Philips Sonicareã‚â® Flexcare Classic Electric Toothbrush in Black 813813 Reviews

The research

• Why you should trust us
• Should you lot upgrade?
• How we picked and tested
• The features you don't demand (what you get if y'all spend more)
• Is "sonic" brushing better?
• Our choice: Oral-B Pro 1000
• Runner-upwardly: Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 4100
• Care and maintenance
• What about "smart" toothbrushes?
• Other good electric toothbrushes
• The contest
• Footnotes
• Sources

Why yous should trust the states

We spoke with several experts on the subject of oral wellness, including dental school faculty at leading research universities, a professional dentist, and a consumer advisor appointed by the American Dental Association (ADA), which confers a Seal of Acceptance on dental care products that seek the certification and meet a set of agreed-upon criteria.

In addition, we invested more than threescore hours in researching, evaluating, and testing the best powered toothbrushes widely available to notice the best one.

Should y'all upgrade?

Per the ADA's recommendations, the only necessary affair in toothbrushing is a basic toothbrush that you use properly. Our pick was included in the first group of electric toothbrushes to receive the ADA Seal of Acceptance in September 2017.^two Simply regardless of the manufacturer, powered electrical toothbrushes have been shown to provide superior dental care to manual toothbrushing—they remove more plaque and reduce gingivitis at statistically meaning rates.ⁱⁱⁱ If y'all find yourself struggling to see two minutes, if you tend to castor unevenly, or if you discover manual brushing to be as well much labor, upgrading from a manual toothbrush to an electric 1 that automates these elements may make sense.

If you already have an electrical toothbrush that performs these services, there's no demand to consider upgrading. If you utilise a manual brush and don't struggle to maintain skillful habits, in that location's little reason to consider upgrading in that example, either.

One thing worth pointing out about electric toothbrushes is that they are not cheaper in the long run. Electric toothbrushes toll almost 10 times every bit much equally manual toothbrushes, and yous take to supersede the castor heads at the same frequency (every 3 months), each for about the same cost as a transmission brush. What you get for the higher price is less friction in achieving practiced brushing habits, and, according to research, a meaning reduction in plaque and gingivitis, even if that reduction may come merely from having a castor that encourages good habits, like a full two minutes of brushing for each session.

How we picked and tested

Photo: Michael Murtaugh

Afterwards sorting through the dental care research, which is littered with clinical studies sponsored by the companies that make the toothbrushes beingness tested, we've learned that all you actually need out of an electric toothbrush is a ii-minute timer to make sure you castor your teeth for the right corporeality of fourth dimension. Manufacturers have blown upward the high end with scientific-sounding "features" similar cleaning modes and UV lights; nothing proves these other features work, let alone that they are necessary. All an electrical toothbrush can actually offer is automation of the brushing process by adding a timer and easing some of the physical labor, according to the professors and dentist we spoke to.

"Boilerplate folks castor 46 seconds. With timers people will go to at least the two minutes," said Dr. Joan Gluch, director of community health at the Academy of Pennsylvania Schoolhouse of Dental Medicine. "Clinically, nosotros meet patients do better with powered toothbrushes." Dr. Mark Wolff, a professor emeritus at the New York Academy College of Dentistry, agreed: "It helps people that don't brush well," he said. "If you need the guidance, invest in the guidance."

There are many types of brush heads, and they vary from make to brand. Photograph: Casey Johnston

None of the experts we spoke with differentiated between the plaque removal ability in whatever of the types or models of brushes bachelor.

So we looked for, at minimum, brushes with a ii-infinitesimal timer, but still wanted to test higher-end brushes to compare their usability confronting that of the simplest models. We eliminated brushes without rechargeable batteries considering loose batteries are a hassle and a waste material. Nosotros also eliminated models that were reviewed as overly loud or having either brusque bombardment life or a besides-small range of compatible brush heads. If a castor was compatible with a wide range of castor heads, that was a small bespeak in its favor.

Both Oral-B and Philips Sonicare make extensive lines of brushes and don't exactly go to pains to get in articulate what the divergence is betwixt all of them. Although the Oral-B 7000 costs more than the Oral-B g because of added, unnecessary features, such as additional "cleaning modes," we chose to examination it to run across if the user experience was meliorate. It was not.

We applied the same buying model to the Philips Sonicare line and tried non to purchase brushes that were differentiated but by their unnecessary features. We also bought ane high-finish brush, the DiamondClean, to appraise if the cleaning experience was better. It was not.

Once we understood the features of all the products, information technology was a matter of getting them in mitt and seeing what it was like to agree them, charge them, utilize them, supercede their heads, and take our brushing sessions timed and monitored. To stress-exam them, we likewise dropped our picks onto a tile floor from chest acme to exam for durability and submerged them in h2o while they were running for a full two-minute brushing cycle to test for water resistance. We compared the brushes on all these usability points to arrive at our decision.

In our experience, all of these brushes, even the peak-terminate ones, did the same thing—moved toothpaste around in your mouth. Toothbrushes that place as "sonic" like Philips and Waterpik models tend to be quieter and have a vibration-like movement, and aquiver brushes are louder. But this is a distinction between dissimilar types of brushes made by dissimilar manufacturers, non expensive brushes versus inexpensive ones.

The features you don't need (what you get if you spend more)

The funny thing about electrical toothbrushes is how similar a $70 model is to a $200 1. One time we become past the features mentioned to a higher place, at that place are precious few necessary value-adds to an expensive electric toothbrush: a travel instance, a UV sanitizer (which is of negligible use), maybe a couple extra heads, a slightly sleeker trunk, a longer-lasting battery, machine-syncing with an app (Come across What about "smart" toothbrushes?). As for sonic cleaning, unlike cleaning modes, or pressure sensors, experts tell us they are not necessary.

All of our picks come with a two-minute timer. That's the main benefit of having an electric toothbrush.

Spend more than than $30 or so, and yous typically get a quadrant timer. This element, though a nice option, isn't strictly necessary unless you lot like that fashion of brushing or your dentist has noticed that you struggle with brushing evenness. "The time spent in each quadrant is just an aid to help ensure that you castor long enough to remove plaque on every tooth at the gum line and chewing surfaces, assuming you're brushing properly," said dentist Matthew Messina, a spokesperson for the ADA. "Plus, we are not aware of studies that bear witness brushing longer in smaller areas has an added beneficial outcome in removing plaque."

Spend about $70, and your brush comes with a travel case and a few extra cleaning modes, which vibrate the castor at unlike patterns or frequencies. These brushes also tend to move at a higher frequency, to the melody of 30,000 to 40,000 movements per minute, equally opposed to a lower-cease brush's viii,000 to xx,000 movements per minute. There isn't a proven deviation in effectiveness between faster and slower brush movements in existing independent research. We found just 1 small, old, imperfect study that compared brushes with 2,100, 2,500, and three,500 brushstrokes per minute and found that the middle frequency was the virtually effective at removing plaque ("at nearly ane.5 times better" than the other frequencies and yielded "about l percent fewer plaque sites" than the highest frequency). Respondents also said it was the about comfy frequency. However, there were only 10 participants, they brushed nether supervision only some of the fourth dimension, and they used each toothbrush for only iii days.

Cleaning modes don't affair, co-ordinate to experts we spoke to and enquiry we've seen. The simply ane that might aid is "sensitive mode" for people who find the brush's normal oscillations too jarring. "People with sensitive teeth may observe that their teeth are less sensitive when the brush head moves slower or less pressure is applied," said Dr. Messina. The boilerplate person doesn't need information technology, though. "As far equally whitening goes, all toothbrushes aid remove surface stains when used with a toothpaste because toothpastes incorporate mild abrasives and detergents for this purpose," said Dr. Messina.

In this price range, yous'll too get a small boost in bombardment life. That doesn't matter much, every bit information technology's easy to have your brush alive on its charger in your bathroom.

Over $100 will become you lot a couple more modes on your brush, a travel example that can charge the brush on the go, and mayhap a force per unit area sensor that lights upwardly one time activated.

The pressure sensor is meant to alert the user when they are brushing too hard, something that dentists and experts agree is a bad matter. Our panel testers' opinions on the utility of these sensors were mixed.

Around $150 puts you lot in the realm of Bluetooth brushes (and, generally, a dip in battery life). These typically come with several brush heads, in addition to a charging travel case, and fifty-fifty more cleaning modes.

Is "sonic" brushing improve?

A point of order about the word "sonic": Per advertising from Sonicare that is at present close to two decades one-time, some people have this to mean that sonic toothbrushes "knock off plaque" with "sound waves." This is not an effect proven in whatsoever research.

However, sonic toothbrushes can produce a secondary effect described in a handful of studies involving fluid dynamics. Contained research does show that the fluid dynamics generated by a toothbrush moving at loftier frequency can "remove bacteria in vitro even at distances up to 4 mm across the tips of the bristles" (Stanford, 1997). The efficacy of this movement varied depending on the distance and time spent, and nix will remove 100 percent of the bacteria/plaque all the fourth dimension, but this is a significant, if secondary, upshot generated by a "sonic" toothbrush.

We could non detect any independent studies comparison toothbrush models or brands, and all the ones tested for the fluid dynamics aspect are Sonicare brushes, which are all 31,000 movements-per-minute brushes. Other brands have toothbrushes that move faster, slower, and at roughly the same speed equally this. Though the fluid dynamics effect exists, call up that it's secondary to actual bristles scrubbing your teeth and gums.

Our choice: Oral-B Pro m

Photo: Michael Murtaugh

Our pick

Oral-B Pro thou

The best electric toothbrush

The Oral-B Pro one thousand has the most important features for the everyman toll: a 2-minute timer, an easy brushing procedure, and compatibility with the largest range of brush heads.

Ownership Options

The Pro grand is among Oral-B's least expensive models, merely it comes with all the features most of our experts recommended, for the everyman toll—a ii-minute timer (with a nice-to-have quadrant alert) and a broad choice of compatible and affordable brush heads. Nosotros've recommended this castor since 2015. In September 2017, the Pro 1000 was amid the first v electric toothbrushes to receive the ADA Seal of Acceptance. The Pro 1000 has comfy-feeling oscillating bristles, a elementary i-button interface, and a bombardment that lasted xi½ days with twice-daily employ in our tests. The body survived drop tests on the flooring and into water. Best of all, you're not getting overcharged for features like digital monitors, travel cases, or inductive chargers—none of which will really get your teeth any cleaner than the Pro one thousand can.

The i-button simplicity is a great characteristic—there are no useless cleaning modes. The Pro 1000's timer goes off every 30 seconds, alerting the user of the fourth dimension by briefly pausing. After 2 minutes, the brush pulses 3 times to signal that a total cycle is up, just will continue brushing after if the user wants to keep brushing; it must always be manually turned off. This is nice for touching up on areas of your mouth y'all may not accept given enough attention to. On many more expensive brushes, similar the Philips Sonicare DiamondClean, pushing the push more than than one time activates different cleaning modes, forcing you lot to cycle through every option to get back to the unproblematic default cleaning mode.

Using the right castor head for your teeth and gums matters, and we like that the Pro 1000 can take reward of Oral-B's castor head line. The range is the widest of all toothbrush lines, making information technology easier to customize the castor for one user'due south preferences and recommendations from their dentist. Bruce Schechner, a New York-based general and cosmetic dentist, said that "anybody reacts differently" to different brush shapes and sizes, and those factors don't matter "as long as you're using one you feel comfortable with." Wolff said that whether a brush includes elements like rubber flaps doesn't matter, but brushes should be "soft to medium, at hardest."

The Pro m is compatible with near Oral-B castor heads. Pictured hither is the CrossAction head. Photo: Michael Murtaugh

Oral-B'south brushes are besides, on average, less expensive than replacement heads for other brushes. Dentists recommend getting a new toothbrush every three months, and so these cost savings can add up over time. The Philips Sonicare brush heads tend to exist more than expensive, but brands like the Waterpik and Dazzlepro have heads that are roughly the same price.

Higher-priced Oral-B models don't have much more to offer than our pick. Investing $fifty into the Pro 1000 gets you access to the same set of castor heads as buying the $150 Oral-B Black 7000 model (with the exception of a couple of less widely available models).

To accuse the brush, drop it on the stand. A charging-indicator light on the handle will flash to let you know it's existence charged. Photo: Michael Murtaugh

The Pro 1000 is rated to last for seven days of brushing sessions on i charge; in our real-world testing, it lasted for 11½ days, which is average for a brush in this price range. Like the more expensive models we tested, the castor survived its driblet exam, fits in its charging cradle well, and can switch out castor heads easily. Oral-B changes the name of this castor about in one case a year, but functionally the entire series remains pretty much the same.

The Pro 1000 was too quite comfortable to utilise. Oral-B models use rotation and pulsation, so its brushes don't buzz every bit intensely when the castor'due south head touches your other teeth. All Sonicares vibrate at the aforementioned (high) frequency and produce a more jarring sensation when the back of the brush collides with other teeth.

The Oral-B Pro 1000 has a limited ii-twelvemonth warranty that requires the heir-apparent to retain the receipt and ship the product to an authorized service center if it needs fixing. This is typical for a product in this price range and category.

Flaws only not dealbreakers

Overall, we found the aquiver-format Oral-B toothbrushes to be louder and more sonically grating than the vibrating format of the Philips Sonicare brushes we tested. Without a betoken of comparison, it'south possible our slight annoyance would get away as we got used to it.

The other major flaw of the Pro 1000 is that the starter head is a departure from the usual rotating/pulsating motility of near powered Oral-B brushes. The caput it comes with has two moving parts: one that moves upwards and downwardly vertically and a longer set of bristles at the superlative that flop back and forth. Compared with other toothbrushes, the motion was a little violent.

Fortunately, if you do not similar the Pro head, you can apply any other Oral-B brush head on the handle. Toothbrushes are meant to exist replaced every iii months anyway, and so buying new castor heads is an inevitability; you just have to eat the cost of the ii Pro heads that come up with the brush.

As with about of the toothbrush models we tested, the bombardment life indicator on the Pro 1000 is vague: It lets you lot know when the battery is full (a continuous green light for v seconds after you remove it from the charging base of operations) and when it is "low" (a crimson flashing lite afterwards turning the brush off). Oral-B does non specify how long it takes to become the castor to a total accuse, but you can accuse it every day without significantly affecting the battery's chapters as long equally you lot fully deplete information technology once every half dozen months.

The most significant thing about whatsoever powered toothbrush that might change over the course of its lifetime is the battery life; over the years, rechargeable batteries tend to lose capacity. In the case of a toothbrush, this might hateful it becomes less powerful or non lasting as long while traveling.

Fifty-fifty with frequent cleaning, we've found that rubberized white surfaces of the Pro 1000 handle tin get discolored over time.

Runner-up: Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 4100

Photograph: Michael Murtaugh

Runner-up

Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 4100

A quieter brush

The Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 4100 is one of the least expensive brushes in Sonicare'southward line, only it however has a two-minute timer and rechargeable bombardment, and it makes less noise than the Oral-B Pro 1000. This choice has a smaller range of brush textures and shapes, but they are all soft and serviceable.

The Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 4100 is ane of the least expensive Sonicare brushes, at effectually $50. This castor is quieter than our recommended Oral-B model, with a more subtle movement (though the vibrations can feel slightly more uncomfortable when the back of the brush knocks against your other teeth). The ProtectiveClean 4100, which has a ii-minute timer with quadrant pacing, also has twice the battery life of the Oral-B, lasting two weeks on a single charge instead of one week (in our tests it lasted for sixteen days of use), so it might exist a amend choice for travelers who don't want to pack another charger.

A dainty perk of all Philips Sonicare brushes, including the ProtectiveClean 4100, is that the castor heads come with a tiny plastic hood you can snap off and on to guard against the coliform sprays flying effectually the bathroom if you lot store your toothbrush in open air. The cap is easy to lose, but it'due south a prissy touch.

The ProtectiveClean 4100 is compatible with most Philips Sonicare castor heads. Pictured here is the Optimal Plaque Control head. Photo: Michael Murtaugh

The replacement brush heads for the ProtectiveClean 4100 are slightly more expensive at $27 for three ($nine each); the Oral-B's replacement heads tin exist as cheap as $5 to $6 each, making the Oral-B's expenses a little lower in the long run. Per our testing, Philips Sonicare brush heads are interchangeable, and all the Sonicare brushes we tested were able to accommodate each other'south heads. Philips Sonicare does non make this explicit anywhere in its product materials. Near of Philips Sonicare'due south castor heads are oblong with soft bristles and lack options for additional structural elements, similar condom flaps or "polishing cups," so y'all get fewer options than you do with Oral-B.

The protective caps that come with all Philips Sonicare brush heads are easily dislodged (and lost). Photo: Michael Murtaugh

Like the Oral-B model, the ProtectiveClean 4100 comes with a limited ii-yr warranty (PDF) that requires you to retain the receipt and ship the castor out if information technology needs service.

The ProtectiveClean 4100 is about the aforementioned price as the Oral-B Pro 1000, only online prices tin fluctuate.

Like the Oral-B Pro 1000, the ProtectiveClean 4100 has earned the ADA Seal.

Care and maintenance

Considering brush heads must exist replaced roughly every 3 months, the total cost of owning an electric toothbrush adds up. Some retailers sell replacement brush heads in bulk, and some manufacturers regularly consequence coupons, which can both assistance keep costs down. (See our web log post on the price of replacement brush heads, including some generics we tried but ultimately didn't like.)

Nearly every electric toothbrush we've tested requires rinsing and/or wiping downward between each use. Otherwise, you may end up with dried toothbrush-spit balance gunking upwards any crevices—specially where the brush head meets the handle. In addition to a quick rinse and wipe between uses, you may detect it worthwhile to periodically remove the brush head to clean this junction. In our experience, a cotton fiber swab is well-suited for getting gunk out of any modest divots in the brush handle.

What well-nigh "smart" toothbrushes?

It's been a couple years since the first app-continued, or "smart," electrical toothbrushes became available, but they nonetheless don't offering enough features for the added cost for us to recommend them for almost people. (Most are at least double the price of a standard electric toothbrush.) Smart-toothbrush capabilities vary widely, but mainly these devices automate the procedure of tracking your brushing habits, typically past connecting to your phone or tablet via Bluetooth. Some of the "smart" models, like the Quip Smart and Oral-B iO, endeavor to rails where the castor is in your mouth, with varying results.

"I think that 1 of the things that people look for with Bluetooth connection—or anything that connects to their phone—is confirmation that what they're doing is enough, or good, or better than what they were doing before," said Dr. Maria Lopez-Howell, a dentist and ADA spokesperson. "And I think that, if this gives the patient information that they're brushing plenty fourth dimension, [and] if this is encouraging a patient to brush—this is something that the American Dental Association is wanting."

In that location are plenty of free apps—including Oral-B's for Android and iOS—that tin exist used with non-"smart" brushes, powered or manual, to help y'all time and track your toothbrushing, remind you to clean your natural language and floss, and so on. Dr. Lopez-Howell pointed to The Children's Oral Health campaign'southward 2min2x website, produced in collaboration with the Ad Council, which offers a serial of two-minute videos kids tin watch while brushing.

"Truthfully, at the end of the day, for pennies and minutes—you don't need all of these more costly brushes—you can choose oral health," Dr. Lopez-Howell said. No matter the toothbrush (manual or powered, "smart" or not), "brush twice a 24-hour interval for ii minutes with a fluoride toothpaste, floss once daily, and visit your dentist to make sure that yous're doing the correct affair."

Other good electric toothbrushes

If yous're looking for an electric toothbrush that costs less: The AquaSonic Vibe is the closest to a Philips Sonicare electric toothbrush dupe nosotros've found. Although it is much more affordable than our picks, nosotros're not prepared to recommend it as a budget pick without continuing to long-term examination it. It has so far survived our dunk and drop tests, plus more than iii months of twice-daily use.

The Vibe, which like our picks has earned the ADA Seal of Acceptance, has iii superfluous cleaning modes and comes in a starter kit with a travel case and eight brush heads. Ordinarily these features make for a more than-expensive brush, but not in this instance: At this writing, the Vibe starter kit comes with viii brush heads and costs $37. Assuming you change the brush head every 3 months, and the brush handle lasts at least ii years, the annual cost would be $18.fifty for the first two years. (That's more than 3.5 times less than our Oral-B and Philips Sonicare picks toll for the first year.) Yous need to register the castor to receive one year of warranty coverage.

Ane tester, a self-described ambitious brusher, found that she had to supervene upon the Vibe'southward original brush head in but two months. Even if you find yourself called-for through Vibe brush heads more than rapidly than you would Oral-B or Philips Sonicare heads, the potential savings add upwardly—again, bold the brush handle lasts long plenty to evidence its value. AquaSonic currently sells Vibe-compatible replacement heads only in a 2-pack that costs $x ($5 apiece, which is more expensive than Oral-B and Philips Sonicare heads bought in more-economical packs).

The Vibe'southward charging stand up is similar to those of the Oral-B Pro 1000 and Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 4100. In our experience, the Vibe bombardment lasts well over 3 weeks on a single charge, with twice-daily use.

The competition

Smart toothbrushes

Generally speaking, we do non recommend smart toothbrushes for most people. And generally speaking, they are pricey.

The Oral-B iO is a very expensive smart toothbrush: Information technology regularly costs $300 (with iv brush heads—roughly a year's supply—included). Like other electric toothbrushes in Oral-B's line, this model has earned the ADA Seal. Unlike other electrical toothbrushes in Oral-B'southward line, the iO is compatible only with iO-specific replacement brush heads, which cost $xiii apiece when purchased in the about economical pack (a set of iii). It has an onboard two-minute timer and seven total brushing modes (vi more than than needed). Information technology connects wirelessly to an app that tracks your brushing elapsing and brush head location inside your mouth, among other things. The idea behind this and several other smart toothbrushes is to provide you lot with an overview of which teeth you're cleaning well and which teeth you may want to pay more than attention to. Many other pricey smart toothbrushes and their apps do this, some amend than others (read on). Nosotros briefly tested the iO at the January 2020 Consumer Electronics Show. Information technology runs much more quietly than almost every other electric toothbrush nosotros've tested. Predictably, brushing with it feels loftier tech: The onboard digital brandish smiles at you. And the brush head location tracking was, in our limited experience with the device, accurate. Still, we would not recommend that almost people pay considerably more than the price of our picks for this (or for any other) smart toothbrush.

The Oral-B Pro 3000 3D White Smart Series is another smart brush that has earned the ADA Seal. Information technology is similar to our tiptop choice in course and function, except it has three cleaning modes (two more than necessary), and connects to an app via Bluetooth. Information technology'due south likewise twice the cost. Though this model does non offer brush caput position detection, it stores brushing fourth dimension and pressure data from the final 30 brushing sessions, which you can sync to the app later, should you prefer non to bring your telephone or tablet into the bathroom every time you clean your oral fissure. If yous find reviewing your bones brushing performance motivational, and would rather non need an app or pen and paper handy each time you brush, consider the Pro 3000 Smart Series.

The Oral-B Genius 8000 can track the brush'southward position in your mouth, thanks to on-board location sensors and access to your telephone's front end-facing camera. Smart capabilities aside, the brush itself, like our choice, is a reliable tool. Similar other models in the Oral-B line, it has more cleaning modes than necessary and is uniform with whatsoever of the visitor's replacement heads. And like the Pro 3000, the Genius has an on-board pressure sensor that flashes red when you brush as well hard (no app necessary). If y'all travel with an electric toothbrush, you'll appreciate the included case, which can charge the brush handle and a phone. All the same, unless you find that existence "watched" helps motivate you lot to thoroughly brush regions in your mouth you lot'd usually miss, you could spend half the cost of this brush for another habit-tracking smart model, such equally the Pro 3000, or less than a quarter of the toll for an equally great clean with our top choice.

The Oral-B Genius X, like the Genius 8000, has extraneous cleaning modes and can connect to your telephone. Rather than using your phone's forepart-facing camera, however, the Genius Ten uses on-board sensors and "artificial intelligence" to rail the brush head'due south location as you move information technology around your rima oris. Nosotros plant the tracking spotty; the app counted some unbrushed teeth as "make clean."

Philips Sonicare'due south 9900 Prestige, new in 2021, also connects to your telephone—to track your brushing habits—and has extraneous cleaning modes. We chose not to test this ultra-expensive ($400) brush.

The Philips Sonicare FlexCare Platinum Continued not simply has far more cleaning settings than y'all need (three total, each with multiple speeds), it can as well connect via Bluetooth to a mobile app that'south meant to rail whether you're adequately brushing every role of your mouth. In our experience, the location tracking wasn't accurate enough to give us much useful information. The app, which divides the oral cavity into six areas, could reliably tell if a tester was neglecting either the front end or back of her teeth, merely non if she was missing one specific tooth. The app also expects you lot to castor the parts of your mouth in a specific order, and if a tester moved the brush to an surface area of her mouth where the app didn't expect it to be, it didn't pick up on that.

The Colgate Smart Electronic Toothbrush E1 also uses on-board sensors and "artificial intelligence" to track the brush head's location every bit yous move it around your mouth. The E1 vibrates but does non oscillate, and does so more than quietly than about electric toothbrushes nosotros've tested. Although it does have an on-board two-minute timer with quadrant pacing, this device lacks a pressure sensor (a possible dealbreaker for some), and it is compatible with simply a single fashion of replacement brush heads, which can be purchased simply from the Colgate website. Factoring in aircraft costs, these replacement heads are among the most expensive we've considered, by far (a definite dealbreaker, in our opinion). The handle itself is amongst the lightest and most streamlined nosotros've tested, featuring a single on-off button (Colgate doesn't offer superfluous cleaning modes). As with other smart toothbrushes, we believe the E1 is overkill for about. However, we found its brush head position detection to be on par with similarly priced competitors.

Colgate's Hum is a lower-cost smart toothbrush with uniquely designed brush heads and the option of a rechargeable or replaceable battery-operated handle. Information technology is streamlined and beautiful, with a slimmer handle than both our picks and most other smart brushes (the Quip Smart excluded). Like our tiptop pick, the Hum has quadrant pacing and does not automatically shut off at the two-minute mark. Considering the dorsum of this sonic toothbrush's caput is a soft silicone, it doesn't produce the aforementioned rattling effect as the hard plastic backs of other brush heads when it comes in contact with your teeth. That alone may be worth the increased price of entry for some people (replacement brush heads, specific to this device, cost roughly $5 apiece in the near economical pack). In our experience, the Hum's vibrations aren't equally strong every bit the Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 4100's and not every bit weak as the Quip'southward. You can use this toothbrush without always connecting to the app, which, similar others, tracks brushing data. (The only way to opt out of your anonymized data being disclosed with affiliates and third parties is to non download or use the app at all.)

Online subscription toothbrushes

For years, nosotros recommended Goby as our choice for people who prefer an electric toothbrush with replacement castor heads available through a subscription. When it works, it's an elegant brush with a USB charging option that feels as powerful as our Oral-B option. However, we've heard an increasing number of complaints from readers and long-term testers regarding this brush's durability, with multiple people reporting that their brushes conked out inside a year of use. It also otherwise did not outshine our picks in terms of user experience. We too recently tested the revamped version of the Goby, and institute that it became especially hot during charging. Although Goby is quick to supervene upon malfunctioning brushes nether its lifetime warranty (one of our long-term testers made utilize of this warranty twice in a single yr, going through iii brushes in as many months), we think that, compared with our other picks, the brush'southward higher toll betoken is no longer justifiable. "The most common issue we hear from customers commonly has something to do with their battery after many years of use," Goby CEO Benjamin Goldberg wrote in an e-mail. "Relative to the hundreds of the thousands of brushes we take sold over the years, I would not say it'south a common issue though." If you lot have trouble with your Goby brush, email assist@goby.co: "99.9% of customers get a response within 24 hours during the week," Goldberg wrote, "and if a replacement is required, the replacement is delivered within 2-5 business days." Like our top choice and runner-upwardly, the Goby toothbrush has earned the ADA Seal.

The Quip is a no-frills toothbrush with a single castor-caput mode and a simple timer that indicates each xxx-second interval, shutting off at the two-minute marking. It uses replaceable batteries instead of a built-in rechargeable battery. Like Goby, Quip offers an optional subscription for replacement brush heads (though Quip'due south plan also includes a replacement battery). Although the stylish blueprint (of the more than expensive metal model) and the tranquility operation are both impressive, nosotros found the Quip toothbrush'south vibrations to be weak. (In fact, we like the Quip Kids model as an electrical toothbrush for children pick considering of this gentler brushing motion.) The Quip could be a dainty option for someone who travels a lot and prefers the freedom of no charger, but it doesn't take the brush caput options or wide availability of our main option. Similar our picks, the Quip toothbrush has earned the ADA Seal.

We besides tried the Quip Smart shortly after it launched in 2020. It'due south the aforementioned brush as the non-smart version, except it connects wirelessly with an app. As with other smart toothbrushes, nosotros constitute this capability and the accompanying app unnecessary. We also encountered issues pairing our brush to the app on several occasions.

The Flare-up is a sleek toothbrush with quadrant pacing that you may have seen advertised on Instagram. It has three brushing modes (ii more than necessary) and can accuse via USB. In our testing, the battery lasted more four weeks on a single charge with twice-daily brushing. Unfortunately, the "charcoal-infused" bristles didn't last as long—on each of the ii heads we tested, the bristles became bent out of shape in as few as 3 weeks. A company spokesperson said that our tester may have been applying too much pressure while using these brush heads. Burst offers an optional subscription program for replacement brush heads (which at this writing price the same equally subscription-only replacement heads for our sometime too-great pick, the Goby).

Similarly, Shyn offers an optional subscription program for replacement brush heads fabricated for its four-brushing-mode, quadrant-pacing toothbrush. Purchased individually, the least expensive replacement heads cost $5, which is generally more than what Oral-B heads cost but less than the cost of Philips Sonicare heads. Although you can adjust the intensity of the brush'due south vibrations in each of the modes, in practice nosotros found no appreciable differences between the intensity levels; they felt the same. When activated, the ultrasensitive pressure sensor alerts you with a beep that we establish overly loud compared with alerts from the competition (fortunately, yous can turn the pressure level-sensing beeps off). In our twice-daily brushing exam, the Shyn'south bombardment lasted 3½ weeks.

Bruush, too, has an optional subscription program for its replacement brush heads ($6 each, shipped in packs of three). The brush itself offers six cleaning modes—five more than than needed—and quadrant pacing, plus optional USB charging. Compared with other sonic brushes we've tested (including the Flare-up and Shyn), on the default setting the Bruush was a bear on quieter, and its vibrations felt more gentle. We institute that its battery lasted more than than 3½ weeks on a single charge. The topmost and bottommost bristles on the Bruush head are longer than those in the eye, creating a sort of flared shape; depending on your preferences, this head blueprint may feel like a feature or a bug.

Although you can technically use the sleek Oclean 1 without any of its smart functions (the associated Oclean Pro app for iOS and Android offers brushing analyses), this sonic toothbrush does non accept an onboard timer. As a consequence, if yous don't connect the castor to your mobile device, information technology'southward upwards to y'all to make up one's mind the pacing. In its promotional materials, Oclean promises that people who "utilise the app to maintain good brushing habits" are eligible to receive "free replacement brush heads in the post every three months for the life of the castor," which is covered by a two-year warranty. A company spokesperson confirmed that the earned heads are indeed free; no aircraft or treatment costs are associated with this offer. We can meet why this program might be tempting: For one year of buying, replacing the brush caput ($9 each) every three months, the Ane costs $102. At three years, the price is $174 (a touch on more than the three-year buying price of our runner-up pick). If the company'southward "free" head-replacement offering holds true, and the brush lasts long enough, the one- and three-year buying costs are both $75—a bargain. But to earn the brush heads, y'all need to check in to the app every twenty-four hour period and attain a "brushing score" of l or to a higher place each time you use it. Is the inconvenience of a daily check-in worth the potential cost savings? Probably not. On top of all that, the One can charge only via USB.

Standard rechargeable electric toothbrushes

The Fairywill 507 and the Fairywill 508 are around the same cost equally the AquaSonic Vibe, simply they don't feel as sturdy or look every bit overnice as the Vibe. Like the Vibe, the 507 and 508 are each covered by a one-year warranty, and their starter kits come with 8 brush heads. Like our picks and the Vibe, these Fairywill brushes have earned the ADA Seal.

Hamilton Beach's new Brightline electrical toothbrushes come in two versions: the perfectly functional 86700 base model, which has 3 brushing modes (two more than than needed), and the 86710, which has two additional superfluous modes (for a total of 4 more needed) as well equally a control panel. For people who similar to toggle between modes, having to printing the 86700'south power button for a few seconds is slightly more inconvenient than using the 8710's style-selection button. Both models think the concluding selected mode for future brushing sessions, and come equipped with two-infinitesimal quadrant timers. Brightline's replacement heads are not interchangeable between models, though, and they typically cost more per head than the replacements for our summit selection (they toll about the same as those for our runner-upward). Both brushes accept earned the ADA'south Seal of Acceptance.

Greater Goods'south Sonic Electric Toothbrush costs less than any castor nosotros've considered then far. However, the replacement heads come in only ane style. And though heads are virtually one-half the price of those that accompany our top pick, I institute myself needing to replace them in about half the fourth dimension (the beard got smashed down), virtually negating the long-term savings for this castor.

The Philips Sonicare 3 Series Gum Health feels similar to and works much the same way as the ProtectiveClean 4100, with a glossy plastic handle and minimal gripping ridges. Now that our runner-up comes with a quadrant timer, this toothbrush has no features that nosotros think are worth spending extra on. It's currently unavailable.

The Waterpik Sonic Toothbrush Sensonic Professional Plus (SR-3000) has a beefy base with grippy safety panels, a single button, and smaller range of heads than Oral-B or Philips. This brush's higher price gets you one extra cleaning mode, two extra bombardment level indicator lights, and a travel case. Information technology claims to requite better results by moving the brush caput faster than Philips Sonicare models exercise, simply according to all the research nosotros could discover, faster doesn't mean better. This brush is currently unavailable.

The battery in the Oral-B Salubrious Clean + Pro White Precision 4000 lasts about three days longer than that of the Pro 1000, and the base is a bit chunkier than our pick's. The brush has four cleaning modes (programmed to a split button) and includes a pressure level sensor, though to activate information technology you lot have to actually cram the brush into your teeth, making information technology ineffective. The additional cleaning modes are extraneous, so there'southward no reason to pay for them.

The Dazzlepro Elements Sonic'southward handle is a little big and unwieldy, a satiny plastic tapered toward the centre of the handle, and the charging base of operations is hefty, but this brush does a reasonable approximation of the Philips Sonicare brushes' motility. The Dazzlepro brush has a separate "sensitive" cleaning fashion. However, the company has a lower contour, and the warranty lasts only one year (compared with Philips Sonicare and Oral-B's two years), and so if you lot demand support you may be left wanting.

The Oral-B SmartSeries Black 7000 comes with a "digital guide," another (unnecessary) brainchild of a timer, and half-dozen brushing modes programmed to a split up power push button. The base is very heavy, with big rubber panels in blackness and silver plastic, and weighted toward the bottom, with the same light-up pressure sensor as the 4000 model. The 7000 comes with a travel case and a charging stand that can hold four extra brush heads encased in a little plastic dome.

The Philips Sonicare DiamondClean is pretty sleek with a matte plastic finish, and it has some real luxury features, like an inductive charging drinking glass and travel case, just its price is a lot to spend for those items. The DiamondClean has five cleaning modes (four as well many) that you must manually bike through if yous need to plough the castor off before reaching two minutes. Information technology likewise has some of the most expensive castor heads, at effectually $11 apiece.

If you typically use an electric toothbrush and a water flosser, replacing ii separate tools with a combination electric toothbrush–water flosser similar the Waterpik Sonic Fusion SF-01 might seem appealing. But in practice, nosotros preferred using our electrical toothbrush pick and our water flosser option separately. The Sonic Fusion SF-01's water-flosser nozzle is built into the toothbrush head. In castor-simply mode, the Sonic Fusion SF-01, which is warrantied for 3 years, has quadrant pacing. Replacement heads toll $12.l each, making them some of the virtually expensive we've considered. Both of Waterpik's Sonic Fusion models have earned the ADA Seal.

The Conair Opti-Clean is cheap for a rechargeable brush, merely it did not survive a dunk in the water.

Nosotros tested the Philips One, Sonicare's battery-powered brush with a subscription (required) for replacement brush heads, after its 2020 launch. It comes in four colors and, similar near in this category, has a unmarried brush-head fashion and an onboard ii-infinitesimal quadrant timer. As with the other battery-operated brushes we tried, we think nearly people will exist happier with i of our rechargeable picks.

Nosotros were surprised by how much we liked brushing with the Triple Bristle Get, some other $25-plus dispensable-bombardment-powered brush that has an onboard two-minute timer. But its unconventional brush heads, however constructive they may exist, cost $10 each when purchased in the most economical pack—about double the toll of replacement heads for our acme pick. (The brush is besides available in a rechargeable version.)

We also eliminated a few other models without testing:

The Foreo Issa 2 is a silicone castor with a sleek and unusual look, only customer reviews advise that the all-silicone brush tips lack the ability to clean as thoroughly as plastic bristles, and that this brush has a trend to stop working not long afterwards purchase.

Mouthguard-style toothbrushes

Mouthguard-style automatic toothbrushes are a burgeoning kind of toothbrush. Rather than a standard brush head on a handle, these apparatuses expect similar mouthguards lined with beard. In promotional materials, the companies claim their devices tin simultaneously clean all of a person's teeth in mere seconds. Questions of efficacy aside, a single user could look to pay hundreds of dollars for the starter kit for 1 of these devices. And all of the replacement mouthguards cost more than $10 apiece, making these types of toothbrushes far more expensive than whatsoever of our other picks.

Later seeing it splashed effectually on social media—and fifty-fifty on Time'due south 2020 best invention list—we also tested the Willo. Marketed at the time as a $250 family-friendly toothbrush for up to 5 people, it has since pivoted to be a $150 kid-axial toothbrush (it still comes with multiple mouthguards for family unit usage, nonetheless). Like the AutoBrush Kids, the Willo was disappointing. It is an expensive, inconvenient, and ineffective toothbrush that was uncomfortable to apply and did non thoroughly clean teeth. The silicone mouthguard had a strange palatableness, even after multiple washings, and did non adequately remove plaque or nutrient specks from teeth. It'south also difficult to clean, heavy, and requires a lot of bathroom counter space.

We don't recommend mouthguard-style brushes for kids or adults. They are simply less constructive and much more than plush than our picks.

This article was edited by Tracy Vence and Kalee Thompson.

Footnotes

Sources

1. K. Kühner and P. Raetzke, Relative effectiveness of various alternate frequencies of a power toothbrush., Journal of Clinical Periodontology , February i, 1993

2. Thou. Yaacob, et. al., Powered/electrical toothbrushes compared to manual toothbrushes for maintaining oral health, Cochrane , June 17, 2014

3. Larn more about toothbrushes, ADA

4. Acceptance Program Guidelines, ADA

5. ADA Seal Production Category, ADA

6. CM Stanford, et. al., Efficacy of the Sonicare toothbrush fluid dynamic action on removal of human supragingival plaque, Periodical of Clinical Dentistry , January eight, 1997

7. CK Promise, et. al., Furnishings of dynamic fluid activity from an electric toothbrush on invitro oral biofilms, Periodical of Clinical Periodontalogy , July 1, 2003

8. Maria Lopez-Howell, ADA spokesperson , telephone interview , September 21, 2017

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Source: https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-electric-toothbrush/

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