Keeping bikini-ready is a year-round priority in Southern California. But it's never been particularly fun.

Depilatory creams are messy, waxing hurts, razors nick and lasers and electrolysis are pricey and painful.

But good news: A new round of products, at-home gizmos and upgrades to existing salon treatments promise to make hair removal easier, less painful and more permanent.

"It's been an evolution rather than a revolution," says Dr. Alex Martin, it medical director at Metropolitan Medical Care in Hollywood, which offers electrolysis.

Traditional electrolysis works by destroying each hair follicle using an electric current. New technologies now allow for it to be virtually painless. Some salons have recently started using the Apilus Platinum Plus system, whose high-speed frequency and concentrated current take a fraction of a second to destroy hair at its root. Instead of the stinging usually associated with electrolysis, the sensation now is one of a low heat. It still isn't cheap – the process can cost around $180 for one treatment for both underarms — and it still takes several visits before growth is visibly diminished.