i think the advantage to epilady is that you can just do it yourself periodically so it doesn't have to be the big event that waxing is. but then i'm guessing 'cause i don't know. i wax myself (use the cold strips you warm up between your hands) but i typically don't have the patience to wait till they are long enough to wax. i was wondering whether you could use an epilady every week (say) and so it really wouldn't be that painful then 'cause there wouldn't be as many hairs that are long enough for it to grip 'em. i've heard that waxing / epilady tends to damage the hair at the follicle so it stunts growth and doesn't hurt as much. first time is the worst, i bet. maybe wax 'em first then as they start to grow start using the epilady. dunno...