Like it more than Sonicare I had for almost 15 years
I've had the the iO8 for a little over a month now, so here goes... After almost 15 years, my Sonicare finally bit the dust. It was a great toothbrush, but I used the opportunity to explore other options. When I bought the iO8, the iO10 was the latest and greatest, but the iO10 was over 200 dollars more, and as far as I could tell, the only inherent differences where a base that lit up, a speckled handle (super cool aesthetic - that's not sarcasm) and an extra tongue cleaning mode? None of these could get me to justify the price difference so I got the 8 on sale. Overall, I am VERY happy with switch over from Sonicare. The features I think are better than Sonicare are: • the weight and form factor (I know things have changed in 15 years - my wife has a new Sonicare, so even compared to that I think this guy has a leg up). • the LCD screen. This is really great. I thought it was a little gimmicky at first, but it does some great things. It lets me know how long I have been brushing, it's visible while brushing from my peripheral, it tells me the percentage of battery is left, and the visual rewards when you finish (I live for the starred-eye happy face) actually must do something, because I shoot to get that guy every time. • the charging base is magnetic and heavier, which is not only more secure, but feels more modern. • the rotating brush action feels closer to the dentist cleaning which I dig. My teeth feel cleaner after brushing with this compared to the Sonicare. • the iO8 has more cleaning modes than the Sonicare. Granted I only use the intense mode, but that's me. • I like that the timer on the iO8 just keeps going. The Sonicare just turns off after 2 minutes, but the iO8 will let you keep brushing if you choose to. • while brushing, the iO8 will give periodic buzzes every 30 seconds. The Sonicare does too, but the iO8 will buzz a number of times to let you know which interval you are at. 30 = 1 buzz, 60 = 2 buzzes...resets after 2 minutes. There is one area where iO8 falters compared to the Sonicare, and it's not so much the brush but the iO brush heads. For some reason, Oral-B decided to put two little holes towards on the head close to the brush itself. I can't decipher any functional reason, so it must be for aesthetics? When you brush your teeth, these holes collect saliva and feed it down the interior of the brush head where it naturally leaks out the bottom. For a second, I thought, as a 42 year old person, that I had forgotten how to not drool all over myself. Seriously Oral-B, get this together. The iO8 also has an app that I have used a total of one time. I tend to brush my teeth in the shower most of the time and, even when I don't, I'm not going to watch my phone to determine where I have brushed well or not. So that's gimmicky. Also, and my dentist told me this before I got the iO8, Oral-B heads are taller than Sonicare heads. So if you have a tiny mouth (not me), you might want to reconsider. As mentioned before, I REALLY like this toothbrush. When I see the dentist next l, I won't have to lie about brushing twice a day. Read more