Foil, cutters or a whole head: what do you need?

The foil is the surface against your skin

On a foil shaver, the outer foil covers the moving cutters. Some models let you buy that surface separately; others use a cassette with the cutting elements together. Read the contents rather than judging by the shape of the pack.

If the offer is for an outer foil only, assume that’s all you’ll receive unless the description explicitly includes the inner cutters.

What is a cassette?

A cassette combines cutting elements in a removable assembly. When a listing uses that word, check which pieces it includes and whether anything transfers from the old head. The name alone doesn’t guarantee a new holder or every surrounding plastic part.

Rotary heads use different names

Philips describes a rotary cutting head as a cutter and its matching guard. These sit in a holder with retaining hardware. A pack of replacement cutting heads may therefore be smaller than the complete assembly you lift off the handle.

Keep that distinction in mind if a hinge or holder has broken. New cutters won’t replace a missing piece of plastic unless the pack includes it.

Don’t throw away the frame yet

Some replacement sets expect you to reuse the frame. Panasonic’s instructions explicitly mention keeping it for certain models. Leave the old assembly nearby until you’ve checked what the new kit contains.

Before ordering, you should be able to name the included pieces and anything you need to transfer. If you can’t, a question to the seller is worth more than another guess from the product photo.