New sonic toothbrush is a clear winner

Q. I’ve enjoyed the TLOVII sonic toothbrush you recommended years ago, but replacement brush heads are getting hard to find. I think I’m ready to try something new. Any recommendations?

A. I’ll start with a sheepish admission. I recently had a cleaning and checkup, but it had been more than two years since I had been to the dentist. I have always had my teeth cleaned every six months, but my longtime dentist retired, and I dragged my feet on finding a new one. Then something urgent came up that required surgery, so I couldn’t procrastinate any longer.

When I told my new dentist that it had been two years since my last appointment, he asked if I used a sonic toothbrush. I confirmed that I did, and he replied that I was doing a good job with self-care and that “sonic toothbrushes are the biggest difference-maker I have seen in over 30 years of practicing dentistry.” I was not surprised because when I use one, it feels like I just went to the hygienist, and my teeth and gums feel smooth and clean.

I’ve tried a lot of sonic toothbrushes, including a model that pairs with a phone app to help you improve your brushing, but that was a level of complexity and involvement I did not want or need. Besides that, it has been hard for me to justify buying anything over $30 because all the sonic toothbrushes seem to do a good job cleaning teeth.

Well, I finally met my match with a premium toothbrush that is a grand slam, and it’s currently available for only $30 more than a basic $30 model.

Introduced at the CES 2024 trade show to an enthusiastic response, the Oclean X Pro Elite is that toothbrush. The body is smooth but grippable, with a tactile surface feel that reminds me of ceramic. You can use it with an app, but it is not necessary because the toothbrush has a small but easy-to-read full-color touchscreen display that reports your brushing performance and displays areas you missed.

The brushheads have special bristles developed by DuPont, and one use made it my absolute favorite sonic toothbrush of all time. It is very quiet, the sonic action is exceptional and you can feel those premium bristles working. I was proud that the first brushing score it displayed was 97%. Now I have to work on getting that extra 3% in my future brushings.

The “Bundle & Save” Oclean X Pro Elite Premium Set includes six of those fabulous brush heads, a charging stand, wall mount and travel case. I think it is easily worth the $109.99 listed price, but you can get one for under $60 by using the code save50 at the manufacturer’s website, oclean.com, which reduces the price by $50 to $59.99, with free shipping. My basic toothbrushes served me well for years, but after using this one, there’s no going back.

Send questions to Don Lindich at donlindich@gmail.com. Get recommendations and read past columns at soundadvicenews.com.