• While fingernail clippers usually do the job they're designed for, hazards exist every time you use them or if children get hold of them. In fact, fingernail clippers have not changed much over several decades. Patent requests for better fingernail clippers go as far back as 1926, according to a June 2004 article by Alexander Lawrence Allen called "An Improved Fingernail Trimmer," published by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
  
  

Choosing a Fingernail Clipper

• Choose fingernail clippers with a straight or a curved, guillotine edge. A curved edge lets you clip around the sides of your nails more easily while a straight edge gives you a straight cut across your fingernail. Select fingernail clippers, which are easier to manipulate for your fingernails, rather than the larger toenail clippers. For infants, buy special baby fingernail clippers to prevent injuries. Keep your nail clippers clean and free from bacteria by soaking them in a disinfectant solution such as water and tea-tree oil.
  
  

Advantages of Nail Clippers

• With the small size of fingernail clippers, you can conveniently cut your fingernails using small, even snips. Fingernail clippers come in handy to keep your fingernails trimmed; smooth and well-cared nails rarely become damaged. With proper care, fingernail clippers can last a long time and are an inexpensive, reliable addition to your grooming accessories.
  
  

Disadvantages of Nail Clippers

• Conventional fingernail clippers allow nail clippings to scatter everywhere because of how the blades operate. After clipping, the nail ejects in unpredictable directions and can cause injuries to yourself or nearby person. Clippings also end up scattered in an unsanitary way.
  
  Because of the exposed cutting edges of fingernail clippers, they can become like weapons in the hands of small children. Kids can easily injure themselves by playing with them or by attempting to use the sharp blades on their fingernails.
  
  Using fingernail clippers leaves sharp points on your nails, requiring you to spend time filing them down. Since fingernail clippers do not come with depth guides, you can cut too deeply, injuring the quick. If you have tremors or poor eyesight, using conventional fingernail clippers can be challenging. You must have a steady hand and good eyesight in order to use these devices properly and safely.