Estee Lauder Cyber White EX Extra Intensive UV Protection SPF 50/PA+++
I had been looking for a high-end, high-SPF sunscreen since forever. I didn’t want to spend too much on it because you usually don’t get a lot of volume in high-end sunscreens, so I wanted it to be worth the amount I paid for it. For months I deliberated between Diorsnow, Estee Lauder Cyber White EX and Lancome Blanc Expert. From the title of this post you can probably see EL Cyber White won that battle. I picked this up in Duty Free on my Air China flight when I flew from London to Beijing. They actually had all of the three brands I was considering but with this you get more product per dollar.
What it claims (from EsteeLauder.com.sg): Our highest level UVA/UVB shield. Super sheer. Extra gentle and fast-absorbing. Ensures a brighter, flawless future for your skin. Empowered with anti-oxidant protection and anti-irritants.
Damage: $75USD for 2 tubes (100mL in total), which means $37.50 per tube of 50mL. (For comparison’s sake Diorsnow was $45 for 30mL and Lancome Blanc Expert was $40 for 30mL)
Instructions (from the tube): Smooth on face and throat to protect skin and provide a perfect base for makeup Apply AM after your CyberWhite EX Extra Brightening Moisturizer. (Or you can use any moisturizer; basically after your skincare regimen and before makeup)
Estee Lauder Cyber White Ex Extra Intensive UV Protector is white in colour and milky.
The good: The first and foremost thing is that it has very high SPF and PA protection (SPF is protection against UVB and PA is protection against UVA, UVB is what causes sunburns and UVA is what causes hyperpigmentation). With this on I don’t have to worry about my skin tanning as much, at least not for the first few hours. It is relatively light and milky, which is unusual for such a high-SPF sunscreen. I also really like the packaging of this sunscreen. Its sleek and looks more luxurious even though all three of the brands of high-end sunscreen comes in a plastic tube…
- High SPF, good protection for both UVA and UVB
- Light and milky texture
- Sleek packaging
The bad: It smells like sunscreen. That is the one of the biggest turn-offs for me in a sun-protection product. I cannot stand the smell of sunscreen, which is one of the reasons why I like ZA’s high-SPF sunscreen because it smells really soft and floral-like. Also despite its milkiness, it doesn’t really absorb that fast, it does absorb after maybe 20-30 minutes but its definitely not fast-absorbing like the description says, unless I’m wearing too much, which is good because you’re supposed to wear 2 teaspoons of sunscreen on your entire body anyways. Also it does somewhat leave a little bit of a greasy film on top of my skin. It could be because it is really humid here and my skin doesn’t need as much oil/moisture, or it could just because it is slow absorbing.
- Smells like sunscreen
- Slow absorbing
- Somewhat greasy
Overall: Honestly I haven’t tried enough SPF 50 sunscreens to compare to this one, I used to have one thats by Aveeno and it was a lot thicker and greasier than this one. So I guess for an SPF 50 sunscreen this is pretty good already. Also because I haven’t tried it in my home environment, aka Canadian weather, I have no idea how it performs in a drier environment. I can say for sure though, if you live in Asia and its hot and humid, I will not recommend this sunscreen for you (which is ironic, because this is only sold in Asia). If you live in a drier climate then maybe. Or if you have normal to dry skin. This product can apparently double as a makeup base and I have tried this with the ZA compact foundation. I haven’t noticed any improvements in look or wear with this as a base though, so to me its just a sunscreen.
- Product: 8/10
- Packaging: 5/5
- Value: 3.5/5
- Ease of Use: 5/5
- Overall: 21.5/25 | 86% | A | ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ 1/2
- Repurchase? Unlikely. I’ll probably end up trying the other two brands mentioned just to compare, but keep in mind I do have another tube.
I’ve always kind of excluded Estee Lauder in the past. To me it seemed like they were more of a “mature” brand, like they made products for the older generation. However when photos and swatches of their holiday collection started popping up, I knew I had to have this.
