Sonicare FlexCare 900 Series Electric Toothbrush Review

Overall 4.66 of 5 view all 102 reviews

Possible
Ardmore, PA

the Cadillac of toothbrushes

into good oral hygiene, a tea and cola drinker, someone who likes to have a nice smile, willing to pay for quality, budget conscious, someone with few dental problems

Pros

fun, healthy, clean

Cons

not environmentally friendly, expensive

NOV

2007

Sonicare FlexCare 900 Series Electric Toothbrush —

Let's compare the Sonicare toothbrush to my regular old Oral-B, shall we? (Full disclosure: As a member of BzzAgent.com, I was able to try the Sonicare for free. My old toothbrush was also free, from my dentist.)

a. Price: The Sonicare runs you about $170, retail. This buys you the toothbrush, one head, three color bands, a UV chamber with bulb, and a charging base. The Sonicare will also (very slightly) pad your electrical bill. A regular toothbrush will set you back maybe $5. Winner: the regular toothbrush.

b. "Green"ness: A Sonicare, unless you unplug it, will constantly drain electrical power. Also, the complex base is probably impossible to recycle in America. No idea if Phillips will recycle it for you. A free dentist's toothbrush is also nonrecyclable, but it'll take up far less space in a landfill than a Sonicare. Also, you could use it as a tiny scrub-brush after it becomes too gross for your mouth but not too gross to clean your bathtub grout. Score! Winner: the free dentist's brush.

c. Fun: The Sonicare has 5 settings, including a pleasantly bumpy "massage: setting. It buzzes against your gumline in a fuzzy, happy way, and beeps you a little message when it's time to switch sides. Ooh! The regular toothbrush is a lump of plastic. Boring. Winner: the Sonicare

d. Cleanliness: A regular toothbrush sits around gathering a scum of mouth-goo and toothpaste, no matter how hard you rinse it. Granted, I've been using one of these for 21 years and it's never killed me. The Sonicare comes with a little UV booth to sanitize your toothbrush head. Have you read any of those articles that suggest that underexposing children to "germs" leads to more allergies later in life? Anyway, if you have an autoimmune disorder, or a general fear of toothbrush squickiness, the Winner is: Sonicare.

e. Oral Health: The Sonicare will not turn off until you've brushed for the 3 minutes that dentists recommend. It will even beep at quarter-intervals to make sure you cover your entire mouth equally. The vibrations probably get more bacteria off your teeth, and it's a lot gentler on your gums than mashing a stiff-bristled regular brush. With a regular brush, it's entirely up to you. Unless you resent being told how to brush your own teeth by a buzzy bit of metal and plastic, the Winner is: Sonicare.

In conclusion, the Sonicare is the Cadillac of toothbrushes. Unless you have extremely finicky teeth and gums, it's probably not going to help your mouth all that much more than a regular toothbrush, as long as you're brushing after meals and replacing your regular toothbrush once it gets old. However, it will indeed feel really, REALLY good in your mouth, and look really, really cool on your bathroom counter.

Last edited on Nov 21, 2007