Oral-B Triumph 9900 Toothbrush with Smart Guide
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Customer Reviews of Oral-B Triumph 9900 Toothbrush with Smart Guide
Customer Review: My Third Oral B in 20 years - all three still working
Summary: 5 Stars
This is my 3rd OB in 20 years. My first brush still works although doesn't stay charged more than about a week. I bought my 2nd OB about 5 years ago at a blowout price at a discounter because OB was retooling their design. (I paid $18 for a then $87 brush.)
I brush my teeth in the shower because it just seems easier and my dentist really noticed a difference when I started to do that. I use the water from the shower head to rinse and that becomes a bit like a Waterpik type of rinse.
For 5 years I would use one brush while the other was charging and then switch out to do the same.
Since receiving this brush slightly more than a month ago, I have "retired" my other 2 brushes and just use this one. One of the reasons I "retired" the other brushes is that because they used the same charging base, this new one has a new designed charger. I didn't want to clutter up my counter with 2 different charging bases.
I splurged on this highend brush because my teeth were retaining stain (huge coffee, tea, wine drinker and smoker).
I am thrilled with the results. First, I discovered how easy it is for me to apply too much pressure on my front teeth in my attempt to brush away the stains. The alert light really helps here. The SmartGuide has a decent enough transmission coverage that I can place it anywhere in my bathroom and it still functions. Because I brush in the shower this was important to me. I am about to place it permanently on my mirror across from the shower.
I enjoy that the power handle "knows" when I have the floss or polish head in and adjusts itself accordingly. All other heads do not yet have a chip in them so the handle just acts like a "normal" brush.
My teeth feel very much like a dentist clean after using this model. Much better than my other 2 models. I have only used the floss head and the majority of the stains are gone and my teeth are whiter. I am currently using Rembrandt toothpaste with the heads. I have not even used the polishing head yet.
I brush according to the feedback of 30 sec per quadrant with the first 30 sec focused on my front teeth to get the full effect of the toothpaste on the stains and then brush for a total of 2 1/2 minutes with 30 sec per quadrant.
To get a full charge (each full charge lasts approx 2 weeks - I haven't run it completely down yet and recharge it after its been in the last indicator bar for a few days - I let the power handle charge appox 24 hrs using the brush for one brush that night before putting it back in the charger.
I listen to the radio in the bathroom while getting ready and while the "old" chargers never interfered with the radio, this charger does. I just pull the brush out of the charger until I'm done to eliminate that awful high pitched sound interference. The Smart Guide and radio do not seem to impact each other.
For me, this powerbrush was a great value and because of my long lived experience with Braun, left little to worry about. I check the power handle for leakage since I use this in the shower, and there is a review somewhere here that had that problem, but so far I've had no problems. The manual says it is waterproof.
I do not regret this purchase and I doubt I will. If this lasts as long as my other OB's, I will likely replace it long before I have to.
Customer Review: How expensive is too expensive?
Summary: 4 Stars
I have always been a fan of electric toothbrushes, they have always given me a good excuse to stop exercising my hand and actually get ready in the morning. The last oral-b professional care toothbrush failed on me after a few years, and since then I was a bit unwilling to fork out money for a new one. It was just as well as during my hiatus, I went on and had braces fitted on my teeth. So it was back to manual for about two years. Orthodontic electric brush heads were not widely available (and more importantly costly) and I have hated waking up every single day I had braces on.
Having braces fitted was never cheap to start with. So if one could justify the cost paying for the pain to align teeth together, it made me realize that an electric toothbrush was a very small and insignificant cost when compared, and that I should make sure my original investment was, at the very least, worth the pain in the first place. So in a heartbeat, I went back to using an electric toothbrush again. Oral-B Triumph it was.
It was certainly the right decision as I was instantly taken back to the point in time when I remembered why I used an electric toothbrush in the first place. My teeth felt cleaner when compared to using a manual brush.
But does it clean your teeth any better? Yes and no depending on wether you properly use your manual toothbrush. The 2-minute timer felt too short as I have been disciplined and trained to brush properly with a manual and compounded with the fact I had braces on which required extra care. I can't help but feel I am cheating as it only took 2-minutes to get a result that would have otherwise taken longer with manual toothbrush. That in itself is worth it. But not all electric toothbrushes are created equal, with the Triumph's 8,800 oscillations and 40,000 pulsations per minute is one of the best I have used. It is also a rotation oscillation brush which numerous studies that seem to indicate helps reduce plaque and gum disease. Insist on that. I also like how the unit is able to automatically distinguish different brush modes when switching between the everyday floss action and polishing brush head.
The power adaptor is a dual voltage adaptor which is great for travelers. The base charger is also compact and light weight. The travel case which holds two brush heads is also handy to keep things tidy. I found the Smart Guide to be entirely a gimmick - its now stored away in the box as I have no use or time to look into the display. Certainly not worth polluting the environment with keeping the unit running.
The effectiveness of electric toothbrushes versus manual toothbrushes have and will continue to be the subject of debate, what really matters is your choice of the two is insignificant if you have the wrong brushing technique to begin with - and that is one thing everyone can agree on. Others have a different reason altogether - for those who have rheumatoid arthritis. For me, the idea that I know I will get an effective clean in just 2 minutes rather than spending more time to achieve the same result was reason enough.
Customer Review: Absolutely the Best Yet (We've Tried Many Toothbrushes)
Summary: 5 Stars
Our family has used a lot of different electric toothbrushes in the last fifteen years and this one is the best ever.
This is why:
1. The Smart Guide Technology is GREAT. In the past, with other toothbrushes without the 'smart guide' we did not know if we were putting enough or too much pressure on our teeth with the toothbrush.
With a different Oral B model a few years ago I used too much pressure and temporarily damaged the enamel on my teeth. A dentist told me to lighten up on the pressure. But after that I stopped using that toothbrush out of fear of damaging my teeth. A relative also used that same model and damaged his enamel so badly that he sought the care of a dentist who confirmed his enamel was damaged (temporarily) but it was so bad he had to take painkilling medication. In the model's defense my husband used that same model with no problem.
This Oral B model is superior because it senses the pressure so we don't damage our teeth AND so that we apply enough pressure to clean our teeth well.
I have my children using this now also as now they know when they are applying the right amount of pressure. I have struggled over the years to try to get them to brush their teeth well enough and long enough.
2. The visual aid helps with the timing of the brushing. The little screen shows the time in numbers and it shows what quadrant of the teeth to brush at that time.
Yes other electric toothbrushes that my children used had a beep or a pause in the brushing action to indicate each 30 second segment of time. But for whatever reason, this different visual aid is helping them more. They like to watch it and count down the time. They make a game of it. (You can also change it to count up if you prefer that.) My kids are no longer claiming to 'not hear the beep' or to rush through the brushing and shut it off saying 'it must have been long enough and it must be making a mistake to still be on'. The kids (boys age 8 and 11) also like the visual reminder of which quadrant to brush in that 30 second segment.
3. After the cleaning my mouth feels like it does after a professional cleaning.
4. Lastly and less importantly, the boys think the toothbrush with the screen is cool and fun.
Confession: My husband is a toothbrush junkie always in search of the latest and best one on the market. This is why our family has bought (too many) electric toothbrushes in the past. I'm the type who uses one that works well until it dies, but he is the one spending money to buy the latest and greatest. In this case I am glad he bought this one!
Honestly this is a great toothbrush!
Customer Review: Great Brush - Useless SmartGuide
Summary: 4 Stars
This is my first powered toothbrush so I thought I should get a top-of-the-line product with features that would help me use it correctly.
Toothbrush - First of all, the toothbrush is excellent. It was intimidating at first because the powered brushing felt more aggressive than manual brushing. I liked being able to use the softer, slower setting for a while until I felt comfortable moving up to the normal speed. I really feel like I'm getting a thorough cleaning with this toothbrush vs. manual brushing. I could immediately feel the difference even after the first use and over time my teeth are whiter and my gums are healthier. I used to have a problem with my gums bleeding when I brushed or flossed them. Now, after having used this toothbrush for several weeks the bleeding from brushing and flossing has stopped completely.
SmartGuide - This is the only letdown of the product and almost not worth the extra $40-$50 over getting the toothbrush by itself. At first, I liked that the SmartGuide would let me know when I'm pressing too hard. However, after the first brushing I learned how much pressure is enough to apply and this feature is now useless as I don't press too hard anymore. The indicator that shows which mode/speed you are on is useless after you've used it a couple times and it's clear by the motion/noise of the toothbrush head which mode/speed you are on. The mouth quadrant feature has been totally useless from the very beginning. I assumed this would keep track of where you started last time and switch it up to make sure you start at a different spot each time. Nope, it always starts at the uppper-right and works clockwise. I'm no expert toothbrusher, but I feel like I should start in a different place each time. The ONLY benefit, for me, of having the SmartGuide is the built in timer & clock. The SmartGuide timer is nice because you can have the SmartGuide out in front of you and watch the timer. I like being able to watch the timer so I can anticipate the quadrant changes and make sure I give the front and back sides of teeth at least 10-15sec each. When the SmartGuide isn't in use, it becomes a digital clock. It's hard justifying the extra $40-$50 it cost to get this SmartGuide added to the toothbrush you can get by itself for less. Lacking useful features, but having the useful timer & clock feels like it should only be worth an additional $15-$20.
Overall, this model is nice for a first time user and to get acquainted with a powered toothbrush, but I'll cut costs next time and just get the brush by itself with a cheap cooking/egg timer. The SmartGuide is overrated and I wish it had more to offer.
Customer Review: Please read my warning
Summary: 2 Stars
I recently purchased the Oral B Triumph 9900 for my wife and I. My first time using it I did not notice that my teeth felt any cleaner, however, I did like the wireless timer that allows me to monitor my brush time. Over a period of several weeks I have grown to like my Triumph. I find that it works relatively well and I enjoy the pulsing and vibrating feeling on my teeth. My compliant is not with the brushes performance, but with Oral-B's lack of customer compassion in the designing of this tooth brush.
At first glance I noticed that this brush was powered by a rechargeable NI-MH battery, which was one of the reasons I purchased this product in the first place. However, upon further inspection I released that Braun has intentionally gone out of their way to ensure that no one could replace the battery with ease or without voiding warranty. After doing some research it turns out that the brush runs off a 1.2V 2000 mAH single AA rechargeable battery. Something rather easily replaced for a few dollars. However, Braun has decided to make life hell for anyone not willing to shell out $180 every year for a new tooth brush. They intentionally soldered the battery to the circuit board and used a non-standard triangular shaped screw to open the battery casing which is made of cheap soft plastic which will strip after a few uses.
After reading many online reviews most brushes were lasting between 6 months to 1.5 years before the battery dies (I wont mention the anything about the screen condensation since I have not had this problem to date). Naturally this depends on how often you brush your teeth and recharge the battery, as well as how long it is left on the charger for.
The worst part about all of this is that the tooth brush itself is perfectly fine, there is nothing wrong with it other than a dead rechargeable battery. If Braun had made the handle a simple screw with a housing for a standard rechargeable battery then we would not need to throw away a perfectly functional piece of technology just because the battery died. Shame on you Braun for wasting these tooth brushes and forcing customers to spend excess money.
If you are somewhat electronically inclined and can use a soldering iron then you can try to replace the battery yourself for a few dollars. Once my tooth brush dies that is my plan of action. You can also find plenty of videos online for free, walking you through this process.