Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

We are about to embark on a European trip and wanted a portable steamer. When you are limited by weight, you quickly discover that "smaller-is-better". I purchased the Samsonite and the Conair at the same time to evaluate them both. No question the Samsonite is smaller and lighter - but only marginally so. I pulled a cotton shirt - fresh out of the dryer and wrinkled, and experimented. They did indeed both work. The Samsonite took a bit longer to heat up - minute or so - and put out steam that you could not hold your hand against to the tune of about 3 inches. The Conair heated up much faster and put out steam that you could not hold your hand against to about 4-5 inches. The Conair just gets hotter faster. As the Samsonite moved on, the steam got a bit less and less. Before it was empty, it was not putting out much steam at all - and not enough to "iron" a shirt. You would have had to refill the Samsonite (refilling not a problem with either machine) to get enough proper steam to finish the shirt completely - but no question it will do the job. The Conair is a bit larger, and perhaps a tad bit heavier - but again - not appreciably so. The Conair heated very quickly and put out a lot of steam - all the way to the end of the tank. Without a doubt it got hotter and projected the steam further from the unit. The steam head is not as wide as the Samsonite, but the vents on the Conair are flared - so I would judge the width of coverage to be about the same. The amount of steam though is another issue, and to me, the more important issue. There is no question with me, that the Conair is the better of the two. The additional steam output will deal with wrinkles more efficiently than the Samsonite. The Samsonite is a good product, but it could be better. Oh, one other very small consideration. They are both dual voltage, but the Samsonite requires you to change the voltage by a switch. The Conair does it automatically. You could do with the Samsonite. It might take just a bit longer time-wise, but it will do the job. Frankly, I would prefer an even smaller unit - which I had 20 years ago - but it finally quit and was no longer made. It was about 1/2 the size of both of these and put out much more steam. You did have to fill it more often, but boy was it good - and small. I didn't give it 5 stars only because It could be smaller - and somebody should make one. I'm taking the Conair.