Oral-B Genius 9000

What is the Oral-B Genius 9000?

Having an electric toothbrush is one thing, using it to maximum effect is something different. The Oral-B Genius 9000 aims to solve that problem, with on-brush feedback to let you know when you’re applying too much pressure, and an app that provides tips on how to use your toothbrush properly.

With a USB travel case, multiple brushes in the box and several cleaning modes, the Oral-B Genius 9000 is a top toothbrush for those who want the best rotating model.

Related: Best electric toothbrushes

Oral-B Genius 9000 – Design and features

The Oral-B Genius 9000 looks like it means business. Sporting a slightly chunkier handle than other models, a body full of icons and the glowing colour ring at the top, this certainly looks like a high-end toothbrush.

My review model is black, but you can also buy the Genius 9000 in white, silver, rose gold and purple, making it easy to find one that suits you.

Despite the chunky size, the Genius 9000 is easy to hold and use. A power button turns on the brush, with the status ring lighting up. The default is for a white light, but you can customise this using the Oral-B smartphone app to select your own colour. The light turns red if you apply too much pressure.

Via the selector button you choose the brush mode. The default is a standard clean, which has no indicator, but tap the selector button and the icons on the front of the brush light up to display the mode selected.

Some of the icons are a little tricky to decipher, so you’ll need the manual handy to work out what they mean.

With the Professional Timer turned on, the brush pulses and the light flashes at each quarter interval, prompting you to move onto the next quadrant of your mouth. Most cleaning cycles are around two minutes, giving you 30-second pulses, but there are some longer modes, too.

Modes include Pro Clean (intense brushing), which lasts for three minutes; Sensitive, for a more gentle clean for those with sensitive gums; 3D White, where the brush gears up and down to polish your teeth; Gum Care, which gently massages your gums; and Tongue Clean, for occasional use to keep your tongue clean, and which lasts 20 seconds.

To go with the various modes, you also get a selection of toothbrush heads. You get two CrossAction (an every-day brush head); a 3D White brush head (designed to polish your teeth with the polishing cup); and a Sensi Ultrathin (for sensitive teeth and for cleaning your tongue).

The brush heads feature indicator bristles: once the blue fades to half-way, you know that it’s time to change the head. Depending on how vigorously you brush, you’ll need new heads around every three months, with replacements costing around £11 for a set of four.

Oral-B provides a case in which you can store all four brush heads. This clips over the charging stand to keep everything nice and neat.

You get a charging travel case, too, which keeps your brush protected and can also charge it when you plug in the supplied two-pin adapter. I’d have preferred a USB input, since it’s likely to be more useful when travelling.

Note that the case has a USB port, so you can charge other devices through it as well. You may be better off with your standard charger if you want fast-charging on a phone or tablet, though. Also, do you really want to charge your other devices in a bathroom, next to the two-pin socket?

The toothbrush can take up to 12 hours to charge, and should last up to 12 days off a single charge, assuming twice daily cleaning at two minutes a go. A battery warning indicator lights up when it’s time to charge, giving you enough time to top up the battery before it runs out of juice completely.

Oral-B Genius 9000 – App

With Bluetooth built in, the Oral-B Genius 9000 can also communicate with the smartphone app. At its most basic, the app simply displays which mode the brush is set to, and lets you change the colour of the light ring.

However, it’s also designed to help you brush better, keeping track of how you’ve brushed. To use it properly, you need to have your phone on display. You can do this using the rubber-sucker mount, which attaches firmly to a mirror and grips your smartphone, or you can use the stand built into the travel case.

On timer mode, the app starts automatically at the point you turn on your brush. It counts down in 30-second quadrants, helping you clean the right parts of your mouth. If you press too hard, you’ll receive a warning.

The app has a positional tracking mode, which uses your phone’s camera to track where the brush is, and is supposed to help you clean evenly.

However, I found the tracking to be hit and miss. At one point the app was showing that I was cleaning a part of my mouth that the brush was nowhere near. As neat as the app is, it isn’t something that I’d use often.

Oral-B Genius 9000 – Brush performance

Taking the test teeth and setting them up with beetroot and spinach debris, I tested how good the Oral-B Genius 9000 was at cleaning. The CrossAction brush fitted neatly between the gaps in the teeth, making it easy to target specific parts of mouth.

The tough rotating action pulled out the debris and polished away the beetroot stains. The pressure sensor makes it easier to brush, letting you know that you’re applying just the right amount of stress to clean. At the end of the clean, the toothbrush had removed all stains perfectly.

Using the brush to clean my teeth, the Oral-B Genius 9000 took a little while to get used to. This is Oral-B’s most powerful brush, with 10,500 rotations and 48,000 pulsations per minute. It has a very vigorous action, and I could really feel it at work.

With the tough bristles on the CrossAction brush, I could certainly feel my teeth being cleaned. As such, a bit of light gum bleeding for a couple of days is to be expected. It took me three days to be fully happy with this brush.

The one thing that’s hard to escape is the noise. Peaking at 82.4dB, the Oral-B Genius 9000 is super-loud. Sound levels aren’t enough to put me off, but just something to be aware of.

Why buy the Oral-B Genius 9000?

Although I didn’t find the app particularly useful, the Oral-B Genius 9000 is a top toothbrush offering excellent value. Its array of toothbrush heads, powerful performance and superb choice of cleaning modes make it a real winner.

Looking for a rotating electric toothbrush? Then this is the best model you can buy.

Verdict

By far the best oscillating electric toothbrush you can buy.

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