Review: Clarisonic Mia 2 Cleansing System

I'm going to go on a bit of a tangent today and talk about a cleansing system rather than some kind of cream or mask. I'm sure everyone knows what this is, and there are thousands if not hundreds of thousands of reviews about this already. I finally decided to take the plunge and buy this product back in Oct 2014.

Description (from fabove.com):

• Oscillating back and forth at a sonic frequency of more than 300 movements per second, the two dynamic zones of the Clarisonic Skin Care System work with the skin, not against it. The first zone acts as a flexing action between the outer and inner brushes and works deep within the pores to loosen dirt and oil. The second zone which is the inner brush of the Clarisonic Skin Care Brush offers a back and forth oscillating motion to effectively clean, clarify and stimulate the skin.
• 6 times more makeup removal
• Leaves skin feeling and looking younger and smoother
• Cleanses so well that products absorb better
• Gentle enough for twice daily use
• Helps reduce oily areas, dry skin patches and blemishes
• Helps reduce the appearance of visible pores
• Reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles

My impression:

Basically, this cleansing system uses sonic waves to clean your face, removing microscopic impurities and particles that you wouldn't be able to otherwise rubbing with your own hands. I think of it as the face equivalent of the Phillips Sonicare toothbrush. As a result of cleaning your skin and pores to such a microscopic level, the skincare products that you subsequently put on will naturally be absorbed more.

I bought this product because I've been getting little bumps on my skin in the evening. Some of them are clogged pores, but the majority of them are just weird bumps. Like my skin is getting irritated. But they aren't even red. They don't become pimples either. But I wake up with fairly even skin tone in the morning and then by evening, my face looks like it just aged 2 years. At the same time, I've been getting the odd pimple here and there. These aren't very inflamed, so they stay on my face forever and take 1-2 months to disappear into a scar!

After using this for a 4 months once daily, I did notice my face in the evening is smoother than before. The weird bumps are definitely less noticeable. I still get the odd pimple here and there, so I would say clarisonic hasn't helped much on that aspect. This is probably because it's a bit too gentle. I find that I need to use my Skinfood Black Sugar Scrub Foam to get the bigger, tougher impurities. Finally, I do notice though that my face has become brighter. It's a small difference, but it's consistent.

As for clarisonic's claims, I've listed them out and wrote out whether I agree (Yes), am neutral (Meh), or disagree (No).
1. 6 times more makeup removal: Meh, from my experience with this cleansing system I think it's too gentle to rely on it as my only tool to remove makeup (more on point #4). When I put on foundation I also use a Skinfood Black Sugar Cleansing Cream before I use this product with my cleanser. 
2. Leaves skin feeling and looking younger and smoother: Yes, I do feel like it leaves my skin feeling smoother and thus younger (more on paragraph above)
3. Cleanses so well that products absorb better: Meh, I think it's reasonable to believe that products absorb better due to better cleansing..but I haven't felt much increased effect from my routine skincare products. 
4. Gentle enough for twice daily use: Yes, I agree that it's gentle enough for twice daily use.. in fact it's too gentle and that's why I need to use a scrub at night (more on paragraph above)
5. Helps reduce oily areas, dry skin patches and blemishes: No, I find it didn't do much to reduce the oily on my nose, or help with the blemishes.
6. Helps reduce the appearance of visible pores: Yes, it did help reduce the appearance of the pores beside my nose. 
7. Reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles: No, I don't have wrinkles yet but I didn't see much change with my fine lines. 

3/7 Yes, 2/7 Meh, 2/7 No. You can probably tell that I'm torn about this product. Yes, it has its benefits, but I don't really know if it justifies the $150 price tag and the cost of renewing the cleansing brush every few months.

Summary:

Brightens, makes my skin smoother,
Didn't help with the pimples, didn't reduce oil
A bit too gentle for me
$150 at fabove.com

Quality: 4/5 because it did reduce the appearance of pores, is gentle, and brighten my face

Value: 3/5 because it's a heavy price tag and you have to keep changing brushes

Repurchase? Well, I guess this is where I'm trapped. I already spent $150+ on this so I might as well spend a little more to renew the brush and keep using it since it is moderately beneficial for me.