be somewhat of a nuisance when trying to pack my bag efficiently.

One thing to note, however, is that the Conair Power Steam is relatively heavy at 1.7 pounds. While that might not seem like much, compared to others in its class, that’s about half a pound heavier. You can feel that weight in your hand — which actually creates a sensation of quality — and you’ll definitely feel it in whatever bag you pack it in. Not a dealbreaker by any stretch of the imagination, but something to keep in mind as we all try to keep our checked luggage under 50 pounds.

Pros & Cons

Pros. By far, one of the biggest advantages of the Conair Power Steam, especially if you are an international traveler, is its dual voltage capability. Although you will still need an international power adapter, the fact that you can easily toggle between 120V and 240V is an absolute godsend. Beyond that, its design, feel, overall performance, speed, ease of use, and portability make it an incredible option for anyone — international traveler or not — in the market for a high-quality travel steamer.

Cons. To be honest, I’m having trouble coming up with any cons of consequence for this steamer. There is the fact that it is a bit heavier than comparable models, which could create issues when considering the weight of your luggage. Also, the steam head doesn’t lock in the second position. And that it’s priced just a bit higher than others in its class. However, for me, those are all extremely minor faults that have no significance on the overall quality and performance of this product.

Travel Steamer Quick Comparison

Now let’s compare the Conair Power Steam Handheld Travel Garment Steamer with four popular and comparable alternatives at various price points.

Conair Mini Garment Travel Steamer (Budget)

Mini Garment Travel Steamer

Conair

Conair’s popular mini garment travel steamer is a small, but mighty, alternative to the Power Steam. It is light and compact, packs easily thanks to being able to fold the handle down, and also boasts a dual voltage capability. At 400W, it is not as powerful as the Power Steam, but claims to produce 10 minutes of continuous steam. At roughly half the price of the Power Steam, it’s a solid option for those looking for a versatile and reliable travel steamer on a budget.

HiLIFE Portable Handheld Steamer (Budget)

Portable Handheld Steamer

HiLIFE

This is the travel steamer the majority of my colleagues owned. It’s small and affordably priced at just under $30. And having borrowed in it in a pinch more than a few times, I can report that it definitely gets the job done. In its marketing materials, it purports to provide 15 minutes of continuous steaming, which is something I have not tested personally so cannot verify.

With 700W of power, it’s more powerful than the Conair mini steamer listed above, but not quite as powerful as the Power Steam. From a form factor perspective, it’s not quite as efficient to pack as the Power Steam, but overall it’s a solid performer with very few flaws.

Electrolux Handheld Garment & Fabric Steamer (Mid-Range)

Handheld Garment and Fabric Steamer

Electrolux

This is an excellent and very powerful steamer. In fact, we purchased this to leave at my wife’s parents’ house for when we visit. Although it’s a wonderful product, the bottom line, at least in the context of this review is that it’s just too large to use as a travel steamer.

However, if you are looking for a great at-home steamer and don’t want to spring (or have room) for a full-sized product — I’ve owned Conair’s version in the past and have been since upgraded to the Jiffy Steamer J-2000 — I would highly recommend this steamer from Electrolux.

Steamery Cirrus 3 Iron Steamer (Luxury)

Cirrus 3 Iron Steamer

Steamery

I own this steamer and can tell you that it is an absolutely gorgeous product. Design-wise, it’s the most attractive steamer I have ever seen. However, there are a handful of reasons I would not recommend it as a go-to travel steamer. First and foremost, it’s big and would take up an obscene amount of real estate in your suitcase or carry-on. It’s also quite heavy, weighing in at just under two pounds. The tank is rather small.

And one of its more interesting features — a built-in ironing capability — also disqualifies it as a travel steamer. Imagine having to do a last-minute steam before packing up and checking out. You simply couldn’t do it because the metal ironing plate on the steam head wouldn’t cool down fast enough to stow away.

Add to that its insanely hefty price tag — it retails for $180 — and it’s not even worth considering. Although it’s beautiful and has some novel features, overall I think it’s quite impractical.

Conair Power Steam Recommended Accessories

While certainly not required, Conair does recommend and suggest a few accessories to bundle with their Power Steam travel steamer. Here they are.

Protective Garment Steaming Mitt

Protective Garment Steaming Mitt

Conair

Although one of these was included with another steamer that I had the opportunity to test out, I honestly can’t say that I’ve ever used it. Yes, the steam emitted from a travel steamer is certainly hot, but unless you are overly concerned about scalding your hand or would like some extra control of the fabric as you steam it, I’m not sure this is a necessary accessory.

Protective Door Press Pad

Protective Door Press Pad

Conair

Before reviewing the Power Steam, I had no idea that anything like this even existed. Its purpose is more to protect the surface you’re steaming against — such as a door — than for any specific advantage gained while steaming the actual garment. If you’re overly concerned with steam on your walls or doors, have at, but if you’re like me and generally just hold the hanger of the garment you’re steaming in one hand and the travel steamer in the other, you can skip this one too.

Fabric Shaver

Battery-Operated Fabric Shaver

Conair

Now here is a complementary item that is a very sound investment. In fact, I always travel with one of these from Steamery wherever I go. I have not used Conair’s version but based on its Amazon rating with over 123,000 reviews, I’d say it’s pretty much a sure bet. If I didn’t already have a fabric shaver, I would definitely pick this up.

The Bottom Line

The Conair Power Steam Handheld Travel Garment steamer is an exceptional product that represents a great value in terms of performance and price. Its impressive combination of performance, speed, ease of use, portability, and dual voltage capability makes it hard to beat in the travel steamer category.

As someone who travels frequently (and often internationally), it has honestly been a game-changer for me. For anyone looking for a quality travel steamer who appreciates convenience and performance, I highly recommend it.

Thanks, as always, for reading.