The science of UV gels is much younger than that of acrylics. Acrylics have been in development for decades, while nail gels have only been in the spotlight for about a decade. In the early stages of R&D, there were some well-documented difficulties: hard gels caused lifting, while UV gel nails were brittle, dusted like none other during filing, and yellowed in no time. Today, these problems are slowly but surely becoming afterthoughts.
The majority of freshly licensed nail technicians prefer UV gels. This can be attributed to the differences in the two techniques and to the recent results of nail gel research and development. Hard gel is premixed and ready-to-use, which means that nail technicians do not have to put up with either the hassle of having to find the right acrylic powder-liquid ratio or the unpleasant odor of liquid.
The nail product industry has been able to develop gels that provide strong adhesion, do not yellow, are not brittle, and do not produce tons of dust when you file them. During the development of fake nails, it was a priority to ensure that gel for nails cause as little of a burning sensation while being cured in UV as possible.
