With a pressure sensor, three different modes and a long battery life, our writer puts this affordable toothbrush to the test. Copy link. twitter. facebook. whatsapp. Price: RRP £100 but currently £45 at Oral B and Boots and £52.85 at Amazon. Telegraph rating: 8 of 10. We like:. We don’t like:. There’s no denying that the best electric toothbrushes vary wildly in price and quality, so finding the right one can feel overwhelming. This iO2 sits towards the lower end of Oral-B’s price range. For comparison, their high-tech iO10 is an eye-watering £830 at full price, whereas the popular Pro 3 3000 costs around £130. Oral-B toothbrushes, indeed all electric toothbrushes, are almost always sold with discounts of 50 per cent or more.
The American brand has worked with dentists to ensure this beginner-friendly brush has features which are useful to a first time electric toothbrush owner, including a timer that lets you know when to change brushing locations every 30 seconds, a built-in pressure control function suitable for sensitive gums, and three cleaning modes; sensitive-plus, sensitive and daily clean. Our thorough, real-world tests will always help you find the best product at the best price. No manufacturer ever sees copy before publication and we do not accept payment in exchange for favourable reviews. Visit our Who We Are page to learn more.
I used the toothbrush to clean my teeth for a week, morning and evening, for a full two minutes each time. I considered how easy it was to set up and charge for first use, what using it was like, how I found the various cleaning modes and extra features. I took into account the design and whether it was a stylish addition to my bathroom, how comfortable using it was, whether it was noisy and rattly or quiet and smooth, and how it compared in general to the older Oral B Pro 3 3000 brush. Finally, I analysed how clean my teeth felt after using it.
On first use it took me a while (and eventually referring back to the in-box instructions) to work out which cleaning mode was which. Essentially, there is no indicator on the brush handle showing whether you are in Sensitive Plus, Sensitive or Daily Clean mode, so to cycle through the modes you have to keep pressing the on/off button. Then to switch the brush off, you have told hold the button down for one second. Once I knew the order of the cleaning modes and how to access them, it worked well.
This model also has the option to ‘save’ your favourite cleaning mode, which I loved in theory, because it means you don’t need to cycle through the modes every time you use it to find your favourite. But despite reading the instructions and pressing the main button for three seconds, as they advised to set my favourite, I still couldn’t get the save function to work. This toothbrush has a fairly unique design in that, whilst it’s not a true sonic toothbrush because it oscillates, it also micro-vibrates, meaning the brush head gently helps to loosen plaque as it rotates. After trying all three cleaning modes, the Daily Clean mode felt the most powerful and left my teeth with the truest deep-clean feeling. The other two modes, Sensitive Plus or Sensitive gave a less powerful clean; but it was good to know the options were there, especially when I need a more delicate clean or if my teeth or gums start to feel more sensitive.
The iO2 comes in a contemporary colour-way of either Calm Pink, Forest Green or Night Black, so design-wise, it’s a bit more striking than most toothbrushes. It’s simple to use and the brush heads are easy to click in. The main power button shows green when it’s on, but it during brushing, if you apply to much pressure to your teeth or gums, it flashes red and gently pulses to let you know to ease off. It also buzzes every thirty seconds to remind you to move on to brushing a different area. When the Daily cleaning mode is working at full speed it’s a little noisy, but both sensitive brushing modes are much quieter.
The main drawback is that it only fits the specific Oral-B iO replacement brush heads, which are quite pricey at £54 for four – worth bearing in mind when you’ll likely be replacing brush heads around four times year. The rubberised brush handle feels nice and solid and it’s non-slip to grip. This also makes it easy to wipe clean. The brush doesn’t look as attractive to the eye, as some other electric toothbrushes and there aren’t any additional features to the design, but it does come with a handy travel case. I found it a really comfortable clean, the brush could easily reach around the back of my teeth and the brush head was a comfortable size. My gums didn’t bleed and I found the pressure sensor really useful to help alert me to when too much pressure was being applied.
Charging the toothbrush up for first use was a doddle – it was just a case of plugging it in and placing it on the charging stand. But I was surprised to learn after reading the instructions that the toothbrush actually takes 24 hours to do a full charge. Most toothbrushes take around 12 hours, meaning you can leave it charging in the morning and it will be fully charged again by the time you need it in the evening. However, the long charging time is almost worth it for the battery life – which, once fully charged, is over month – and it’s worth noting most brushes at this price-point last around half that.
