Today, let’s talk about the scourge that is the smart toothbrush.
I’m a proponent of electric toothbrushes. They make oral hygiene easier to achieve for most configurations of teeth. My mouth is healthier for them. I’ve used brushes from both Oral-B and Sonicare (I use a 10+ year old FlexCare, which is a discontinued model; I would buy this one today) in my lifetime, and both made a positive impact on my oral hygiene and wellbeing, especially as I went through my Invsalign journey.
At some point within the last decade, those companies decided that the world really needed–that consumers really wanted– a smart toothbrush. Sigh.
What is a Smart Toothbrush?
A smart toothbrush is an electric toothbrush that incorporates advanced technology and connectivity features to enhance the brushing experience. These toothbrushes often come with built-in sensors, Bluetooth or Wi-Fi connectivity, and smartphone apps or companion software.
Many modern electric toothbrushes still incorporate sensors to caution you against using too much pressure and timers to alert you when to change quadrants. So… why all the connections and internet? Why does my toothbrush need an internet connection or bluetooth?
Why Does a Toothbrush Need an Internet Connection?
In theory, the value smart toothbrushes provide lies in being able to provide you with data on your brushing habits. They can also gamify your daily hygiene by giving you virtual headpats for, you know, being an adult and taking care of your teeth.
Sense my derision?
There are only two areas in which I think you might not want to skip the smart toothbrush:
- Some smart toothbrushes offer personalized coaching based on your brushing habits. Their app may provide recommendations for areas you need to focus on or suggest improvements in your technique.
- You have children and want to help guide them in developing good oral hygiene habits. I don’t like spying on kids and don’t think this should be done surreptitiously; I think it could be used to drive learning experiences to develop healthy habits (e.g., you look at the results together and address opportunities or reward progress).
But I still don’t like the data collection implications of smart brush x tiny human...more on that below.
You Should Skip the Smart Toothbrush
First, they’re ludicrously expensive for how little additional value they add. You’re looking at $230-330 for Oral-B and Sonicare’s smart models. They also come in fancier, more luxurious-looking styles but holy shit, it is a toothbrush, not an accessory. Does it need to be chic? Do we need to, “elevate,” every part of our existence? (NO.)
Your Data is Valuable
Second, do you really want to pay more money to fork over data about your brushing habits? Or your child’s data? If you think for one moment that you won’t be required to create an account to use the companion app, think again.
Smart Toothbrush Features Don’t Justify Connectivity
These internet-connected, data-collecting features don’t do anything to improve the actual PERFORMANCE of the smart toothbrush. It doesn’t oscillate or pulse more effectively. It doesn’t tailor those performance elements based on your usage patterns.
When the base models of most of these toothbrushes have brush- or even quadrant-timers, is it really that important to be able to see a trend graph in an app of your brush time? Brush until the brush signals that you’re done! It isn’t that difficult.
This is Going to be a Hot Take
If, as an adult, you need virtual internet points to encourage you to manage your hygiene – candidly, for most people, I don’t know what to say.
Whatever works, I guess, but I think there’s a greater issue with discipline worth addressing that will help you in other areas of your life, too. Buying a $250 internet-enabled smart toothbrush is treating a symptom, not the root cause.
I’m not without empathy. I understand that executive dysfunction really benefits from accountability strategies. But speaking as a technologist, there are other ways to create accountability mechanisms that cost less, that are less invasive, and that add more utility to other areas of your life if you need that support.
The Bottom Line
With the prevalence of smart devices, many aspects of our daily routines are being transformed by technology. As a techie, I enjoy a lot of these advancements – but I don’t embrace all of them equally.
For example, you will not find an Amazon Echo device or Google’s equivalent in my home. I have yet to be convinced that we “””need,””” “smart,” refrigerators (until they can keep inventory and order my groceries for me).
On the other hand, my smart thermostat provides convenience and value in helping us manage our comfort and energy bills. I love that my Eufy robovac helps me keep up with housekeeping; with four cats and a dusty 100+ year old home, that thing puts in work.
I think it is important, as consumers, to critically think before adopting products to ensure that the trade-offs we’re making really make sense. The sophistication of smart toothbrushes is not yet to a point where it provides me enough value to share my data – especially when we’re talking something health-adjacent.