a good choice

7886XL was bought to replace my 6-year old 6826. The old shaver needed a new set of batteries and a new set of blades and it turned out that buying a new shaver is cheaper. I briefly considered new Smarttouch system, but after looking at it decided against it - the shaving area is just a bit larger, I'm not sure if there's even 10% increase. At the same time a top model in the Quadra series could be had for half of what I paid for the low end model originally. I am not entirely sure what 7886XL is - Norelco web site has no information on it whatsoever, however it seems it is a Costco model which is otherwise almost identical to 7885XL.
The shaver body is exactly the same as it has been for years. I was a little dubious at first about the color and surface, - it is dark pearl and really glossy, it seemed it'd be very easy for it to slip out of hand but nothing like that happened so far, however I'm still not a fan of color. The manual states that the first charge takes 4 hours, and 1 hour every charge after that. In my case the first charge was just one hour, shaving time is 35 min, although I had an impression it should 45 min.(Update: after several recharges full charge is approaching 45 min.) The indicator seems to do a fine job - indeed it takes about 1 minute to use up a minute of indicated time. The manual also suggests that it is possible to do a quick 6 min charge which is good for 3 min of use. Sounds nice but I'm not sure how useful it is, as it usually takes me no less than 5 min to shave. I was a bit surprised Norelco still uses NiCad batteries - this is really a technology of the past. The capacity of the double AA Norelco battery pack is 700 mAh, while modern NiMH batteries are about 2500 mAh each. On the bright side Norelco seems to have improved their chargers, as the charging time is shorter than it used to be. Also, it should be noted that old chargers don't fit, so if you're upgrading and have a car charger - it won't work. However, new chargers are backwards compatible, and will fit old shavers.
The quality of the shave is very good. Not as close as a razor, but good enough, and no cuts and skin irritations - something that plagued me during my Gillette times. Still, I find it beneficial for my skin condition to skip a day now and then. Those who are switching from razors may need to wait 10-15 days for their skin to adjust, but if you have sensitive skin it is well worth it.