Derminator 2 Review

The Derminator 2 shares the top score among devices sold for home use that we’ve reviewed, level with the Dr. Pen A10 at 5.0. As a device it is the best of them; its seller scores the lowest on this site for how it treats customers. We’d recommend the device, but with real caution around ordering. It is cheap to buy and run, and its engineering is unusual: a corded console that drives the needles with a single moving magnet and measures, with a sensor, how deep they actually go. It is not FDA-cleared, its maker accepts no returns, and much of what the company says about competing pens is unproven or contradicted by its own pages. The seller is the bigger risk. Only its own cartridges fit, and its own policies allow it to stop selling to you. Delivered to the US with a year of cartridges, it costs at least $252.27. Three prescription devices we’ve reviewed score higher: the SkinPen, Dermapen 4 and Dr. Pen A20. This review combines documented evidence with the hands-on notes of Patricia, who runs this site; how to order one is covered in our Derminator 2 buying guide.

Does it really cause less micro-tearing?

Unproven either way. This is the question most buyers arrive with, so it comes first.

The drive is documented. The Derminator 2 manual says the motor “can never break because its sole moving part is a magnet that actuates the needle cartridge and causes sensor feedback to the machine to tell it how deep the needles are needling.” The shop page calls it “an unique, patent-pending linear actuator principle.” That is a different design from at least two competitors in the FDA record. The 510(k) summary for the Dermapen 4 (cleared as the DP4) says its drive train “encompasses a DC motor, eccentric cam and rotational to linear drive converter.” The cleared Dr. Pen system (K230420) lists a motor speed of “6300 – 7700” RPM and a puncture rate of “105 -128 stamps/second”, a rotating motor, though the summary does not describe the linkage. We could not check how most other home pens are built, so the idea that the Derminator is one of only a few pens without a rotary motor is plausible but unverified.

The tearing claim is a different matter. derminator.com says the short time the needles spend in the skin “completely prevents horizontal tearing.” The evidence offered is the manufacturer’s own: needled paper photographed next to a competitor pen, and a microscope video. The manual concedes the weakness of that test: “skin is very flexible and paper is not. Therefore, when needling paper, things look much worse.” Even the timing figure varies between pages. derminator.com says the needles are in the skin “for about a thousandth of a second per prick”; the shop page says “a few milliseconds.”

A PubMed search on October 6, 2026 found no study of the Derminator under any of its names, and no study comparing skin tearing between microneedling drive designs. Users believe the claim, and some say so:

Questions about Derminator 2
byu/Cat_Kidnapper inMicroneedling

That thread, “Questions about Derminator 2” in r/Microneedling, opens with the view that it is “according to many, a superior machine with a quality motor and seems to be the one with the smallest risk of tearing.” That is reputation. A head-to-head measurement in skin has not been published.

What I found using it

Personally, I found the Derminator 2 caused noticeably less pain and bleeding than the Dr. Pen pens I’ve used, even at deeper settings. Its magnet-driven stamping feels less harsh on my skin, and I recover faster. I usually have a few blood spots or marks for a day or two before my skin looks normal again. With the pens, my skin often stayed red and aggravated for longer.

The convenience is another story. The design feels strange, old and dated. It is loud enough that I want earplugs to be comfortable. Getting the console out, plugging it into the wall and preparing everything feels like a ritual, where a handheld pen is something you just pick up and use.

For me, the technology wins on treatment feel, but the convenience loses.

These are my own observations, not a controlled comparison. I didn’t record the pen models, settings, areas, speeds or numbing for either device, so I can’t say what caused the difference. My notes are not evidence about tearing.

Who it’s for, and who it isn’t

For: home users who want precise, button-set depth, are comfortable with a corded console on a table, and want low running costs. The company says the machine is “primarily intended for home use by the educated self-needler.”

Not for: anyone who wants an FDA-cleared device, a returns window or quick delivery, or who can’t risk being refused future cartridge orders. Shipping comes from the Czech Republic, and the company’s shipping page says to “always count on at least two weeks.” Clinics are out too: since October 22, 2023, the terms say “commercial use of the Derminator® is prohibited by our T&C for new customers (except for EU customers).”

Specs

From the Derminator 2 manual (revision of September 18, 2026) and derminator.com, checked October 6, 2026.

	Derminator 2
Format	Mains-powered console with a corded hand unit; “100 to 240 VAC”
Drive	Reciprocating magnet driven by an electromagnet; “Safe return” back magnet pulls the needles up at power-off
Depth	“0.25 to 2.5 mm in increments of 0.25 mm, digitally set. The single needle can be made to penetrate to 3.5 mm.”
Depth control	Honeywell Hall sensor, “+/- 0.0065 mm accuracy”, which “verifies and controls the correct needling depth, 9000 times per second” (manufacturer’s figures)
Speeds	“3, 5 and 25 Hz”
Maximum rate	“18000” channels per minute
Needles	0.15 mm diameter (“34½ AWG”); cartridges of 1, 9 or 12 needles
Cartridge	“Ethylene Oxide sterilized”, with a “silicone spring/sleeve to prevent blood or skin treatment serums from entering the device”
Hand unit	80 g per derminator.com; 140 cm cable
Noise	“Slow: 45 dBA. Medium: 50 dBA. Fast: 55 dBA.” Earplugs are in the box.
Extras	Smart Timer that counts down treatment time from the skin area you enter
In the box	One each of the 1-, 9- and 12-needle cartridges
Warranty	Lifetime, on manufacturing defects

Two inconsistencies are worth knowing. The shop page refers to “the max. 2.25 mm penetration”, while the manual lists settings up to 2.5 mm and notes only that the 2.5 mm setting “shares its position” with 2.25 mm on the display. And the 3.5 mm single-needle depth comes from a “trick”: the manual warns that if a single-needle cartridge is fitted while the machine is told a 9- or 12-needle cartridge is on, “the machine will needle 1 mm too deep.”

The 0.0065 mm figure is the sensor’s resolution as the manufacturer states it. No independent test of the Derminator’s depth accuracy has been published, unlike the FDA bench test in the Dermapen 4 clearance.

Regulatory status

In Canada, a search of Health Canada’s device database for “Derminator” on October 6, 2026 returned no licence.

The Derminator 2 has no FDA clearance. Searches of the FDA 510(k) and registration databases through openFDA for “derminator”, “owndoc”, “gromako” and “vaughter” returned no records on October 6, 2026, which matches our FDA lookup page.

The company does not claim FDA status, and its website disclaimer says “WE DO NOT CLAIM THAT THE DEVICE CAN CURE, TREAT OR PREVENT ANY MEDICAL CONDITION.” The manual takes a different line: “The Derminator® 2 is a medical device, used to administer an invasive medical treatment procedure to the skin. Improper use or over-use may result in permanent disfigurement.” The company’s sister site, owndoc.com, says dermaneedling “improves scars, stretchmarks, wrinkles and other skin flaws.” For what clearance means and which devices hold one, see microneedling and FDA clearance.

What the company does publish is electrical testing. The FCC document it links is an EMC (radio interference) report from EMV TESTHAUS GmbH dated July 25, 2016, for a “DERMINATOR” model “1EU2MM”, which passed the FCC Part 15 Class B emission tests. It covers interference only, not medical safety, and it does not say whether that unit is the Derminator 2. The shop dates the original Derminator to before March 2018. The product page calls the device “CE-certified and FCC verified”; the manual’s CE statement cites the EMC and Low Voltage directives, not medical-device rules.

The company also says “The power supply unit has a medical safety certification.” The power-supply datasheet it links (Astrodyne OFM10 series) lists “UL60950-1, IEC60950-1 Approved”, which are IT-equipment safety standards, plus EN60601-1-2, the medical EMC standard. It does not list IEC 60601-1, the main medical electrical safety standard, so the claim is unverified.

Adverse-event reports

An FDA MAUDE search on October 6, 2026 returned three voluntary reports naming “VAUGHTER WELLNESS (OWNDOC.COM)” as the manufacturer, all filed under product code GFE (“Brush, dermabrasion, powered”).

• Two, received March 6 and 7, 2025, name the Derminator 2 and carry nearly identical text: “personal product use of the Derminator 2 resulted in irreversible scarring on skin.” They may describe one event reported twice.
• One, from January 2018, concerns the original Derminator and describes “permanent holes and bumps” on the forehead and “an increase in acne.”

MAUDE reports are unverified submissions. They don’t show that a device caused an injury, and the count is too small to compare with other brands.

What owners reported

Reddit’s r/Microneedling discusses the Derminator often, and the threads available to us lean positive. One poster asked why:

Is there a reason why Derminator is so popular here?
by inMicroneedling

That thread, “Is there a reason why Derminator is so popular here?”, notes that people “recommend derminator 2 over dr pen m8s or m8.” Owners who have used both are split (owner accounts): in a thread asking who has bought both, several favor the Derminator while others prefer Dr. Pen’s stamping or find the Derminator painful. Results threads are more mixed, as the title of one makes plain:

Derminator 2 results after 4 sessions – mixed feelings
byu/4crying_outloud inMicroneedling

It is titled “Derminator 2 results after 4 sessions – mixed feelings”; the snippet we can see is a reply praising “great gains in volume and firmness.” Owner accounts are not evidence that the device works or is safe. Before-and-after photos on derminator.com are customer submissions the company chose to publish.

Service, warranty and returns

The warranty is generous and plainly worded. The terms say “All our merchandise has a lifetime warranty on factory defects”, and the manual says defective machines “are replaced by brand new, never-used machines at our cost, without the need to return the old machine.” The listed exceptions are physical damage, such as “a dog chewing the hand unit cord.”

Returns are not offered. The product page says: “Returns for this product, even when unused, are never accepted to protect our customers,” and “You agree that asking a refund for whatever reason is a violation of our T&C.” The shipping page carves out EU customers within their legal return period.

Support is limited by design. derminator.com says that “for that price” the company will not “Answer pre-purchase questions, already answered on our store pages” or answer “questions on HOW to use the machine.” Help goes through a ticket system at owndoc.support, a forum and the PDFs. The manual’s troubleshooting chapter is long and specific; it covers magnets that “fly out”, magnets “glued” in place by dried blood or serum, and sensor errors.

Seller conduct and ordering risk

A lifetime warranty is worth little if the company stops selling to you, and its own policies say it will in some cases. That matters more here than with most devices, because the cartridge page says OwnDoc’s cartridge “is the only cartridge that works properly with the Derminator® 2”. A buyer refused further orders is left with a machine and no new needles for it.

What OwnDoc’s own pages say:

• Forwarders: “We cancel and refund orders that appear to use a mail forwarding service as the shipping address” (shipping page). The terms add: “we do not ship to mail forwarders, american military bases, hotels, student accomodation, holiday accomodation and other such 3rd parties”, with exceptions for EU customers.
• Returned shipments: when a parcel comes back undelivered and the buyer is judged to blame, “we will then only accept further orders when the customer refunds us for the lost cost of shipping and any Customs re-import fees.” The terms put that loss at “often approx. $50” for a parcel returning from outside the EU.
• A blacklisting page: owndoc.com’s site menu once linked to a page titled “Blacklisting policy”. The link has been taken out of the menu, and the page returned a 404 when we checked on October 6, 2026.

Owners describe the same thing happening in practice. In an r/Microneedling thread titled Derminator issues, the user Growing-upp says they were blocked from reordering cartridges after a dispute over a delivery cost, and that ordering through their husband didn’t get around it (owner account). The picture isn’t uniform: in Derminator purchase… any tips?, one owner reports about ten orders over five years without trouble, and another says a mistaken ban based on their name was resolved (owner accounts).

The company’s own public replies to reviews go further than its policies. Answering a one-star Trustpilot review on August 15, 2024, OwnDoc wrote: “We always punish criminal defamation (lying to cause harm) with doxxing. Or legal action, in case of EU residents or people in some other jurisdictions”. It went on: “You publish a fake “review” of us, we publish a true review of you as a public defense and documentation for any 3rd party that needs or wants to know.” In the same reply it stated where the reviewer lives and reproduced the reviewer’s emails to the company, which it said it reproduced “verbatim”.

In another reply to a review, OwnDoc says it does “not publicly blacklist thieves that enjoy GDPR protection. So no EU residents are blacklisted”, that “Blacklisted people always have a mention of what they’re blacklisted for”, and that “we may later publish also the details of EU-based criminals and let the courts sort things out.” A December 15, 2025 reply tells readers to find a customer it had refused, by photo, in the sidebar of its own site, linked to an outside website about her. That sidebar block is still in owndoc.com’s page source, but commented out, so it no longer displays (checked October 7, 2026). An August 8, 2026 reply describes how it cuts a customer off: “No contact means in this case refusing further orders from her.”

OwnDoc also says what its bad reviews are about. Its August 2024 reply opens: “As always, this is a 1-star review for refusing to ship to a particular location or accepting a customer.” On the customer side, a PissedConsumer complaint from August 2025 describes being refused a sale after asking for help with an order (customer allegation). We don’t repeat any customer’s personal details, or the accusations OwnDoc makes about them.

For balance: on the Trustpilot page we read, 88% of OwnDoc’s reviews are five-star and 10% one-star. Most buyers report no trouble at all.

Privacy

The privacy policy is short and specific. It says the site does “not use analytics”, the store keeps order details as cookies, customer data sits on “a managed server for us alone” at Liquidweb, and “Our site never gets to know your card number. We use PCI-compliant 3rd party payment processors.” It says email addresses will not be disclosed to third parties “except when mandated by law enforcement or legal demand.” It says nothing about data retention or how to request deletion. We found no documented data breach. The policy is one thing; the company’s own replies to reviews, quoted above, describe publishing information about customers who criticise it.

What it really costs

At list price, the Derminator 2 costs $149 on owndoc.shop and 12-needle cartridges cost $2.85 each (both checked October 6, 2026, in USD with US delivery selected). On this site’s standard schedule (one full-face session every 4 weeks, one new cartridge per session, 13 cartridges a year):

• year one at list price = $149.00 + 13 × $2.85 = $149.00 + $37.05 = $186.05
• each later year at list price = 13 × $2.85 = $37.05

Delivered to the US, it costs more. These figures come from owndoc.shop’s own US checkout (USD, DHL Express), with nothing ordered. The checkout warns that DHL collects import tax and fees on arrival and calls its figure “at least”, so every delivered total below is a minimum.

Order	Items	Shipping	DHL on arrival (at least)	Delivered (at least)
Device alone (US plug)	$149.00	$29.30	$33.21 = $14.90 import tax + $17.00 collection fee + $1.31 regulatory charge	$211.51
Device + 13 × 12-needle cartridges	$186.05	$29.30	$36.92 = $18.61 + $17.00 + $1.31	$252.27
13 × 12-needle cartridges only	$37.05	$29.30	$22.02 = $3.71 + $17.00 + $1.31	$88.37

The arithmetic: $149.00 + $29.30 + $33.21 = $211.51; $186.05 + $29.30 + $36.92 = $252.27; $37.05 + $29.30 + $22.02 = $88.37, or $88.37 ÷ 13 = $6.80 per delivered cartridge against $2.85 at list.

Every US shipment carries a fixed overhead of $29.30 + $17.00 + $1.31 = $47.61, whatever is in it. That is why ordering the device and a year of cartridges together costs less: $252.27, against $211.51 + $88.37 = $299.88 if the cartridges follow in a second order, a difference of exactly one overhead.

The company itself expects cartridges to be reused. The product page says they “get blunt after a two, three of uses”, and the manual gives a home disinfection procedure for reuse on the same person. The cartridge page says they “should ideally NOT be reused.” The schedule above assumes a new cartridge each session.

Where it’s made

The shop says the device is designed, assembled and dispatched “in and from the Czech Republic” by Gromako Data & Services Ltd., trading as Vaughter Wellness, a UK company with a Czech branch. The checkout labels the machine a “CZ-origin item” and the 12-needle cartridge a “KR-origin item”, so the cartridges come from South Korea. derminator.com tells buyers that “all competing devices are made in China”, but its own comparison table on the same page lists the Dermapen 4’s country of manufacture as South Korea.

Who is behind OwnDoc

OwnDoc’s forum replies, instructions and featured articles were published under the name “Sarah Vaughter”. She isn’t a real person, and OwnDoc’s own About page says so: “Just as Uncle Ben’s and Dr. Oetker aren’t real people, neither is Sarah Vaughter.” The company trademarked the name “because we wanted a unique name and face to the company”. According to the same page, the material was written by a staff member it names as Martina, “our dermaneedling expert”, and only “her name and face differ”.

The About page is written by Frank de Groot, who says he invented the Derminator in 2013 and runs the site. The UK company register lists Franciscus Andreas de Groot as a director of Gromako Data & Services Ltd, appointed in 2016, alongside a director named Martina who has served since the company was formed in 2006 (Companies House, checked October 7, 2026). In a reply to a review, OwnDoc says it “used aliases for eighteen years and only very recently published our true names and photos on our About page”.

How it scored

• Safety (4): No FDA clearance with no false claim of one caps it at 6. It loses two more for the manual’s documented over-depth hazard (a mis-set cartridge type needles 1 mm deeper than displayed), instructions for reusing cartridges after home disinfection, and three MAUDE injury reports, unverified, against ethylene-oxide-sterilized cartridges with a blood-blocking sleeve.
• Build (6): Sensor-checked depth and a one-moving-part magnetic drive are documented in the manual, but no independent test of depth accuracy exists, and the manual itself describes failure modes from magnets flying out to serum gluing the magnet in place.
• Performance (7): Button-set depth from 0.25 to 2.5 mm in 0.25 mm steps, three speeds, a light 80 g hand unit on a long cable, a timer and a detailed manual. It is corded only, loud enough to ship with earplugs, and tops out at 2.5 mm for multi-needle cartridges.
• Value (8): $149 plus 13 cartridges at $2.85 comes to $186.05 for the first year at list price; Value is scored on list price for every device so devices compare, and the US delivered cost (at least $252.27) is reported alongside, not scored.
• Service (4): A clearly worded lifetime warranty that replaces faulty units without a return, against returns that are “never accepted”, no help with how-to questions, a written policy of refusing further orders until returned-shipment costs are repaid, and owner reports of being blocked from buying the only cartridges that fit.
• Privacy (1): The policy rules out analytics and card storage. Against that, the company says in its own public replies that it punishes reviews it calls defamatory “with doxxing”, it has published where a reviewer lives along with their emails, and it says it may publish the details of EU customers. It also refuses customers as policy and once had a “Blacklisting policy” page, now removed from its menu. Our methodology puts serious, documented problems in how a seller treats customers at 0-2. We keep 0 for a documented breach of customer data, which we did not find.
• Evidence (3): The manual and specs are public, but no clinical study of the device exists, the tearing claim rests on paper tests, and several claims are false, misleading or unsupported: “all competing devices are made in China” (contradicted by its own table), a “battery-driven” Dermapen 4 that its FDA summary says also runs from a mains adaptor, and a “medical safety certification” the linked datasheet does not show.

Alternatives

• Dr. Pen A20: the one Dr. Pen system with an FDA clearance (K230420), for facial acne scars in adults 22 and over, on prescription. It is a battery pen whose FDA summary quotes its motor speed in RPM.
• SkinPen: authorized by the FDA through the De Novo route (DEN160029) in 2018 and cleared for prescription use, so it is a clinic device, not a home one.
• Korabeauticals V2: a $179.99 home pen with backflow-protected cartridges and a longer warranty, but little published about its own specs.

FAQ

Is the Derminator 2 FDA approved? No. It has no FDA clearance or approval, and the company does not claim one. Its FCC paperwork is an electrical interference test, not a medical authorization.

Does the Derminator 2 cause less micro-tearing than a pen? Unknown. The manufacturer says its short needle-down time prevents tearing and demonstrates this on paper, but no independent study has compared tearing between devices.

How much does a Derminator 2 cost delivered to the US? At least $211.51 for the device alone, or at least $252.27 with 13 cartridges, from OwnDoc’s US checkout on October 6, 2026. The full breakdown is in our buying guide.

Can you return a Derminator 2? No, outside the EU’s statutory period for EU buyers. The company replaces faulty machines under a lifetime warranty instead.

How deep does the Derminator 2 go? 2.5 mm with the 9- and 12-needle cartridges, set in 0.25 mm steps. The single needle can reach 3.5 mm with a setting “trick” that the manual describes.

Sources

• Derminator 2 instructions, revision of September 18, 2026 (checked 2026-10-06): https://derminator.com/Derminator2-instructions.pdf
• derminator.com, Derminator 2 page, specs and comparison table (checked 2026-10-06): https://derminator.com/
• owndoc.shop, Derminator 2 product page (US plug), price and US checkout (checked 2026-10-06): https://owndoc.shop/Derminator%20digital%20needling%20device/Derminator%202/DERMINATOR%202%20digi-needler%20(US%20plug)/
• owndoc.shop, 12-needle cartridge page (checked 2026-10-06): https://owndoc.shop/Derminator%20digital%20needling%20device/Needle%20cartridges/Derminator%202%20needle%20cartridge%20(12%20needles)/
• owndoc.shop, Terms and Conditions, items 4 and 12 (checked 2026-10-06): https://owndoc.shop/_Terms/
• owndoc.shop, Shipping, tracking, Customs (checked 2026-10-06): https://owndoc.shop/_Shipping/
• owndoc.com, site navigation with the removed “Blacklisting policy” link; /blacklisting/ returns 404 (checked 2026-10-06): https://owndoc.com/
• owndoc.com, privacy policy (checked 2026-10-06): https://owndoc.com/privacy-policy/
• owndoc.com, About page, on “Sarah Vaughter” and Frank de Groot (checked 2026-10-07): https://owndoc.com/about/
• Companies House, Gromako Data & Services Limited (06035923), officers (checked 2026-10-07): https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/06035923/officers
• Trustpilot, OwnDoc’s one-star reviews and its replies, including the reply of August 15, 2024 (read from screenshots; Trustpilot blocks our automated access): https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/owndoc.com?stars=1
• PissedConsumer, OwnDoc reviews, with screenshots of OwnDoc’s Trustpilot replies of December 15, 2025 and August 8, 2026: https://owndoc.pissedconsumer.com/review.html
• owndoc.com, Declaration of EU Preferential Origin (checked 2026-10-06): https://owndoc.com/origin/
• EMV TESTHAUS GmbH, EMC test report 160466-AU01+E01, July 25, 2016: https://derminator.com/FCC/160466-AU01+E01%20FCC%20report.pdf
• Astrodyne OFM10 series power supply datasheet, as linked by derminator.com: https://derminator.com/pdf/derminator-psu.pdf
• FDA MAUDE via openFDA, brand “derminator” (searched 2026-10-06): https://api.fda.gov/device/event.json?search=device.brand_name:derminator
• openFDA 510(k) search, device name “derminator” (searched 2026-10-06, no results): https://api.fda.gov/device/510k.json?search=device_name:derminator
• FDA 510(k) summary K221070, “DP4 Microneedling device”: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/cdrh_docs/pdf22/K221070.pdf
• FDA 510(k) summary K230420, “Dr. pen Microneedling System”: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/cdrh_docs/pdf23/K230420.pdf
• FDA De Novo DEN160029, SkinPen Precision System: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/cdrh_docs/pdf16/DEN160029.pdf
• PubMed search for “derminator” (searched 2026-10-06, no results): https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=derminator
• Reddit r/Microneedling, “Derminator issues” (owner account): https://www.reddit.com/r/Microneedling/comments/1rspns4/derminator_issues/
• Reddit r/Microneedling, “Derminator purchase… any tips?” (owner accounts): https://www.reddit.com/r/Microneedling/comments/1ue5suf/derminator_purchase_any_tips_i_do_not_want_to/
• Reddit r/Microneedling, thread on owners who bought both a Derminator and a Dr. Pen (owner accounts): https://www.reddit.com/r/Microneedling/comments/1rz0b6s/who_has_purchased_both_the_derminator_and_a_dr_pen/
• PissedConsumer, OwnDoc reviews (customer allegations, unverified): https://owndoc.pissedconsumer.com/review.html
• Trustpilot, owndoc.com reviews, page 2 (customer allegations, unverified): https://www.trustpilot.com/review/owndoc.com?page=2
• Health Canada Medical Devices Active Licence Listing, device-name search “Derminator” (checked 2026-10-06): https://health-products.canada.ca/api/medical-devices/device/?device_name=DERMINATOR&lang=en&type=json