The future of facials is here, and it’s palm-sized.
Skincare used to mean three minutes in front of the bathroom mirror: cleanse, slap, moisturise, maybe a rogue eye cream if you were feeling fancy. But the past decade has rewritten the rules. Our bathrooms are now labs, our nightstands a graveyard of serums and sheet masks, and our faces—apparently—deserve more technology than an OG space shuttle. Which is how I found myself holding a hot-pink disc called the FOREO UFO 3, promising to shrink a professional facial into two minutes flat.
I’ve road-tested its predecessor, the UFO 2, and loved it, but the UFO 3 is the newest upgrade in FOREO’s high-tech skincare arsenal. It promises faster, deeper, glowier results, wrapped up in a device the size of a hockey puck. Intrigued? So was I. Here’s how it went (and what the differences are between it and the UFO 2).
First impressions: tiny spaceship, big promises
Unboxing the UFO 3 feels less like beauty shopping and more like tech shopping. Sleek casing, USB-C charger, and a weighty, satisfyingly silicone device that nestles in your palm. It looks like it could double as a chic desk toy—until you switch it on. That’s when it hums, warms, cools, and lights up in rainbow LEDs like a skincare rave.
Pairing it with the FOREO app was painless, and within minutes I was scrolling mask options like I was ordering dessert. The promise: two minutes of smart therapy—heat, cryo, LED, massage—infusing mask ingredients deeper and faster than your average sheet mask Netflix session.
The FOREO mask wardrobe
FOREO’s masks come in little circular sachets, sized perfectly to clip into the UFO 3. There’s “Make My Day” for hydration and pollution protection, “Call It a Night” for nourishment, calming ones with green tea, firming options with collagen, brightening, antioxidant, even acne-soothing blends. Each has a built-in program the UFO 3 recognises and runs automatically—heat here, cooling there, red LED for plumping, blue for blemishes, etc.
The whole ritual is tidier than wrestling with a soggy sheet mask. Two minutes, no dripping down your neck, and a slick of serum that actually sinks in instead of sliding around.
Features and functionality: spa science in two minutes
The UFO 3 is essentially a mash-up of salon treatments, shrunk into a single device:
- Thermo-therapy gently warms skin to open things up and prep for absorption.
- Cryo-therapy cools to calm, de-puff, and tighten.
- T-Sonic pulsations massage and boost circulation.
- Full-spectrum LED light (newly upgraded with pulsed and constant modes) targets different skin concerns: red for anti-ageing, blue for blemishes, green for brightness, yellow for soothing.
The clever part is how these stack together: a two-minute program moves through warmth, massage, LED, and a cooling finale, so ingredients are delivered with maximum impact. FOREO claims a 126% increase in skin hydration in that time, which is a bold but enticing figure.
Why it works (in theory)
Think of it as skincare in fast-forward. Heat makes ingredients penetrate better. Massage improves blood flow and lymphatic drainage. Cooling locks hydration in and de-puffs. And LED light therapy—now a mainstay in dermatology—has proven benefits for collagen stimulation, calming inflammation, and even zapping acne bacteria.
On paper, it’s a greatest-hits album of treatments, compressed into one pocket-sized disc.
My UFO 3 moment: a two-month road test
Picture this: it’s evening, the kitchen lights are dim, your laptop has been mercifully closed, and the small domestic chaos of the day—emails, a forgotten lunch, a conference call that could have been an email—has finally quieted. I make coffee but then put it down, because tonight the ritual is a different kind of treat: two minutes with the UFO 3.
First things first: prep. I always double-cleanse if I’m wearing makeup—the UFO is not your makeup remover; it’s the magic that comes after. A gentle oil, rinse, then a gel or cream cleanser to make sure skin is properly clean. I clip my hair back, hunt down my phone for the app (or, if I’m feeling lazy, choose one of the built-in programs), and open a sachet of the UFO-activated mask I’ve picked for the night—hydrating on Mondays, calming on Wednesdays, and a brightening one when I want to look slightly less like my bed punched me in the face.
Fitting the mask is oddly satisfying. The masks come shaped to sit on top of the device, secured with a little ring aka a tiny halo. There’s a quick-scan barcode that the UFO recognises, and to start with I want to use the app because it talks you through the process of what needs to go where and when.
The first sensation is heat; a warming that feels like a shallow, reassuring hug. I rest the UFO on my cheek and move it in soft, slow circles—cheek, forehead, jawline, chin—avoiding the eyelids and sticking to the orbital bone under the eyes. The t-sonic pulsations are immediate and rhythmic; they feel like a small, competent massager that keeps everything moving and helps the serum settle. There’s a faint glow from the LEDs; it’s not blinding. You can feel the device doing three things at once: warming, vibrating and bathing the skin in light. It’s a neat, synchronised choreography.
Mid-treatment the device will switch modes. The warmth gives way to a cooling phase that is pleasantly moderating—refreshing, not Antarctica—followed by a final pulse and a soft chime that means you’re finished. The whole thing takes about two minutes. Two minutes of focused care feels like an indulgence, even though it barely beats a song chorus.
Afterwards I always pat what’s left of the serum into my skin on my neck and décolletage (because mama is too broke to waste good serum). The UFO 3’s silicone faceplate wipes clean under water and it goes back on its little charging stand. It’s designed to be fuss-free.
Now the diary bit, because the fun with gadgets like this is watching what changes—and what doesn’t—over time.
Week 1: Instant gratification. After the first three treatments my skin felt noticeably softer and less tight. Puffiness around the eyes eased on mornings after I’d used a calming mask at night. I got compliments about “you look well” from people who usually only notice my shoelaces. It’s surprising how much confidence a little extra hydration gives you.
Weeks 2–4: Texture and tone started to behave. Pores didn’t vanish—no device will pretend they will—but they looked less conspicuous on the nose and cheek area. I noticed my makeup sat more smoothly; foundation blended into something closer to skin than mask. The ritual itself had become an enjoyable thing, not a chore. On the nights I skipped it for Netflix, I missed it.
Month 2: This is where maintenance kicked in. The novelty had faded, but the results didn’t disappear. Hydration felt steadier; the occasional fine line on my forehead looked a touch softer after consistent red-LED sessions. My skin tone felt more even overall. What really stuck was rhythm: two to three short treatments weekly (depending on my skin’s mood) delivered a cumulative polish that no single sheet mask had achieved when I used them alone. It was like giving my skincare a little nudge forward every few nights.
Practicalities and quirks I learned along the way: The app is useful for tracking and unlocking new programs, but you don’t need it every night—those built-in modes are a genuine convenience. Occasionally the barcode scan hiccupped; a second try fixed it. The cooling phase is lovely but not the cryo-clinic level you get from a professional machine—so if you crave a frosty jolt, temper expectations.
After two months, would I keep it? Yes. One thousand per cent yes. It genuinely improved the condition of my skin AND it changed my habits. The UFO 3 transformed mask time from laziness-adjacent to something I looked forward to. Two minutes is short enough to be sustainable and ritualistic enough to feel worth doing. If you want an appliance that combines results with an enjoyable, tidy routine, this one’s a match.
In short: it’s easy to use, quick, and—crucially—pleasant enough that you do it. And when a gadget helps you be consistently kind to your face, that consistency is where the results live.
UFO 3 versus UFO 2
Having used both, the UFO 3 is definitely the smoother operator. The key upgrades:
- LED flexibility. UFO 3 gives you pulsed and constant light modes, while UFO 2 offered only constant. That means more control, potentially better results.
- Built-in treatments. UFO 3 has eight pre-set programs, so you don’t always need the app. UFO 2 leaned heavily on app control.
- Usability tweaks. Transitions between heating and cooling feel more seamless on UFO 3, and it’s USB-C charged (praise be).
But core features—heat, cryo, pulsations, LED—are the same. If you already own UFO 2 and love it, you don’t need to upgrade. If you’re new to the FOREO world, UFO 3 is the better buy.
The verdict
The UFO 3 won’t single-handedly erase wrinkles or save you from sunscreen neglect. But as a skincare sidekick, it’s smart, fun, and surprisingly effective. It makes mask time a ritual you’ll actually look forward to, and the results—brighter, bouncier skin in minutes—are hard to argue with.
In her spare time, she likes long walks down the makeup aisle and performing in Brisbane theatre. You can follow her adventures on Instagram and TikTok @thebeautypalate.
