Oral-B SmartSeries 5000 Rechargeable Power Toothbrush Product Review

There's a new generation in Oral-B®'s Professional Care® electric toothbrush line-up. The Oral-B Professional Care® SmartSeries 5000 rechargeable power toothbrush is a good choice for a new or replacement electric toothbrush. The average retail price is on the high-end for rechargeable toothbrushes, at $159.95. However, checking prices on November 4, 2009, a sale price for this model was at Amazon.com for only $119.95 with free shipping.

Comparison to Previous Oral-B Professional Care® SmartSeries Toothbrush

The Oral-B 5000 is the newer, updated version of the Oral-B® Triumph® 9900.For further information about the Oral-B® Triumph® Professional Care® 9900 see Lynn Pritchett's article, "Oral-B Triumph Rechargeable Toothbrush Product Review," also featured here at Associated Content.

If the consumer saves the receipt, box, instructions, and all accessories, Oral-B guarantees 100% money back return policy within 60 days of purchase. So if the consumer isn't satisfied with either of these Oral-B's Professional Care® SmartSeries® Rechargeable Toothbrushes, the consumer may return them for a refund by following Oral-B's rules.

Special and Technical Features: Rating 5 of 5

Five different Oral-B toothbrush head designs can be used with the Professional Care® Smart Series 5000 rechargeable toothbrush. Oral-B® specially designed the brush heads in the round-cup-like form.

Oral-B's toothbrush bristles are bright blue when brand-new. As the toothbrush is used day after day, the bristles fade about halfway down the shafts to white. This is the tell-tale sign to the Oral-B Professional Care® SmartSeries 5000 rechargeable power toothbrush user that the toothbrush head needs replacing. The American Dental Association (ADA) recommends toothbrush heads to be changed about every three months.

The ergonomic, waterproof toothbrush handle is especially important for users having special motor skill disabilities, or children over the age of 3 learning to use a power toothbrush for the first time.

"Traveler's delight" is the catch phrase for the Professional Care® Smart Series 5000 rechargeable toothbrush. It comes with a strong, snap-shut, ergonomic travel toothbrush case. More importantly, the toothbrush holds the electric charge for up to two weeks, so short trips have no need to take the wall charger along.

Oral-B Wireless SmartGuide™: with pressure indicator, showing the user when he is pushing on the teeth too hard and possibly causing gum irritation. Plus it has a timer showing user which section of the teeth the consumer is brushing and when to move to the next section, so that each section of the mouth gets equal brushing time and attention.

Display screen: The large display screen on the toothbrush handle clearly shows how much charge remains on the battery.

Brushing Mode Selection: A triangular shaped button on toothbrush handle, just below the round on-off button, selects any 1 of the 5 different brushing modes the user prefers to use at that brushing session, whether it is massage, daily clean, whitening, sensitive or deep clean.

Cleaning Ability: Rating 5 of 5

With 5 different types of brushing choices, the Oral-B's Professional Care® SmartSeries 5000 rechargeable power toothbrush leaves few excuses when dental check-up time comes around. Whether using the daily cleaning, whitening, deep cleaning, sensitive, or massaging mode, the toothbrush does the job for the consumer. All he needs to do is guide the toothbrush along the section of the teeth and move it from section to section when the SmartGuide™ indicates it is time to move on. The only way this toothbrush cannot have a good cleaning ability is by simply being left still and not used twice daily as the American Dental Association (ADA) recommends.

Plaque removal is the task of the deep clean mode, which extends the brushing time from 2 minutes to 3 minutes, and is enhanced by using the floss-action™ brush head provided in the box. Gum health is addressed by choosing to use the massage mode of brushing. Daily cleaning of sensitive teeth is generally addressed by using the sensitive mode of brushing.

Overall Rating: 4 of 5

For this reviewer's extra-sensitive gums and teeth, like with the Oral-B® Professional Care® 9900, I found I need to purchase the optional Extra-Soft Oral-B® brush head. The medium bristle flossing head and pro-white® head irritated my gums and teeth. The Oral-B® Professional Care® 5000 does come with a $3.00 coupon and a flyer with photos of the 5 Oral-B replacement brush heads offered by them. That is a small step forward for the Oral-B® company in customer service.

However, Oral-B® would be truly addressing the one-size-does-not-fit-all issue if, instead of assuming all consumers use medium bristle toothbrushes, they might provide a medium and a soft in each package. Providing consumers with two brush heads they might not be able to use at all is wasteful. At least there would be one brush head in the package which all consumers could use.

Further consumer internet research, reveals a $15.00 manufacturer rebate is available with an Oral-B® Professional Care® 5000 purchase made between 10/01/2009 and 12/31/2009, postmark date on rebate form by 01/15/2010. A $10.00 dentist visit refund rebate is available with purchase of any Oral-B Professional Care, SonicCare, or Pulsonic model toothbrush from September 2009 through June 30, 2010, postmark date on rebate form by 07/15/2010.

However, it is not markedly better than the Oral-B® Professional Care® 9900 SmartGuide electric toothbrush. If you already own the older model, Oral ® Triumph® Professional Care® 9900 with Wireless SmartGuide,™ stick with it until it wears out, as the only big changes made on the new Oral-B 5000 are that SmartGuide™ has 1 less feature than the 9900, and it has 1 more cleaning mode than the 9900.

Package Details and Warranty

The Oral-B Professional Care® SmartSeries 5000 rechargeable power toothbrush package comes with 8 items:
the rechargeable toothbrush, charging station, rechargeable battery, travel case, SmartPlug® Charger,SmartGuide Wireless Display, Flossing Brush Head with wear-indicator bristles, and Pro-White® Brush Head with wear-indicator bristles. Average retail price $159.95; Limited 2 Year Warranty and 60 day 100% money-back guarantee, per manufacturer's rules stated in the box.

Disclaimer

Product review is based on the sole experience of author and is not necessarily representative of other consumers or opinions in use of this product. This article is for informational purposes only and does not replace advice from a licensed dental health professional. Discuss use of this and any other dental product with a licensed dental health professional.