Used properly, even basic electric toothbrushes can deliver an effective clean. But it’s important to change your brush head every three months, to prevent bacteria from building up in the bristles, affecting your oral health and general well-being. Where this toothbrush scores well for sensitive teeth and gums is the light-up pressure sensor—green for perfect pressure, “white” (though, strangely, actually blue) for too soft, and red for too hard. It’s real-time gratification that you’re doing it right, or wrong, so there’s no need to second guess it. Although the auto pause mentioned in the instructions is actually just an extra buzz when 2 minutes are up, the vibrating timer is a game changer for people prone to losing track of time.
Every part of our mouth felt clean after brushing, and each tooth felt equally clean without putting in much effort. We found that the brush head location tracking wasn’t accurate enough to give us much useful information. The app, which divides the mouth into six areas, could reliably tell if a tester was neglecting either the front or back of her teeth, but not if she was missing one oral b genius toothbrush specific tooth. The app also expects you to brush the parts of your mouth in a specific order, and if a tester moved the brush to an area of her mouth where the app didn’t expect it to be, it didn’t pick up on that. For people with physical or neurological issues that can complicate oral hygiene, the habit-tracking and coaching support that smart toothbrushes provide can be priceless.
Electric toothbrushes are more expensive than manual ones, and not just at the outset. Powered brushes typically cost more than 10 times as much as manual toothbrushes, and you have to replace the brush heads at the same frequency (every three months), each for about the same cost as a manual brush. What you get for the higher cost is less friction in achieving good brushing habits. This unique electric toothbrush is from FOREO, a brand that usually makes high-tech face brushes. It has a similar ‘beauty tech’ vibe, with a smooth silicone handle and curvy design (two times stronger silicone than the previous version). It’s very simple to set up and use, and has an unbelievably long battery life of 365 days per charge (no, I don’t quite know how that works, either – but it’s true. I’ve never had to charge it).
The Oral-B Pro 100 tops our list because of its competitive price and special features. The American Dental Association recommends brushing for at least two minutes at a time, but oral b toothbrush heads many people unknowingly fall short. This brush vibrates every 30 seconds, reminding you to switch from one quadrant to the next so all of your teeth get the attention they need.
Best of all, you’re not getting overcharged for features like digital monitors, travel cases, or inductive chargers—none of which will actually get your teeth any cleaner than the Pro 1000 can. If you’ve seen a dentist recently, there’s a good chance they advised you to brush lightly, floss more frequently, and consider investing in one of the best electric toothbrushes you can find. Sure, manual toothbrushes are cheap and convenient, but they’re not always the gentlest on sensitive teeth, nor do the bristles on their brush heads do the best job combatting plaque and bacteria. The best electric toothbrushes (paired with a good toothpaste) are much more effective and have many useful features—and there are many models from which to choose. Once you’ve upgraded to one of the most important oral care products in your bathroom cabinet, we guarantee there’s no going back.
Our panel rated its two-week battery life and USB travel case that doubles up as a charger. It’s just a shame that there isn’t a pressure sensor to keep us from brushing too rigorously. Its five cleaning modes cover all the most common brushing needs, leaving almost all testers with considerably cleaner teeth, and it comes in a choice of pink, white, black or rose gold. It also offers real-time brushing feedback and advice via a free Bluetooth phone app. If you don’t always use the app, it stores the data and syncs it when you next open it, meaning you don’t miss out on this innovative feature.
Your teeth deserve to feel squeaky clean, so make sure to take advantage of this Prime Day deal through July 12. Alternatively, you can opt for the second type, a “sonic” or “ultrasonic” brush. These have heads that vibrate very quickly, at frequencies that buff the tooth surface, break up plaque and force toothpaste through the gaps between your teeth and around the gum line.
More modern lithium-ion batteries will give you two to four weeks of brushing – or more – without a recharge, and will take anywhere between three and 12 hours to reach full capacity. I tested eight brushes over several weeks to asses how easy they were to work into a daily brushing … We especially like that this brush will help you learn how to brush better.
Well, rest assured that we’ve done our homework to help you pick the right toothbrush. All the models reviewed here will get your teeth squeaky clean, even if they vary widely in terms of brushing technology, battery life, accessories, extra functions and price. Do you want a toothbrush that gives detailed real-time feedback via your smartphone?