Table of Contents
You will no doubt already have friends and family who use an electric toothbrush. This may be the award-winning Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush or one of the many other excellent products on the market. Those who make the switch to an electric toothbrush often wonder why they did not think of this earlier.
As we will cover in this review, the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush is a quality electric toothbrush, durable and offers excellent value for money. When we dig below the surface, you will begin to realise the technology associated with the toothbrush and the very useful mobile phone app. When you learn that this electric toothbrush has a degree of artificial intelligence, you might wonder what this could be used for?
Let us answer your questions……………
What to expect when opening the box
If this is your first time using an electric toothbrush, you will be like a young child at Christmas waiting for your presents to arrive. So, once you get that knock on the door, sign for the package and rip open the wrapping, what should you expect?
The Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush contains the following:-
- 1 x Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush
- 1 x Charging station
- 3 x Brush heads
- 1 x Travel case
- 1 x Smart phone stand
- 1 x Brush head storage compartment
- Instructions
As we alluded to earlier, what you get in the box is not everything. There is also the mobile phone app!
Many of you are probably thinking, I don’t really need a mobile phone up with my toothbrush, but once you understand what it does, you may well change your mind.
How good is this toothbrush at removing plaque?
The first thing to remember is the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush incorporates the Oral-B 3D movement cleaning system. This unique technology means that the brush heads will oscillate, rotate and pulsate thereby removing as much plaque as possible from your teeth. It is safe to say that the clean feeling associated with an electric toothbrush is very different to that associated with a manual toothbrush. You will soon find out!
However, the proof is in the pudding, how much plaque does the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush actually remove?
You will probably get bored of us rolling out the same statistics. An electric toothbrush, such as the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush, will remove up to double the amount of plaque compared to a manual toothbrush. This in itself seems very impressive but could the figure be even better?
We know that many people will continue to use manual toothbrush for months if not years, despite the fact it is worn down. As the comparison figures are likely based upon a new manual toothbrush, the real figures could be significantly better. It is also worth noting that the pressure required to brush your teeth with an electric toothbrush is but a fraction of that used with a manual toothbrush. We will cover this in the next section.
Pressure sensor is vital
When you take your Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush out-of-the-box you will notice a red plastic panel towards the bottom of the toothbrush neck. This is the pressure sensor which is something you will learn to love!
As we touched on above, the way in which an electric toothbrush works is very different to that of a manual toothbrush. As a consequence, nowhere near the same pressure is required to get even better results. If the toothbrush detects that you are using excessive pressure the red light will come on, prompting you to reduce the pressure.
It is also worth noting that the motor which powers the toothbrush heads will automatically reduce in speed, thereby reducing the power. This will slow down the toothbrush heads, protecting your teeth and ensuring that you do no damage. Once you reduce the pressure to a suitable level, the motor will fire back up to normal levels.
You will very quickly become accustomed to the new degree of pressure required to use an electric toothbrush, but in the early days this pressure sensor is a godsend. It is also important when you consider there is a gum cleaning mode which we will come to later. It is as important to brush your gums as it is to brush your teeth, removing plaque and excess food from under your gum line.
If you do not brush your gums, the debris under your gum line will eventually trigger gum disease which involves an inflammation of the gums that can be very painful. You may also be doing damage to your tooth foundations.
Position detection with the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush
As we touched on above, the use of a mobile phone app with your Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush is a godsend. However, Oral-B also appreciates that some people may prefer not to use their mobile phones.
So, if you prefer not to use your mobile phone, you will be dependent on the two-minute alarm which has 30 second durations. Why?
Dental experts believe that the optimum time brushing your teeth is two minutes. They also recommend splitting your brushing habits into the four quadrants of your mouth. As a consequence, when you start to brush your teeth this will trigger a timer within the body of the electric toothbrush. You will hear an alarm every 30 seconds prompting you to move to the next quadrant. The final alarm will sound at two minutes to indicate the optimum brushing time.
For those who are interested in using the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush mobile phone app, you not only get a visible timer but also real-time brushing feedback. You can see where you have brushed, where you have perhaps been a little lackadaisical and the app will record your brushing technique.
Using a degree of artificial intelligence, the mobile phone will actually assist you and recommend tweaks in your brushing technique. The idea is simple, to get the most out of your Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush. Hark back to the days of the manual toothbrush. It was difficult if not impossible to reach those far-flung areas of your mouth. We all have a small number of teeth which have hardly been touched and will likely be caked in plaque.
Well, the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush has an extremely useful shape which allows you to get into the far excesses of your mouth. As you don’t need to place enormous pressure on the toothbrush, even just skimming the top of your teeth will allow the pulsating, rotating and oscillating brush heads to remove a huge amount of plaque.
In the early days, like many, you might assume that the position detection system on the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush is nothing but a gimmick. However, as soon as you begin to use it you will have a very different view!
The Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush has five brushing modes
This is an area which attracts very different opinions from those who use electric toothbrushes on a regular basis. Do you really need more than one basic brushing mode? How can you extend this to 5 let alone eight with some electric toothbrushes?
Well, the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush has five different brushing modes which are:-
- Daily clean
- Pro clean
- Sensitive
- Whitening
- Gum care
The majority of people will use the daily clean mode more than any other. However, pro clean, sensitive clean, whitening and gum care should also be considered. The whitening mode is especially popular, able to remove stains from day one and improve the colour of your teeth. As we touched on above, gum care is very rarely discussed although it is extremely important.
The soft nature of the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush bristles, and the unique brush head technology, is perfect for gum care. If you do nothing else today, maybe Google about gum care and see how important it is.
Recharging your Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush
The Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush is priced towards the mid-end of the market but in many ways offers a premium battery life. The lithium ion battery technology has certainly extended the life of your electric toothbrush. The initial charge will take 15 hours but will result in around 66 minutes of charge time. If you abide by the two-minute brushing recommendation, this will give you around 16 days of charge at a time. More than enough!
The vast majority of users will recharge their Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush overnight. You simply slot the electric toothbrush into the charger and leave it. With a 16 day battery life, this product is perfect for holidays and business away days. Indeed, even if you need to take the charger, it will fit perfectly into the travel case. It would appear Oral-B have thought of everything?
Replacement brush heads
The Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush is compatible with a range of Oral-B toothbrushes, which will be detailed in your instruction manual. But how do you know when to replace the head? How do you know when it is worn down?
Many electric toothbrushes have technological bells and whistles to alert you when the toothbrush head needs to be replaced. This particular Oral-B electric toothbrush has something more basic but just as effective.
Each new brush head will have a number of vibrant blue bristles which you will notice immediately. As the bristles become worn, the vibrant blue colour will eventually start to fade thereby indicating the brush head needs to be changed. Simple? Yes, but extremely effective.
As Oral-B is one of the leading electric toothbrush manufacturers in the UK, there are numerous online and off-line businesses supplying replacement brush heads. Many of these will be available within 24/48 hours or you can nip down to your local high street with most chemists stocking them.
From time to time you will see “copycat” brush heads, but Oral-B, as you might expect, recommend using their branded products for the best results.
Improving your dental health and dental hygiene
Whether or not you decide to use the mobile phone app associated with the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush there is no doubt this is a brilliant product. The pulsating, rotating and oscillating toothbrush heads will caress each individual tooth and remove huge amounts of plaque and excess food.
You can watch your brushing technique real-time on your mobile phone or simply use the pressure alarm system and timer as a reminder. One thing you will notice when you switch from a manual toothbrush to an electric toothbrush is the huge reduction in pressure needed. You will very quickly get used to it, but when you initially use your electric toothbrush, you might be surprised!
When you consider that a manual toothbrush works on between 600 and 800 rpm, against anywhere from 8000 up to 20,000+ rotations per minute with an electric toothbrush, the benefits are there for all to see. The extended battery life of the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush has also been welcomed by customers, many of whom have left very positive feedback.
Extremely positive feedback for the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush
It is very encouraging when you see a significant amount of feedback from those who have acquired any product online. We know that Oral-B is one of, if not the, leading light in the world of electric toothbrushes. So, while it is no surprise to learn that the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush currently has approaching 2700 customer ratings, the average 4.7 out of five ranking is impressive.
As we say to those who read our reviews, we can wax lyrical about the pros and cons of the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush but ultimately customer feedback dictates how successful it will be. On that basis, it is safe to say that the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush offers a unique brushing technology, is very durable and offers excellent value for money.
If you are looking for a mid-range/mid-price electric toothbrush, you will do well to find anything remotely matching the Oral-B Smart 5 5000 Electric Toothbrush.
