Hum by Colgate Review

Name: Hum by Colgate
Brand: Colgate

A compact, lightweight, Bluetooth-enabled model that gives users information to brush better

Price: $70 List

Manufacturer: Colgate

By Ben Applebaum-Bauch ⋅ Review Editor ⋅ January 6, 2022

OVERALL
SCORE

RANKED
#19 of 19

Cleaning - 40% 3.0
Comfort - 30% 5.9
Ease of Use - 20% 6.7
Battery Life - 10% 1.0

$68 at Amazon

Our Verdict

The Hum by Colgate lives up to its name. With three different intensity modes and a companion smartphone app, this brush is designed to help you make the most of your routine. Its handle is slender and the brush head is small, making it a great option for people with small mouths and small teeth. It has a very basic one-button interface that is easy to use. We found that cleaning results didn't quite live up to what we expected, but its compact size and included travel case make a good companion brush if you don't want to pack a charger too.

REASONS TO BUY

Compact

Travel case

REASONS TO AVOID

Below average cleaning

Shorter battery life

Our Analysis and Test Results

This brush is one of the smallest and lightest in the category. We tested the rechargeable version. It comes Bluetooth-enabled and easily pairs with the Hum app for brushing insights to help you improve your routine. Though it's not the most powerful in the category, what separates this product from most others is the useful data that it collects on brushing patterns and where in your mouth the user is (or is not) hitting.

hum by colgate - the hum is a tiny brush that does well as a companion to a more... — The Hum is a tiny brush that does well as a companion to a more powerful model.
Credit: Ben Applebaum-Bauch

Cleaning

This brush doesn't excel at cleaning. The brush head is especially small so it certainly doesn't cover ground quickly. And even the most intense of the three settings really is more of a hum than a deep clean. The brush head has multiple different types of bristles, however, the outermost layer of long, 'whisker' bristles feels like it keeps the rest of the inner ones from making solid contact with teeth and gums. The toothbrush head also has a textured tongue brush on the backside that ended up being more of a design aesthetic than a functional tool; if you want to clean your tongue, just use the brush.

hum by colgate - the app shows your brushing stats for each session including... — The app shows your brushing stats for each session including duration, coverage, and areas the user missed.
Credit: Ben Applebaum-Bauch

On the plus side, it does provide useful data to help you improve your technique and thoroughness. If you synch the brush with the Hum smartphone app, you can see information about the areas you hit and missed each and every time you brush, which you can use to adjust your brushing habits and cover more ground with greater consistency.

Comfort

For those with sensitive gums, this is a good option. We found that even the most intense setting was comfortable to use for testers with mouth sensitivity. It doesn't come with a pressure sensor but even when we intentionally pressed firmly, we found that the softness of the bristles kept us from any discomfort.

When it comes to sound, we found that this brush really lives up to its name. Its vibrational frequency really is more of a hum than the lower tone buzzing of many electric brushes.

hum by colgate - the brush has a different led color for each of its three modes. — The brush has a different LED color for each of its three modes.
Credit: Ben Applebaum-Bauch

Ease of Use

The Hum is easy to use. The power button is located right where the thumb naturally rests when holding the handle so it has a nice ergonomic quality. Pressing the button in quick succession also cycles through the three intensity settings. During testing, we had a couple of instances where we were trying to switch modes but inadvertently turned off the brush (and vice versa), but all in all, we were impressed with how the single button was touch-sensitive enough that it just seemed to 'know' when we wanted to change settings versus turn it off.

hum by colgate - this model has a slender, ergonomic handle that makes it good for... — This model has a slender, ergonomic handle that makes it good for people with small hands.
Credit: Ben Applebaum-Bauch

We also found that toothpaste residue didn't accumulate nearly as much as some other models. The two-minute timer is useful to keep brushers accountable for a full session.

Battery Life

The battery life of this brush was below average but totally fine. We consistently got about 10 days worth (20 brushes) on a single charge. We also found that it maintains its power throughout a charge cycle.

hum by colgate - the travel case makes it even easier to carry around this brush on... — The travel case makes it even easier to carry around this brush on an overnight trip.
Credit: Ben Applebaum-Bauch

The brush is equipped with an LED light around the power button that turns red when it is time to recharge.

Value

Though it is relatively inexpensive compared to other electric brushes, we found that its lackluster cleaning performance also limits the amount of value it delivers.

Conclusion

The Hum by Colgate is a compact electric toothbrush that performs better as a backup than as the main attraction. Its small brush head is more comfortable for smaller mouths, but its cleaning power didn't wow us. However, if you want to gather data about how you brush and the spots you miss, this one will give you insights on how to improve your routine.