My Refa Carat tests negative for microcurrent!
EDS Skin Care Forums Forum Index » Skincare Tools & Do-It-Yourself Skincare

Wed Apr 02, 2014 12:32 pm

Help! I'm ready to call 911. I bought a Refa Pro on eBay. It was awesome. I took it to Radio Shack to make sure there was microcurrent and there was. But I got bit by the buy a Carat bug and sold the Pro for a measly $80 and made someone happy. I then bought a Carat from KIPOINT in Taiwan. The eBay listing title said AUTHENTIC (big deal) so I emailed them and they assured me it was not a fake. I got the Carat today (I guess fakes arrive in record time.), took it to Radio Shack and there was no microcurrent. MTG (the manufacturer) threw me around the company from person to person and then threw me out saying to call another # entirely because they don't handle Refa's anymore. A fax machine answered that #. The only weird thing is there are places on the Refa Pro that aren't platinum which pick up the microcurrent. On the Carat there are no such places. Even photos of real ones on DermStore don't appear to have places that pick up the microcurrent. What do you guys (the pros' pros) think? Thanks!

Wed Apr 02, 2014 1:13 pm

Kroin1234, I wish I knew more about these things, but some thoughts off the top of my head.

The microcurrent from the Carat is supposed to be miniscule ... I seem to remember something like 36 microamps. Was Radio Shack testing using the proper meter? Was their meter working properly, etc.?

Also, what do you mean by "platinum doesn't pick up the microcurrent"? Platinum is conductive (at least that's what my googling tells me). You can test this out yourself if you have an iPad or other tablet or phone with a touchscreen. These screens work by conducting the electricity naturally generated by the skin. When I roll my Carat over a touchscreen, it responds the same way as if I had touched the screen. That tells me it's conducting electricity. The screen wouldn't do that if I used a plastic massage roller, for instance. Whether the Carat generates microcurrent over and above what the skin generates naturally is a separate question, I think.

Anyway, I've started using mine regularly in recent weeks and I'm pleased with the results. It definitely works for me on some level.

Also, if you got it through ebay or amazon, and you still believe its a fake, I think you can complain and get a refund. Hope you get it straightened out.

ETA: I got mine through amazon from someone who isn't listed as an authorized vendor, but I think/hope/believe (?) it is genuine.

Wed Apr 02, 2014 1:22 pm

On the Refa Pro there are rubber looking panels in addition to the platinum. This is the area Radio Shack detected microcurrent coming from. There are no such places on the Carat. I'm taking the Carat back to double check we did it right==hope we didn't--and get them to sign something for eBay to know it's a dud otherwise. Thanks! for your quick response.

Wed Apr 02, 2014 2:05 pm

I'm no expert, but that just sounds wrong somehow. Rubber is one material that does not conduct electricity, whereas most metals do.

Meanwhile, check it out on your smartphone if you have one. Mine does conduct going by that test.

Also, just anecdotally ... I believe that low microcurrent levels of current is healing for the body. For the last few weeks, I've had a sore elbow that wouldn't heal though I massaged it manually and otherwise babied it. Using the Carat for about 10 min over a few nights has resulted in a vast improvement; it's no longer tender and I can move it without feeling a twinge. Some kind of healing did occur using the Carat, and since I didn't have much improvement with manual massage or just by letting nature take its course, I think it must have been conduction and not just physical manipulation of the tissues by the Carat that assisted the healing.

Hope someone with more knowledge will chime in.

Wed Apr 02, 2014 3:07 pm

How Interesting, I still need more help. When I said "rubber" I just made myself sound even more stupid----especially since my son's taking chemistry and I should know about conductors and semi-conductors from helping him. But the panels on the Refa Pro look like rubber. If you have a Carat you won't know what I mean. Okay--I jst ran my Carat on my son's iPad and nothing. Zero. Nada. Unless nada is the result I'm looking for. Then I'm set. If I run the Carat along my son's crappy Sprint Android what would I see?
Thanks!
Liz--I forget my screen name--maybe Device Trier

Wed Apr 02, 2014 4:06 pm

This is my layperson's understanding ... You can try this on any touchscreen device, including most smart phones, iPads, Android tablet computers, etc. Touchscreen just means it will respond to the touch of your finger. These screens use a capacitive sensing technology, which means it's sensing some kind of current.

So, with your tablet or smartphone turned on and the screen ON, just roll the Carat roller over the screen. Try it a few times. The Carat rollers need to make firm contact with the screen because these screens are designed for use with wide fingers and not the teeny tiny point of a pencil. If all is working correctly, it should act like a big, fat clumsy finger and randomly activate whatever is on your screen or move the screen around.

Unless your device is made of plastic or wood or some other non-conductive material, this test should work. It took me a few times to get the hang of it. The only part that does not move the screen is the point of the Carat handle, and that's because the diameter of that point on the Carat is too small and these screens don't sense something that small.

Okay, I'm done posing as the expert here! Bad Grin

I really hope it works for you as I've been quite amazed at the results I'm getting with mine.

P.S. I'm too new to post a link, but if you go to youtube and search on the words - refa carat test - the first video that comes up for me is one by ReFaUSA. If you go to 2:19 on the video, it gives you a brief peek of a setup for testing the microcurrent. Again ... no expert ... but if you look at the meter they're using, it has a symbol that looks like uA, which I believe stands for microAmp. This is a much smaller current than something in the milliAmp (mA) or amp range, so what I was wondering was whether Radio Shack is using a meter that can register such minute currents?

Wed Apr 02, 2014 6:15 pm

My husband says I'm obsessed, but do you know how hard it is a research the authenticity of a device made in Japan. MTG replied to an email I sent in Japanese. Does anyone out there who owns a Carat have a serial # on the handle of the device? Thanks!

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